This easy green bean salad is full of fresh, satisfying flavors! Hard-boiled eggs and blanched green beans get tossed with smoky bacon, croutons, and crispy red onions in a zippy lemon parmesan vinaigrette.
I’m all about a salad recipe that comes fully loaded with my favorites (as in, eggs and bacon!). If you love a Cobb salad or Chef salad, chances are good you’ll have this green bean salad on repeat.
I made this green bean salad for Easter one year, and I’ve made it on so many occasions since. Originally, I was inspired to make a salad with eggs since, well, Easter = eggs. As it turns out, this recipe was such a hit that I find myself making it year-round. It’s a fresh and simple green salad topped with crisp green beans (I’ll show you how to blanch them), smoky bacon, eggs, and crispy croutons. Tossed with a zingy, garlicky lemon parmesan vinaigrette, the flavors are anything but simple.
Why I Love This Green Bean Salad Recipe
- It’s a 15-minute meal salad or side dish. This green bean salad is satisfying and filling. I’ll make it for lunch, brunch, or as a dinner side. It’s quick and packed full of versatile, delicious ingredients.
- Fresh and flavorful. There’s so much flavor in this salad, and the ingredients are SO easy! It’s all about blanching the beans to get them crisp. Bacon makes every salad delicious, and the real magic here is the dressing. Speaking of…
- It has the BEST dressing. Salty parmesan, tangy lemon juice, and garlic are all you need to turn a classic oil and vinegar combination into a deliciously zippy vinaigrette.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This recipe is very close to a Caesar salad, made with green beans and a few changes to the dressing. Though I bet it would taste amazing drizzled with classic Caesar dressing, too! For now, here’s what you’ll need for the green bean salad and vinaigrette. Scroll down to the recipe card for the printable ingredients list and complete recipe details.
- Salad Leaves – I prefer darker greens, like a spring mix, in this salad. But any kind of lettuce works including romaine, butter lettuce, arugula, baby spinach, kale, or a mix of different leaves.
- Green Beans – Please, please use fresh green beans in this salad! The fresher, the better. Wash and dry the beans well and trim off the stems before you start.
- Hard-Boiled Eggs – I use my failproof method for perfect hard-boiled eggs. Afterward, slice or dice up the eggs as you’d like.
- Bacon – While the eggs are boiling, crisp up some bacon and then crumble it up. I usually make a quick batch of air fryer bacon.
- Red Onion – Or any type of mild, sweet onion, sliced thin.
- Croutons – For crunch! You can use store-bought. I also love turning leftover focaccia bread into homemade croutons.
- Dressing – This recipe includes a garlic and parmesan vinaigrette made from grated Parmesan cheese, fresh lemon juice, and minced garlic, plus Dijon, olive oil, and vinegar. You’ll season the dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
How to Make Green Bean Salad
Let’s get cracking, ‘cause we have a salad to make! I prepare the beans for this salad using an easy technique called “blanching”, which is basically a quick boil followed by an ice bath (more on this below). It’s the same method I use for my sweet and spicy carrots and green beans, and it’s very similar to cooking a hard-boiled egg. Follow the steps here:
- Prepare the eggs. Hard-boil the eggs using your preferred method. Afterward, cool them off, then peel and slice them.
- Boil the green beans. Meanwhile, get another pot boiling on the stovetop. Add the green beans and cook for 3 minutes.
- Cool. Immediately drain and place the beans into an ice bath. You can also run them under cold water until they’re cool, the same as you would rinse the potatoes for a potato salad.
- Make the dressing. Now, whisk together the ingredients for the salad dressing (see below), or whichever dressing you’re using.
- Put it together. Lastly, take out a big salad bowl and fill it with lettuce mix. Add the cooled green beans, and arrange the sliced eggs, bacon, onions, and croutons over top. Drizzle with dressing, and enjoy.
Why Blanch the Green Beans?
Blanching is an important step that locks in the green beans’ flavor, tender-crisp texture, and color. You can use this technique with just about any vegetable, by quickly boiling or steaming, and then immediately submerging the veggies in cold water to stop the cooking process. Taste a green bean that’s blanched compared to one that isn’t, and you’ll see and taste the difference!
Easy Vinaigrette Dressing
My non-negotiables for this dressing are fresh lemon juice, high-quality olive oil, and fresh garlic, and the rest is very flexible. You can use any white vinegar or another type, like apple cider vinegar. Freshly grated parmesan is best, but the shaker parmesan cheese is just fine.
See the recipe card for the complete ingredients list with amounts. To make the easy salad dressing:
- Whisk together your parmesan, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, and garlic, plus salt and pepper to taste.
- If needed, thin out the dressing with a little water (one spoonful at a time). Once that’s well combined, drizzle it over the salad, and serve!
If you’re looking for more dressing ideas to pair with this green bean salad, check out the vinaigrette from my La Scala chopped salad or any of my easy homemade salad dressings.
Salad Variations
- Skip the eggs. If you’d prefer to make your green bean salad without eggs, it’s fine to skip them! Leave them off entirely or replace them with another add-on like cooked and cubed chicken breast.
- If you’re making this recipe vegetarian, replace the bacon with crispy chickpeas, tempeh, or tofu.
- More greens. In addition to green beans, you can load up this salad with more green vegetables like asparagus, broccolini, snap peas, etc. Blanch them the same as you would the beans before adding them to the salad.
- Fresh veggies. If you’re looking for vegetables that don’t need blanching, try adding sliced cucumber, shredded cabbage, or cherry tomatoes.
- Canned vegetables. Take notes from my spring vegetable salad and add in canned beans or sweet corn. Remember to drain and rinse any canned ingredients beforehand.
What to Serve With a Green Bean Salad
With all its hearty ingredients, this green bean salad has you covered as a meal or side. I love making this salad for lunch, and if I want something more filling, I’ll add slices of roast chicken or steak on top. It’s also great as a side salad to a pot roast or pasta bake in the cooler months. I’d even serve it as a Thanksgiving side with our turkey and dinner rolls! Of course, these pumpkin bars aren’t far behind in that case.
Storing Leftovers
The lettuce mix and croutons in this salad recipe tend to get soggy with time, so if you have leftovers, refrigerate them airtight and enjoy them within a day or so.
If you can, keeping the prepped components — veggies, eggs, bacon, croutons, and dressing — in separate containers is the best way to keep them fresh. It also means they’ll be on hand to toss together at a moment’s notice!
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Start with lettuce. Place the lettuce in a large salad bowl. Set aside.
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Blanch the green beans. Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil; add green beans and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat; drain and rinse with cold water for 1 minute or until cold.
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Put it all together. Add the green beans to the salad. Top with sliced eggs, crumbled bacon, sliced onions, and croutons; set aside.
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Make the dressing. In a small mixing bowl, combine parmesan cheese, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. Whisk until thoroughly combined. If you want a thinner consistency, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of more oil or water and continue to whisk until blended.
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Finish and serve. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Calories: 301kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 204mg | Sodium: 326mg | Potassium: 320mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 920IU | Vitamin C: 9.1mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 1.7mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
