I have the good fortune of living with a talented cook. Nick has experience working in professional kitchens, but chose not to become a career chef, opting rather to pursue cooking as a hobby. He is always at it, thinking up different things to do with easy to find and seasonal ingredients. I say this not to brag, but rather to give you faith that this is a tasty recipe!
This Make-Ahead Marinated Salad is a new take on a salad technique he uses regularly, in that this time he has used Green Beans as the main vegetable, though it can also be made with broccoli or asparagus.
The beans, (or broccoli or asparagus) are steamed until they’re tender and then tossed in an ice-bath to stop the cooking and keep them crisp. Then they are tossed with some red onion, feta cheese, sun-dried or kalamata olives, and roasted red pepper. An oil and vinegar marinade is added and the salad is put into the fridge for at least four hours, or overnight.
This is one of the ways he uses the red peppers that he roasts and freezes when we barbecue (as discussed in this post — they’re simple to make in the bbq or in the oven), but bottled roasted red peppers can certainly be used.
He tossed in some fresh basil and oregano because we had it handy growing in the garden, however fresh herbs are optional, as there are also dried herbs included in the marinade.
This salad gets better with time and is the perfect thing to make the day before a dinner party or to bring to a pot-luck. I hope you try it!
We got the green beans in Kensington Market, where they were half the price that they were at the grocery store.
[Aside: I’ve been asked about the pricing of fruits and vegetables in the market versus regular grocery stores — unless the grocery store is having a sale, prices in the market are usually quite a bit less. So, a trip to Kensington yields you some really fresh produce for a very good price, plus you get the bonus of a fun experience! Well, I guess if you like that kind of thing, that is.]
↑ The shop we shop at the most is Sunwah Fruit Market at 229 Augusta. It’s the place on the corner there. ↑
↑ Green beans in Kensington Market ↑
Back to the recipe …
↑ Steam beans ↑
↑ Chilling them in an ice bath, aka “shocking” them ↑
↑ Fresh herbs optional ↑
↑ Salad ingredients. The roasted red pepper is still a bit frozen here.↑
Make-Ahead Marinated Vegetable Salad
Marinade
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp each dried basil and oregano
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
Instructions
Combine marinade ingredients in a jar, put the lid on tightly and shake well.
Description
italian oil and vinegar marinade
Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound or so green beans, broccoli or asparagus
- 1 roasted red pepper, cut up
- 1/3 red onion, thinly sliced
- About 1/2 cup crumbled or cubed Feta Cheese
- About 30 sun-dried or Kalamata olives, pitted and cut in two (To pit olives make a cut lengthwise and smash with the side of a knife blade. The pit should come out easily.)
- About 1 tablespoon each of fresh basil and oregano (optional)
Instructions
Steam beans, (or broccoli or asparagus) until just cooked, and then dunk them into icy-cold water to stop the cooking. They should be cooked but still crispy.
Remove stems and cut beans in half (or cut broccoli or asparagus into bite sized pieces).
Combine with remaining salad ingredients and then stir in enough marinade to coat everything.
Store in fridge for at least four hours or overnight, stirring occasionally.
Any left-over marinade can be used as a salad dressing.
Refrigerated salad keeps for several days.
Description
Green bean salad
Ingredients part 3
Instructions part 3
Description part 3
Ingredients part 4
Instructions part 4
Description part 4
Thanks for checking out my post. Wishing you a great weekend. Happy Labour Day if you celebrate the holiday where you are!
xo loulou
