This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, see our privacy policy.
Looking for a new salad that's not your same-old, same-old? This delicious French Green Bean Asparagus Salad has a bright lemony dressing and lots of healthy veggies. Each bite is a burst of fabulous fresh flavor!
My daughter, Cait, served a beautiful, unique salad for Easter dinner. It was loaded with haricot verts (those long skinny French green beans), snow peas, baby peas and asparagus. The salad was a take-off on a Ottolenghi recipe we've enjoyed for years from his wonderful cookbook, Plenty. I couldn't stop thinking about that great salad and thought it would be fun to come up with something similar yet with a different flavor profile. After a few tests and tweaks, I'm happy to introduce you to this delicious French Green Bean Asparagus Salad.
My salad also includes French green beans, baby peas and asparagus but I opted for sugar snap peas, slivered scallions and lots of fresh mint. The asparagus is cut super thin on a long angle. All the ingredients except the scallions and mint are quickly blanched, plunged into an ice bath and drained before the salad is put together.
Why blanch?
A quick plunge in boiling water followed by a shock of ice water enhances the flavor and texture of the veggies, slows deterioration and intensifies the beautiful green color. Check out what I mean:
A super simple dressing
The dressing doesn't even require dirtying an additional container. It's made right in the salad bowl before adding the veggies and only takes a minute or two to make.
The fun part!
A salad, fun? Yep! Although this French Green Bean Asparagus Salad with the bright, fresh dressing is delicious and super healthy on its own, the crisp, lemony walnut-panko topping takes it over the top, adding a fun, unique layer of flavor. The topping takes less than 10 minutes to put together and can made a day or two in advance.
Two other ingredients are included in this salad that make it stand out:
- Shaved Parmesan cheese - a good Parmesan cheese can make even the most boring salad taste a bit indulgent! Parmigiano-Reggiano is the "gold standard" when it comes to Parmesan but there are also some decent domestic Parmesans. I like both Trader Joe's and BelGioioso American Grana (a Wisconsin-made cheese).
- Fresh mint - coarsely chopped mint adds an incredibly fresh layer of flavor to this French Green Bean Asparagus salad. For a pretty presentation, I like to also garnish the salad with whole mint leaves. If you're not a mint fan, I've also used fresh basil in this salad for a different but, again, delicious fresh flavor.
Make-Ahead
In addition to the walnut-panko topping, the veggies (green beans, sugar snap peas and asparagus) can be cut, blanched and drained in advance and stored in the refrigerator until you're ready to throw everything together. Just before dinner, make the dressing (right in the bowl), add the veggies and toss. To finish, scatter the fresh mint, scallions, a handful of parmesan cheese and the delicious walnut panko topping over the pretty green veggies and you've got a fabulous, restaurant-quality salad all set to impress your guests (with minimal last-minute stress)!
Keeps well
I love that this salad is sans lettuce so it keeps well for days and makes great leftovers. If I want to enjoy it for leftovers, I'll serve the Parmesan and the walnut-panko toppings on the side and let guests top their own salads. That way nothing gets soggy and there's usually enough topping left to sprinkle over my leftovers.
Make it!
Once you try this French Green Bean Asparagus Salad, I think you'll be pulling out the recipe again and again. In addition to being delicious, it's also versatile. It makes a great first course, a healthy side with a lean protein, a perfect potluck option and pairs well with a sandwich, pizza or a burger. Put this salad on your must-make-soon list!
Cafe Tips for making this LemonyFrench Green Bean Asparagus Salad
- This recipe calls for Panko crumbs. Panko crumbs are Japanese bread crumbs with a light, crisp texture.They add a nice crunch to this salad along with the walnuts. You can find panko at most larger grocery stores in the same area as other bread crumbs or online.
- Look for French green beans for this recipe, also called haricot verts. These are long, skinny green beans. They might sound fancy but many grocery stores now carry them, including Aldi.
- You'll need a fine zester for this recipe to remove the lemon zest with minimal fuss. I really like the quality of the Microplane brand of zesters.
- Make sure you cut the asparagus very thinly on a long angle. I tried just cutting it into bite-size pieces but it just wasn't as good.
- Use a nice quality olive oil for this salad. It doesn't have to be expensive. I like Kirkland extra virgin olive oil and California Olive Ranch (as a grocery store option).
Thought for the day:
Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
Not one of them is missing.
Isaiah 40:26
What we're listening to for inspiration:
If you enjoy this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It’s so helpful to other readers to hear your results, adaptations and ideas for variations.
- 8 ounces French green beans (haricot verts) sliced on a long diagonal angle into bite-size pieces
- 8 ounces fresh asparagus sliced very thinly on a long diagonal angle
- 8 ounces fresh sugar snap peas sliced diagonally in half
- 1 cup baby tiny frozen peas, more to taste
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon butter I used salted butter
- ½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- ½-¾ cup panko Japanese breadcrumbs
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper more to taste
- finely grated zest from 1 medium-size lemon
- finely grated zest of 1 medium-size lemon
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 medium garlic clove finely minced
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- walnut/panko topping recipe above
- ½-¾ cup shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese more to taste
- ½ cup roughly chopped fresh mint leaves basil is a good sub
- 6-8 scallions (green onions) trimmed and sliced thinly on a long diagonal
- fresh mint leaves for garnish
-
Bring a large pot of water (⅔ full) to a boil over high heat.
-
While the water is coming to a boil, fill a large bowl with water and add 3-4 cups of crushed ice or ice cubes. Set aside. Set a large strainer (sieve) in your sink.
-
When the water is nicely boiling, add the sliced veggies and set a timer for 1 minute.
-
Drain in the prepared sieve. Shake the sieve a few times to remove any excess water then turn the drained veggies out onto a clean, dry kitchen towel and roll the towel around them. (If you are prepping again, the veggies can be transferred to a paper towel-lined storage container or large ziplock bag and refrigerated.)
-
Heat a medium-size nonstick sauté pan over medium heat.
-
Add the butter and olive oil. When the mixture is starting to sizzle a bit, add the walnuts. Stir frequently for 2-3 minutes or until the walnuts are beginning to deep in color. Add the panko crumbs and salt and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently until medium golden brown.
-
Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest and crushed red pepper. Set aside to cool a bit. (If prepping ahead, allow the topping to cool completely then store in an airtight container.)
-
Combine the lemon juice, lemon zest and garlic in a large serving bowl. Drizzle in the olive oil while stirring vigorously with a fork or a whisk. Add the salt and pepper and stir again.
-
Add the drained veggies and toss to coat with the dressing. Taste and add more lemon juice and/or salt, and pepper, if needed.
-
Add the chopped mint and toss well. Taste again and adjust, if needed.
-
Either sprinkle the salad with the panko mixture and top with the shaved parmesan or serve the toppings separately at the table (a good idea if you think you’ll have leftovers).
-
Garnish with the scallions and more fresh mint (whole leaves).
-
Serve and enjoy!
See Café Tips above in the post for more detailed instructions and tips to ensure success.
If you prefer to use Metric measurements there is a button in each of our recipes, right above the word “Instructions”. Just click that button to toggle to grams, milliliters, etc. If you ever come across one of our recipes that doesn’t have the Metric conversion (some of the older recipes may not), feel free to leave a comment and I will add it.
Lynda says
This was wonderful!! My husband even cut the veggies for me! Quick, fresh , different, beautiful, and delicious!! Thank you!!!
Lynda
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
Awesome! Thank you for the review, Lynda!
Lauren Gaasch says
This salad was amazing. Perfect Spring time addition to any meal. Definitely will make again!
Lindsay @ The Café Sucre Farine says
That was fast, Lauren! So glad you enjoyed it and thank you for the review!