Lemony White Bean and Flat Bean Salad Recipe

At my local farm stand the fresh beans, heaped in bushel baskets, always call to me. Especially the flat Italian green beans.

Since they’re grown locally, these large, luscious beans aren’t always available. So when they’re in season, I tend to overbuy and hoard them.



I’m ashamed to say I’ve let a few pounds of lovely, pale green flat beans turn speckled in my refrigerator. This summer I’m making an effort to Check The Vegetable Crisper Regularly and rescue any hapless produce trapped in those chilly confines.

This Lemony White Bean and Flat Bean Salad is the result of my latest produce intervention. You might be inclined to think of it as a variation of an earlier white bean salad. But the addition of flat beans, cumin, turmeric and loads of cilantro make it quite different.

I added so much fresh chopped cilantro—at least a cup—that it turned the salad green, as you’ll see in the photos. If you’re not a fan of this slightly soapy-tasting herb, feel free to adjust cilantro quantities accordingly.



Lemony White Bean and Flat Bean Salad also uses a lot of lemon juice. Lately I’m finding an overdose of this fresh citrus juice improves just about anything I’m cooking. With the white beans and a handful of oil-cured olives, Lemony White Bean and Flat Bean Salad packs heft—and serves as a main course for the vegetarians in our house.

I make a big batch so I have several days’ worth of leftovers for lunch—or for that sustaining 4pm-two-spoonful-pre-dinner-snack.

Lemony White Bean and Flat Bean Salad

6 cups white beans, cooked
1/2 cup oil-cured black olives
4 scallions, thinly sliced
3 cups flat Italian or other green beans
1/2 -1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1/2 teaspoon whole cumin, slightly crushed—or use ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 cup plus two tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 2-3 large lemons

1. If using dried beans, see instructions for cooking legumes. Scoop cooked or drained, rinsed canned white beans into a large bowl along with olives and scallions.
2. Wash and trim Italian flat beans and cut into slices around 1 1/2 “.
3. In a large frying pan, heat two tablespoons of olive oil over medium flame.
4. When oil is fragrant, add green beans, stirring to fry. Add one clove crushed garlic and season beans with salt and pepper to taste. Cover pan with a lid and lower flame. Cook, stirring occasionally until beans soften, about ten minutes. Remove lid and continue to fry another 2-3 minutes until moisture evaporates. Turn off flame and let beans cool slightly.
5. Wash and chop cilantro.
6. Add flat beans, cilantro, cumin, turmeric, remaining clove of garlic, 1/3 cup olive oil and lemon juice to white beans, olives and scallions.
7. Gently stir all ingredients, adding salt and pepper to taste. Serve salad at room temperature or chilled.

Serves 6-8.