This simple English Summer Garden Salad makes the most of the last lazy days of the season. Take a big bowlful out into the garden, to forest, meadow or beach and share the fresh, gentle flavours of summer with friends and family.
Ingredients and full instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post. Feel free to Jump to Recipe if you want to whizz on down or read on if you fancy a bit of background and some extra tips!
Summer Garden Salad Ingredients
I eat seasonally as often as I can and the wait for English green bean season can seem endless! When they finally appear on the seasonal stage I eat them, almost daily, until they exit stage right at the first hint of a chill in the autumn air.
- Runner Beans are my absolute favourite, look out for them in the shops from Mid June onwards. They are also very easy to grow, brightening up the mid-summer garden with their bright red flowers before producing long bean pods in what seems like no time at all. Runner beans are super satisfying to grow with children, they germinate really quickly and grow so fast you can measure their progress almost daily. Pick them when the pods are young and fresh to avoid any stringiness and to encourage the plants to keep on producing. Do leave a few pods on the plant to dry at the end of the season and pop them open when they are crisp and brown to reveal the beautiful magic bean inside! Save these to plant again next spring and you have the whole cycle of plant life laid out before you.
- Dwarf French Beans UK-grown beans appear in the shops at the same time as runner beans but are usually available for longer. I’m not sure why this is as they have the same growing season but I suspect it is something to do with supermarket demands. They are also easy to grow and the dwarf varieties do particularly well in containers if you don’t have a patch of earth to pop them into.
- New Potatoes Use a lovely waxy salad potato for this recipe, Charlottes are particularly good.
- Spring Onions My summer fridge is never without at least one bunch of spring onions. They work perfectly in this recipe, adding flavour and texture in equal measure.
- Sun-Dried Tomatoes pack such a flavour punch that my father once asked if I had put meat in my vegan spaghetti bolognese! Use the ones you buy in oil and ready to go rather than the ones that need reconstituting in water. You can make your own sun-dried tomatoes too if you are so inclined!
- Fresh Summer Herbs parsley, chives and mint just shout SUMMER at me and I love the combination of all three in this dish.
- A Simple Vinaigrette I know you can buy jars and bottles of ready-made dressing but this really is a cinch to make. Pop olive oil, cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper into a jar, lid on, shake – done!
How To Make It
- Bring a pan of salted water to a boil and add your chunkliy chopped potatoes to it.
- Cook them for about 12 – 15 minutes or until fork tender.
- Remove them with a slotted spoon, retaining the water, and leave to drain while you cook the sliced beans for about 8 minutes or until just tender.
- Drain well and then refresh them under the cold tap to stop them cooking and keep their vibrant green colour. Drain well again.
- Put your drained vegetables into a large bowl with the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and fresh herbs.
- Drizzle with vinaigrette and toss everything together until the vegetables are well coated with the flavourings and dressing.
- Serve and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
Summer Garden Salad is substantial enough to stand on its own for a light lunch or as part of a salad selection – try it with grilled vegetable salad and roast cauliflower salad.
It also goes well with:
- an easy vegan quiche
- a simple summer vegetable tart
- cold lentil loaf and vegan sausage rolls as part of a picnic spread
- carrot fritters
- my delicious Vegan Leek Tart – a match made in heaven!
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English Summer Garden Salad
Ingredients
Garden Salad
- 500 g new potatoes cut into chunks
- 200 g runner beans sliced
- 100 g dwarf beans sliced
- 6 spring onions trimmed and sliced
- 8 sun-dried tomatoes in oil drained and chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh chives
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
Vinaigrette
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp cider vinegar
- 3 tsp Dijon mustard
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the potatoes in boiling salted water for 12-15 minutes until fork tender, drain well.
- Cook the sliced beans in boiling salted water for about 8 minutes or until just tender. Drain and refresh under cold running water to stop cooking and preserve their fresh green colour. Drain well.
- Put your cooled, drained vegetables into a large bowl with the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and fresh herbs.
- Put the vinaigrette ingredients into a jar with a lid. Shake until well combined, taste and adjust seasoning.
- Toss the salad with half of the vinaigrette until well coated.
- Serve with the remaining vinaigrette on the side.
