Our Mediterranean white bean salad is a healthy dish with cannellini beans, fresh herbs, and veggies tossed in a Mediterranean dressing.
For more bean salad recipes, try our black bean salad, mediterranean salad, easy pasta salad, and piyaz salad.
A 10-minute Bean Salad to Try
Growing up in Italy, I had cannellini beans often, in rice salad, with pasta, potato salads and in soups (ribollita anyone?).
My nonna Lidia would often cook a big steaming batch of white beans and use them in various dishes.
This white bean salad, however, is a Mediterranean mix between a simple Italian salad, shirazi salad and tabbouleh.
Louise and I love serving it with other Mediterranean side dishes, such as baba ganoush and mutabal. It is also easily upgraded to a meal when you serve it with:
- Yogurt tahini sauce or crumbled feta cheese added into the salad.
- Sumac marinated onions or quick pickled red onions.
- A side of homemade pita bread or focaccia bread.
Alternatively, mix it with quinoa, orzo, pasta, bulgur, buckwheat, or couscous.
No matter how you enjoy it, this salad always brings a little Mediterranean sunshine to your table ☀️.
Ingredients
Find complete ingredient list, quantities, and substitutions in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
- White beans – Canned or cooked cannellini beans. Substitute with navy, great northern, lima, butter beans, chickpeas, lentils, or black beans.
- Tomatoes – Ripe vine tomatoes, or any variety like Roma, grape, date, or cherry.
- Cucumber – Any type works: Persian, English, or American.
- Scallions – Also called green or spring onions. For a milder bite, use shallots or red onion.
- Parsley – Fresh flat-leaf parsley is best. You can mix or swap with basil, mint, dill, or cilantro.
- Sun-dried tomatoes in oil – Adds bold flavor and chewiness. Swap with olives or marinated artichokes.
- Dressing – Extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and optional sumac.
- Optional add-ins – Jalapeños, pickled red onions, crumbled feta (our favorite), corn, or oregano.
How to make a white bean salad
Step 1: Combine Salad Ingredients – In a large mixing bowl, add the drained and rinsed white beans, tomato wedges, diced cucumber, thinly sliced scallions (both white and green parts), chopped parsley, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and optional crumbled feta.
Step 2: Whisk the Dressing – In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, grated garlic, sumac (if using), salt, and black pepper until well combined.
Step 3: Toss and let it rest – Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat. Serve right away, or let it sit for 15 minutes to let the flavors mingle—it gets even better with a little time.
Tips
- Use high-quality beans – Rinse canned beans well or cook dried beans until tender and season at the end.
- Let the salad marinate – Rest 15–30 minutes to let the beans soak up all the flavors.
- Balance the dressing – Lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and a splash of vinegar or sumac create the perfect tang.
- Chop everything evenly – Uniform pieces make each bite balanced and visually appealing.
- Use fresh herbs generously – Parsley is key; add mint, dill, or basil for extra freshness.
- Add crunch or heat if desired – Jalapeños, pickled onions, or bell peppers make great custom add-ins.
- Serve chilled or at room temp – Great for meal prep, potlucks, or quick lunches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! It actually gets better after sitting for a few hours or overnight. Just store it in the fridge in an airtight container.
It keeps well for 3 to 4 days. Give it a stir before serving, and add a splash of lemon or olive oil if it looks dry.
Absolutely. Navy, great northern, chickpeas, butter beans, and even lentils work well.
It’s already protein-packed with beans, but you can add fried tofu, baked tofu, tempeh, grilled chicken, or a sprinkle of seeds for even more.
Be generous with salt, lemon, and herbs. Letting it marinate also boosts flavor.
More Easy Salad Recipes
If you tried this White Bean Salad or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it goes in the comments. We love hearing from you!
White Bean Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cans (15 ounces) cannellini beans or 3 cups cooked cannellini
- 2 medium vine tomatoes cut into wedges
- 1½ cups cucumber diced
- 3 scallions thinly sliced
- 1 cup flat-leaf parsley chopped
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil chopped
- 6 ounces feta optional, sub non-dairy feta
For the Dressing
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons vinegar apple cider or red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sumac sub 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 small clove garlic grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Combine Salad Ingredients – In a large mixing bowl, add the drained and rinsed white beans, tomato wedges, diced cucumber, thinly sliced scallions (both white and green parts), chopped parsley, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, and optional crumbled feta.
- Whisk the Dressing – In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, grated garlic, sumac (if using), salt, and black pepper until well combined.
- Toss and let it rest – Pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat. Let it sit for 15 minutes to let the flavors mingle—it gets even better with a little time.
Video
Notes
- White beans → Navy beans, great northern, butter beans, baby lima, chickpeas, lentils, or black beans
- Tomatoes → Roma, grape, cherry, or date tomatoes
- Cucumber → Persian, English, or American cucumber
- Scallions → Shallot or mild red onion
- Parsley → Fresh basil, mint, dill, or cilantro, alternatively 1 tsp dried oregano
- Sun-dried tomatoes → Kalamata olives or marinated artichokes
- Dressing (sumac optional) → Replace sumac with cumin or omit
- Feta → Optional, substitute non-dairy feta.
- Use high-quality beans – Rinse canned beans well or cook dried beans until tender and season at the end.
- Let the salad marinate – Rest 15–30 minutes to let the beans soak up all the flavors.
- Balance the dressing – Lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and a splash of vinegar or sumac create the perfect tang.
- Chop everything evenly – Uniform pieces make each bite balanced and visually appealing.
- Use fresh herbs generously – Parsley is key; add mint, dill, or basil for extra freshness.
- Add crunch or heat if desired – Jalapeños, pickled onions, or bell peppers make great custom add-ins.
- Serve chilled or at room temp – Great for meal prep, potlucks, or quick lunches.
Nutrition
Hi! We are Nico & Louise
We’re here to share delicious, easy, and healthy plant-based recipes (vegetarian & vegan) 🌿✨.
Welcome to our blog, we are glad you are here.
Is it just me, or is the picture completely different from the recipe. The picture includes pickles, olives, red onions etc. Is there a reason these weren’t included in the recipe?
Hi Stef,
Thanks for your message 🙂
Pickles, olives, and red onions are serving suggestions and not part of the actual recipe. It’s to give you
We list those ingredients in the “serving suggestions chapter” in the body of the blog post.
I hope this helps, let us know if you have any other questions.
Have a wonderful day.
Nico
Very delicious, simple and quick! Perfect for hot summer days!
Looks fabulous for my Mother’s Day “all salads” meal. When I make it in advance, do I dress it and store it? Or make salad and still dress 15 minutes before serving? Thank you for all the great recipes!
Hi Dorothy,
Yes, you can dress the salad and make it ahead of Mother’s Day; for up to 3 days in advance.
Store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, and remove from the refrigerator 15 minutes before serving.
I hope this helps. Have a wonderful weekend. Kindest,
Louise