Alubias en Vinagreta (A White Bean Salad)

White beans and summer vegetables are tossed with a tangy, slightly sweet dressing to make a perfect salad that’s great as a side or part of a larger salad.

The public spaces in Valladolid are a wonder to me. Rick and I both grew up in rural areas where there was no shortage of open space, so I’m constantly entranced by the little plazas with fountains, sculptures and open areas where little guys can run around.

There’s a Green Zone on both sides of the Rio Pisuerga which runs along the banks of the Pisuerga, passing under several of its bridges. On any given day you’ll find runners, bikers, grandparents pushing baby carriages, people walking dogs and couples our for a stroll. Within the zone is one of my favorite parks is called La Rosaleda (the Rose Garden). There are many paths and gardens including a large formal rose garden. The sun warms the path in the winter and the breeze from the river provides a little respite from the heat in the warm weather.

Not too long ago Rick and I expanded our usual walk along the river and ended up in an area of the city called La Rondilla. We’d walked about 4 miles at this point and decided we needed some refreshment. A little place called Bar Mianka caught our eye and so we stopped. It turns out Bar Mianka is well known for its tapas and has even won a few awards. The array of tostas on display was mouth watering. I had a tostada with goat cheese and nectarines and Rick had a piece of tortilla.

Along with our wines we were served a little plate of alubias en vinagreta. The preparation is simple, just cut up some onions, peppers and pickles and mix them with a can of white beans like cannelini or great northern beans. Then dress the beans use your favorite vinaigrette dressing.

The vinegary salsa of onions, peppers and pickles is common in the food of the region. When I see “vinagreta” on the menu I know to expect it. Whether you use sweet or sour pickles, it’s really delicious in salads, on steamed mussels and asparagus.

Bar Mianka used a sweet and sour vinaigrette for their version. In the following recipe my dressing is both oil and added sugar free but you could certainly use any vinaigrette you like. To make my dressing sweet, I used pickle juice. The soft beans served to add some body to the dressing instead of my usual olive oil. This is similar to how we made the oil free potato and green beans with pesto. (Disclaimer: Rick added some oil to his serving at the table.)

Alubias en Vinagreta (A White Bean Salad)

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Servings: 0

Author: LydiaF

Ingredients

• 2 cups ready to eat white beans
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped red pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped green pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped sweet pickles
• salt pepper and herbs to taste
• 3 - 4 tablespoons pickle juice
• 1 - 2 tablespoons vinegar

Instructions

• Combine the beans, onions, pickles and peppers together in a large bowl.
• In a separate bowl mix the pickle juice and vinegar together along with a couple spoons of the beans. Smash the beans with a fork (don't worry about any onions and peppers that you may have scooped up). Add more pickle juice or water to adjust the volume as needed.
• Pour the dressing over the salad and stir gently to combine.
• Season to taste.
• Place in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.

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My beans were pretty soft so I didn’t bother smashing them. In fact I didn’t mix the vinagreta in a separate container, I just poured the pickle juice and vinegar into the salad as needed. After overnight in the fridge the beans soaked up the liquid so it was necessary to add a little water to loosen things up.

The tart beans and crunchy peppers make for a refreshing bite to eat, but if you add some quality tuna you’ll have a meal.