Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm
Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm also has olives, red pepper, and Feta, and this is a great summer salad for people who like green beans. And the addition of hearts of palm makes this a truly memorable salad!
PIN Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm to try it later!
It’s Father’s Day and if you’re making one of my recipes for Beef, Pork, and Lamb on the Grill, this Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm would be a nice low-carb salad to serve on the side. And I love this salad that uses hearts of palm, which is one of my favorite summer ingredients!
The other ingredients I love here are fresh oregano and fresh basil. I have both growing in front of my house so I used a generous amount in the dressing, but if you have to buy herbs you can buy basil and just use a little dried oregano. The flavor of both of those herbs goes perfectly with the Greek olives I used, but Greek olives are not everyone’s cup of tea, and if you prefer black olives you can use those.
No matter how much you switch it up to fit your own food preferences, I hope you’ll try this tasty salad that’s finally getting updated with better photos after nearly 10 years hanging out back in the archives! And Happy Father’s Day everyone!
What ingredients do you need?
- fresh green beans, preferably French green beans
- sliced Hearts of Palm (affiliate link)
- Kalamata olives or black olives, drained and sliced in half
- diced Roasted Red Peppers in a jar (affiliate link)
- crumbled Feta cheese
- fresh ground black pepper to taste
- Balsamic Vinegar (affiliate link)
- fresh squeezed lemon juice (I used my fresh-frozen lemon juice)
- Olive Oil (affiliate link)
- lemon zest (probably optional, but good) (lemon zester (affiliate link)
- chopped fresh oregano (or use small amount Dried Oregano (affiliate link)
- chopped fresh basil (I would omit basil if I only had dried basil)
What are Hearts of Palm?
This salad uses hearts of palm, which is one of my favorite summer ingredients and something I used regularly for a long time. Then Costco stopped carrying those big jars of hearts of palm; don’t you hate it when that happens? So if you have to buy those pricey little jars from the grocery store, you can get away with a lot less hearts of palm than I’m using here, but please don’t leave it out! The hearts of palm are amazing in this salad.
If you’re not familiar with them, Hearts of palm are a slightly-crunchy vegetable that’s harvested from the center of domesticated palm trees. They used to be a controversial ingredient, but now harvesting methods don’t damage the trees and wild palms are protected in many places. And Hearts of Palm are so delicious! Here’s more about Hearts of Palm and how to use them.
How to make Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm:
(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)
- Trim the beans, then steam then for about 7 minutes, using a steamer insert (affiliate link) in a large pot or an electric vegetable steamer (affiliate link).
- As soon as beans are tender-crisp plunge them into ice water to stop the cooking; then drain very well in a colander placed in the sink.
- This is a shot of the big jars of Hearts of Palm I used to get at Costco, sigh. You can use less if you’re buying them in the grocery store!
- Drain and slice the Hearts of Palm (affiliate link), cut olives in half, and measure out the Feta.
- Combine the balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, lemon zest, chopped fresh oregano, and chopped fresh basil to make the dressing. (I use my immersion blender with a bowl attachment to make the dressing, but a food processor will work well too. (affiliate links)
- By now the beans should be pretty well drained, so spread out on paper towels and blot dry so the salad won’t be watery.
- Toss together the beans, sliced hearts of palm, chopped Roasted Red Peppers in a jar (affiliate link), and olives with as much dressing as you prefer.
- Then gently mix in the Feta and season the salad to taste with fresh-ground black pepper.
Make it a Low-Carb Meal:
Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm would taste great with Very Greek Grilled Chicken, Steak and Mushroom Kabobs, Grilled Sausage and Peppers, Rosemary-Mustard Grilled Chicken, or Grilled Flat Iron Steak with Chimichurri Sauce for a low-carb meal.
More Green Beans to Enjoy:
Green Bean Salad with Greek Olives and Feta Cheese
Green Beans with Lemon, Parmesan, and Pine Nuts
Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm
This Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm, Olives, Red Pepper, and Feta is a great side dish for a summer picnic.
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 lb. fresh green beans, preferably French green beans
- 2 cups sliced hearts of palm (more or less is fine)
- 3/4 cup Kalamata olives or black olives, drained and sliced in half
- 1 cup diced roasted red bell pepper from a jar
- 1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
- fresh ground black pepper to taste
Dressing Ingredients:
- 1 T balsamic vinegar
- 2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1 tsp. lemon zest (probably optional, but good)
- 2 T chopped fresh oregano (or use small amount dried oregano)
- 2 T chopped fresh basil (I would omit basil if I only had dried basil)
Instructions
- Trim ends from green beans. (I do this by gathering a handful, then standing them up on the cutting board while holding loosely so the beans all line up, then trimming the ends. Turn over and repeat with the other end.)
- Cut beans into pieces about 2 inches long.
- Steam beans using a steamer insert (affiliate link) in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid or an electric vegetable steamer (affiliate link) until they’re barely tender-crisp. I steamed mine 7 minutes; I would check at that point to see if they’re as done as you prefer as I like to keep the beans quite crisp.
- When beans are as tender as you’d like them, remove from steamer and plunge immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.
- Remove beans to colander and let them cool and drain about 15 minutes, then spread beans out on paper towels and blot dry.
- While beans cook, drain and slice the hearts of palm, drain and chop red peppers, drain olives and cut in half, and measure out the Feta.
- Combine balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, lemon zest, chopped fresh oregano and chopped fresh basil and process until herbs are very finely chopped and dressing is mixed well. I did this in the small bowl chopper attachment of my immersion blender with a bowl attachment, which worked great but you can also use a food processor.(affiliate links)
- To assemble the salad, combine the drained beans with sliced hearts of palm, olive halves, and chopped red pepper.
- Add as much dressing as needed to moisten salad and combine gently. (You may not need all the dressing.)
- Add feta cheese and stir enough to barely mix in feta.
- Grind over some black pepper and serve immediately.
- This will keep for several days in the refrigerator, but bring to room temperature before serving the leftovers.
Notes
This recipe created by Kalyn.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 232Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 437mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 5gSugar: 5gProtein: 5g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm is a perfect side dish for low-carb or Keto diet plans and any phase of the original South Beach Diet.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Salad Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
26 Comments on “Green Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm”
I have to admit that I never think of using hearts of palm in salads. Next time I'm at Costco, I'll look and see what they've got.
I am really crazy about them but my Costco hasn't had the big jars for several years now. It was always a summer item, so every summer I look hopefully but no luck! Hope you can find them! Maybe they don't sell well in Utah.
This just came into my inbox. 11:52. Yes I am still up! Looks like a wonderful salad.
Thanks Letty! I love all these ingredients. I can't believe you are up that late; I am rarely awake past 11:00 these days!
Coffee and Vanilla, hearts of palm are wonderful, and low cal, low fat, high nutrition. They are rather expensive, but great for a splurge.
Jasmine, thanks for the feedback. So glad you liked the salad and I love y our idea of using asparagus. I’ll have to try that version and credit you for the idea!
I made this for my supper club last month to rave reviews and rather enjoyed it myself (after buying harcort vert at Costco on a rouge trip there with my step mother) but I try to eat locally (and therefor seasonally) and get most of my fresh veggies from the farmer’s market or my CSA and green beans are still several weeks off so I have been making this with asparagus and it is great. Thanks for the great recipes — I have added you to my blogroll. Loved the roasted mushrooms, too, that I finally got around to making this weekend.
Sounds great. I never tried palm hearts yet. I will make this salad some time soon.
Thanx for sharing,
Margot
Alysha, good luck growing your green beans. I had to give up on them because so many get ready at one time I just can’t use them up fast enough and they get too big.
Johanna, thanks for linking to my salad. I like the sound of your other salads listed too.
hi kalyn – this recipe looks like a great combination of colours and flavours – I was searching for recipes for interesting salads to link to from a rant on salads on my blog so have linked to this one – and I hope to try it sometime (which it warms up in Melbourne maybe) thanks for sharing your inspiration!
Those green beans look gorgeous – not like the big, tough ones at my grocery store. I’m hoping to grow them successfully this year so that I can have a proper green bean straight from the garden. The last time I tried, the bunnies trampled and then the bugs munched…..grrrr……..
Barbara, definitely count on me for next year, and continued good wishes coming to you.
Food diet, maybe someday I’ll write a cookbook, but not until I retire from teaching school, that’s for sure!
Sher, I loved this salad.
TCL, here’s what it says about the anti-oxidant properties of oregano, which I found quite astonishing:
“Additionally, on a per gram fresh weight basis, oregano has demonstrated 42 times more antioxidant activity than apples, 30 times more than potatoes, 12 times more than oranges and 4 times more than blueberries.” This was from The World’s Healthiest Foods, which I think is very reliable.
Hi Kalyn,
This one looks like a real winner to me as well. We will not be getting local green beans (Or string beans, as they are called in these parts) for a while, but I will be remembering this.
About the antioxidant level of oregano–does the amount in a tablespoon really add up, or would we have to eat an entire salad of oregano leaves?
I recently planted green and wax beans and they would be perfect for that recipe. It looks fabulous!
Hi kalyn, an awesome recipes. Well, i believe the green beans are nutrien and good eating diet for lunch especially. I wish if can get a receipe book from you.
Hi Kalyn Thanks for dropping by Winos and Foodies and your kind comments. Maybe you will join us next year.
Anonymous, you are too kind. Thanks for the vote of confidence. It might be fun to write a cookbook someday, but not until I’m retired from teaching school, that’s for sure. I’d certainly consider it if I had a publisher, but I wouldn’t self-publish, too much work and not enough money in it.
Dani, green beans are on my shopping list too.
Patricia, I love hearts of palm. I learned to like it when I worked as a waitress in a fancy restaurant.
Mandira, very happy to hear about your herbs. There’s nothing quite so great as walking out to the garden and picking your own herbs to put in a dish.
I have to try your salad… looks scrumptious 🙂 my herb garden has started sprouting. I will soon have my own fresh herbs!
Kalyn, and when I thought it couldn’t get any better… you go and win my heart by using hears of palm! I love this recipe!
I’m off to the store, and green beans are at the top of my list!! Thanks.
Great recipe!
When are you going to have a cookbook with all these terrific items ( and your story) in it?
I see other bloggers getting books-you deserver it.
Thanks for all you do.
Hi Millufe, that was quick! I’m so glad you liked it. I need to buy more beans too!
I made Green Beans with Lemon, Parmesan for today’s dinner and it was very delicious. Lemon and Pine nuts go well with beans. Thank you. Oh! Another beens salad. I will buy beens again.