Jar lunches are a concept I am just warming up to. I haven’t heard of them till the time Siri told me about Recipe Redux and their theme for August, 2013.
But after having discovered such a convenient method for lunching, I don’t think I can go back.
To stay in tune with my A Salad A Day project, I conceived this easy to make and easy to carry salad for a jar lunch. Just make one batch of this yummy salad and store in 2-3 different jars and viola, you have a yummy lunch or snack waiting for you in your refrigerator when you are about to leave for work!
I have used the four very common variety of beans available in the market for this salad, but the bean salad can be made technically with any beans. They are easy to cook, easy to store and are great in nutritional value too. I used a very simple dressing, but you can complicate the dressing all you want. If you are storing this as a lunch in your fridge, I recommend you use a dressing which will stay. And ALWAYS, dressing goes in first in a jar lunch. The harder ingredients which do not soak in the dressing go in next. Always end the salad in the jar with the topping or crunch. That way, it doesn’t get soaked and stays fresh.
The Four Bean Salad
Level – Very Easy
Preparation time – 30 min, including time taken to pressure cook the beans
Serves – 1
Ingredients
Chick peas – 1/3 C, soaked in water overnight
Black Beans – 1/3 C, soaked in water overnight
Green Beans – 1/3 C, soaked in water overnight
French Beans – a handful, cleaned and cut in inch-sized pieces
Onion – 1, finely chopped
For the Dressing
Lemon juice – 2 Tbsp
Olive oil – 1 Tbsp
Salt – to taste
Chilli flakes – 1 Tsp
Instructions
Steam the French beans in a microwave for a couple of min till they are cooked.
Pressure cook the chick peas, black and green beans together and drain.
Mix all the ingredients for the dressing together.
To assemble, pour the dressing into the jar first. Fill the jar 3/4ths with the cooked beans. Top it with the steamed French beans. This can be refrigerated for upto 4 days.
On the day of consuming, top the jar with fresh chopped onions.
To enjoy a sumptuous , healthy and high-protein meal, overturn the jar into a bowl!
Welcome to the Recipe ReDux! What a fabulous idea for you first post! I've never heard of lunch in a jar - but what a yummy, green concept! Great instructions for keeping everything crisp!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant idea! I've seen a couple of bloggers that used jars for lunches to go, i.e., soups or smoothies, but never with a bean salad! That sounds like a fun project, and thank you for sharing the tips to make the bean salad in the jar! All these beans sound delicious together including the French beans! I was thinking of a lemon-shallot dressing for the bean salad, but then I realized it wouldn't sit very well in the fridge, so your dressing sounds really simple and easy to make!
ReplyDeleteSo great to see a Four Bean Salad without any added sugar! Looking forward to trying this easy recipe as my next lunch or as a side to share!
ReplyDeleteWelcome on board with ReDux - what a delicious, creative looking salad!
ReplyDeleteWelcome! I love bean salad, this sounds delicious!
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