This Protein-Rich Salad Spiked In Popularity In The '50s And Really Never Went Away

If you're looking for the perfect protein-rich salad to add to your meal prep repertoire or as a tasty potluck side dish, there's no need to reinvent the wheel. Instead, look to three bean salad, a dish that rose in popularity in the 1950s and never really went away. Three-bean salad is further proof of why you should always have canned beans in your pantry – traditionally made by mixing together a trio of kidney, waxed, and green beans and tossing them in a marinade made of oil, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper. The salad originally gained popularity alongside other common foods from the '50s for its ease of transport and usefulness to accompany a diverse array of meals.

With its rise in the '50s, store-bought three bean salad soon came onto the scene too, making the salad even more accessible to busy families and individuals. You might be familiar with brands like Hanover, which offer canned three-bean salad variations among those from other brands. But even though the salad spiked in popularity years ago, you'll still find recipes all over the internet and social media to this day — indicating this salad is certainly not just a thing of the past, and it's here to stay. As versatile as it is tasty, the hearty salads' main base of beans makes it an excellent source of protein and fiber.

Three-bean salad is among the best salad recipes without the need for any greens. This means you can make it ahead of time and store it without worrying about soggy or wilted lettuce. Plus, the bean salad's flavor actually deepens as it sits in its vinegary dressing or marinade and can typically be kept up to a few days in the fridge. You can certainly stick to the traditional recipe, made by heating the marinade in a saucepan to dissolve the sugar, then tossing it with a simple mixture of the beans and adding the optional diced red onions and green bell peppers. But there are really no rules when it comes to modern takes on the salad — you can make it a five bean salad if you wish, or jazz up the recipe with flavorful twists. 

When it comes to jazzing up your three-bean salad, you can start by substituting vinegar or some zesty lemon juice in the dressing. You could also add cubed feta to amp it up with a salty, briny kick, or make a tangy vinaigrette with olive oil, apple cider vinegar, mustard, garlic, and spices. Alternatively, you can give three-bean salad a Southwestern hint by adding chopped cilantro, corn, smoked paprika, cumin, and black beans to the mix. In her jalapeño-lime three bean salad recipe, Miriam Hahn adds lots of veggies — including cucumbers, peppers, and tomatoes — along with some cubed avocado for extra flavor and a creamy textural component to compliment the crispy veggies and silky beans.