Five Steps for a Very Good Bean & Charred Cabbage Salad
Plus one final giveaway for my new book, The Bread Machine Book
A picnic blanket? The beach? Under the patio awning? A good bean salad fits right in at all of summer’s best places to eat, and I’ve developed some strong opinions over the years about what makes one stand out. My ideal salad has plenty of contrasting texture and lots of freshness, in addition to really good beans (of course).
Today I’m sharing a formula that breaks it all down, laying out the logic so that you can create a great bean salad of your own.
Then at the bottom of the email, a last-minute giveaway: My publisher found a couple extra gift boxes for The Bread Machine Book, which include the book and a few other items. If you’d like to win one of these, find the details at the bottom of this email.
Lastly, if you’re a paid subscriber to this newsletter, you’ll find a proper recipe for this bean salad, plus a note about our upcoming recipe writing workshop. It should be in your inbox now.
The Bean & Charred Cabbage Salad Breakdown
Step 1. Season Your Beans, and Cook them Fresh
My current bean obsession is those from the lima family, and I’ve been lucky to have Rancho Gordo Large White Lima Beans and Christmas Lima Beans on hand. I like that these limas, like butter beans which are just smaller limas, have a vaguely vegetal flavor and texture, and I love that they are big enough to spear with a fork.
Opt for a bigger bean if you can, something that will plump up, hold its shape, and stand out in the salad. A few favorites: mayocobas, cannellini, navy beans, cranberry beans, pinto beans. Rancho Gordo and Primary Beans are great resources.
It is very important that your beans are well seasoned. I think of this every time I accidentally buy a can of no-salt-added beans, which always taste like mushy water and can’t really even be rescued. Your bean salad will be dull and disappointing if the beans aren’t well seasoned (and also if they’re cooked to mush).
This brings me to another opinion: In bean salads, the structural integrity of the beans is important enough that I really think they should be cooked from dry. So often canned beans are burst open and mealy, and you don’t want that here.
Two years ago, I shared some tips on cooking beans from scratch when it’s hot outside, in case your kitchen traps the heat:
This year I have additional guidance around seasoning, reflecting some recent changes in how I cook my beans. First, I’ve been seasoning the soaking water. I’ve found that the beans taste better, have better texture, and even cook more evenly. (I was happy to have this validated by an old Serious Eats article, and I know that Samin Nosrat has also been advocating for it since Salt Fat Acid Heat, too.)
Using the salinity of ocean water (about 3.5%) as my guide, I’m also now more precise with salt. For soaking, this works out to a tablespoon of salt for every quart of water. I then use about two-thirds of that amount when cooking them, because I don’t want to overdo it in the bean broth.
These two things have led to my most delicious beans yet. Here’s the process.
Soak 8 ounces/1 cup dried beans in 1 quart/4 cups water and 1 tablespoon salt for 4 hours or overnight.
Drain and rinse the beans (important!). Cover them with another 4 cups of water and season with 2 teaspoons salt. Add whatever aromatics you like. I use a few glugs of olive oil, bay leaves, garlic, and any fresh parsley, oregano, thyme, and even mint that I’ve got on hand.
Cook them however you like — on the stovetop, in your slow cooker, or in your pressure cooker.
For salads, let them cool in their broth and then pack them into an airtight container (in the broth) and keep in the fridge for up to several days.
Step 2. Blister the Cabbage
Cabbage has been an exciting part of these salads, adding lots of body and volume and lightening up all the density of the beans. Rather than serving it raw, I’ve been charring it on the grill or under the broiler, which gives it some of the flavor of heat, without fully compromising the crunchy texture.
I also brush the cabbage with a little bit of dressing, so that it soaks up the flavors of the salad and caramelizes slightly in the heat. Here’s the process:
Cut half of a medium cabbage — both green and red ones work terrifically; I haven’t tried savoy, Napa, or other varieties yet — into 4 wedges through the stem.
Gently pry them open a bit so that dressing can soak in between the leaves, and arrange them on a plate or sheet pan.
Spoon a few tablespoons of your salad dressing over the cabbage, helping it to drip into the vegetable and coat it all over.
TO GRILL: Preheat your grill with high heat. Arrange the cabbage wedges in an area directly over the flames. Cover the grill and cook for 4 to 8 minutes, until they’re well charred on the bottoms. Flip them over, using a spatula to loosen them from the grates and make sure nothing slips through. Repeat on the opposite sides.
TO BROIL: Preheat your broiler on high heat, and arrange an oven rack directly beneath it. With the cabbage wedges in an even layer on a sheet pan, place them on the rack and broil for 8 to 12 minutes, until charred and browned over the cut sides and outer leaves. Carefully flip them over, prying them open a bit if they’re still tight, and repeat on the opposite sides.
Let the cabbage cool. Then trim off the cores and chop into bite-sized pieces.
The goal is charred cabbage, not totally tender and collapsed cabbage. Avoid cooking it so long that it loses all of its structure.
3. Add Something Cool & Creamy
The beans are starchy, the cabbage has a faintly assertive crunch. A little something that’s cool and creamy is very nice here. Some ideas:
Cubed avocado (this has been my favorite)
Cheese: crumbled goat’s cheese or feta, or chunks of something with a denser texture, like aged cheddar, gouda, or provolone
Cubes of tofu: something like the extra-firm Hodo Soy kind, or a marinated or seasoned one that complements your dressing
4. …as well as Something Juicy & Sweet
I’ve served this to many people now, and everyone is always delighted by juicy, colorful pops of sweetness in a bean salad. It might sound strange, but it works!
Right now I keep seeing nice mangos at the grocery store so that’s what I’m using. But later in the season I’ll work with what’s peaking. Any of the following fruits — ones that have bursts of sugary sweetness over tartness — cubed or cut into bite-sized pieces, will be excellent:
Mango
Peaches
Nectarine
Plums
Pineapple
5. Bridge Everything with Punchy Dressing
I use an assertive amount of both maple syrup and miso paste to dress this salad — this gives it sweetness to play against the smoky cabbage and earthy beans, and a savory richness that supports everything going on.
But whatever kind of dressing you make, don’t be shy with acid. This can hold a 1:1 ratio of acid to oil. I almost always prefer a combination of fresh acid (lemon juice) and aged (vinegar, usually rice vinegar). And add enough honey or maple syrup so that there’s noticeable viscosity and forthright sweetness.
Optional Extras
Fresh herbs by the handful. I’m reaping the benefits of my first proper herb garden at the moment, and can barely express my pleasure in plucking mint, parsley, and basil just before folding them into the salad.
Diced cucumber, sliced radish, cubed kohlrabi, or jicama, for something crunchy.
Alliums, used sparingly: Thinly sliced red onion or shallot (tossed with a little salt and a splash of vinegar to very lightly pickle it), or thinly sliced scallion or spring onion greens for a little mild sharpness
For a formal recipe for this salad, consider upgrading your subscription. And if you’re a paid subscriber, check your inboxes — I also have an important note about rescheduling our upcoming recipe writing workshop.
One Last Giveaway — CLOSED
My publisher recently let me know that at their office, there are two remaining gift boxes for my latest book, The Bread Machine Book, so they suggested doing one last giveaway! Here’s your chance — there will be a few other goodies in the box.
If you’d like to win a copy, simply comment below with your favorite toast topping.
The giveaway will be open from now until next Wednesday, June 18, at 11:59pm EST. Winners will be selected at random and I’ll notify you directly for your mailing address.
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Enter between JUNE 11, 2025 and JUNE 18, 2025. Open to US residents, 18 and older. Void where prohibited or restricted by law.
Thanks for reading! I hope there’s a great bean salad in your immediate future. —Lukas
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