13 Dense Bean Salad Recipes for Make Ahead Lunches

Not every recipe or dinner trend from social media is worth your time, but every now and then something pops up in my feed that inspires a change in my meal routine. Content creator Violet Witchel’s weekly iteration of a “dense bean salad” is exactly the kind of idea that I can get on board with. Plenty of other home cooks have quickly become fans of the dense bean salad, too, and the dish is now being widely re-created and riffed on in social media feeds.

So what is a dense bean salad, and what makes it so great? This isn’t one specific recipe but rather a format — and one that is infinitely customizable. You, of course, need beans (canned are easiest), but from there you can toss in whatever else you want into this marinated mix. Hearty vegetables, herbs, alliums, nuts, fruit, and cheese are all acceptable. Most importantly, a dense bean salad is not a light and airy affair. Iceberg lettuce is likely not welcome, but some thinly chopped cabbage or kale could be, as long as the legumes are still the primary ingredient.

These nutrient-packed and hearty mixtures are ideal for meal prepping, since they don’t have tender lettuces that will wilt. They’ll also keep you full for longer, thanks to the higher protein content from beans, and they taste even better after a night in the fridge, once your dressing has had the chance to soak in.

Chickpea Salad with Chorizo and Red Peppers

Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling / Prop Styling by Risha Carnes

Bring nutty chickpeas, sweet roasted red bell pepper, and Spanish chorizo together in 10 minutes with a tangy, zesty apple cider vinegar dressing.

Texas Caviar

Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen

This cult-favorite Texas dish is a textbook dense bean salad. Feel free to customize the traditional combination of black-eyed peas, tomatoes, crunchy bell peppers, jalapeño, and onion, so long as you include our herby Italian-style dressing.

Lemony Chickpea Salad

Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Debbie Wee

Celebrity chef and Top Chef host Tom Colicchio folds cooked chickpeas in with quick-pickled onion and chopped peperoncini for this simple and satisfying salad that’s seasoned with garlic, rosemary, and oregano.

Cuban Black Beans

Maxwell Cozzi

Unlike many other dense bean salads, this recipe does call for cooking the legumes yourself — but it’s well worth the wait, and you can use canned black beans if you need to cut down on time. Combine black beans, tomato paste, and a fragrant sofrito of red, yellow, and green bell peppers, white onion, cumin, and oregano in this aromatic dish that tastes even better after a night in the fridge.

Quinoa, Corn, and Black Bean Salad

Food & Wine / Photo by Kelsey Hansen / Food Styling by Lauren McAnelly / Prop Styling by Joseph Wanek

Adjust the ratios as desired for this bean, vegetable, and grain bowl that can be a simple side or a make ahead lunch.

Green Bean, Butter Bean, and Tomato Salad

Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling / Prop Styling by Christina Daley

This salad features two types of beans, and we’re not mad about it. Pair rinsed and drained butter beans with fresh green beans, red and yellow cherry tomatoes, Castelvetrano olives, and a romesco made from salted roasted cashews, roasted red bell peppers, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Tangy Black-Eyed Pea Salad

Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Rishon Hanners / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen

Tomato, cilantro, garlic, scallions, chiles de árbol, and jalapeño are simmered alongside black-eyed peas, and used to make a punchy dressing, before being folded in with arugula, chopped cilantro, red onion, and another jalapeño to finish.

Cannellini-and-Green Bean Salad

Enhance creamy, mildly-flavored cannellini beans (or white beans) and green beans with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, fresh cilantro, and briny olives.

Charred Fava Bean Salad with Lemon and Tarragon

Char buttery fava beans in a hot skillet for a smoky flavor, then toss with them with garlic, jalapeño, tarragon, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for this warm salad from farmers market fan and iconic chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

Fennel-and-Fava-Bean Salad

Craft a quick and tangy salad full of texture with fresh fava beans, pine nuts, pistachios, wild fennel, jalapeño, cayenne, and a simple dressing of honey, lime juice, garlic, pumpkin seed, walnut, and olive oils.

Tuna-and-White-Bean Salad

Add even more protein to cannellini beans with some oil-packed canned tuna, plus nutritious watercress, salty capers, and sharp red onion to make this salad full of every flavor and texture you could want.

Smashed Cucumber Salad with Butter Beans and Tarragon

Jennifer Causey

Contrast rich, creamy butter beans with gently crushed cucumbers that soak up the surrounding dressing while still retaining a satisfying crunch. Tender tarragon adds fragrance and a delicate anise flavor to the salad, so it becomes even more refreshing.