If you’ve been on social media at all in the past year, you’ve probably come across the viral dense bean salad trend at least once.
@violet.cooks Steak Chimichurri Dense Bean Salad Ingredients – 1 lb of flank steak – A salty steak seasoning, I like @nanas – 1 shallot – 1 bunch of parsley – 1 bunch of cilantro – 1/2 cup chopped roasted red peppers, I use Mezzetta – 1 can of garbanzo beans – 1 can of white beans (I like great northern) – 1 container of mini mozzarella balls – 1/4 cup red wine vinegar – 1/2 cup olive oil – Pinch of red pepper flakes – Big pinch of seal salt – The juice of 1 lemon Instructions 1. Generously season your flank steak and let the seasoning sit for at least 10 minutes. 2. Heat a grill to high and add your flank steak, let it cook for 3-4 min on each side to get it to a medium rare. 3. Let the steak rest while you make the rest of the salad 4. Finely mince the shallot. 5. Chop the parsley and cilantro. 6. Drain the liquid off of the red peppers and thinly slice them. 7. Add the shallots, parsley, cilantro, and peppers to a bowl. 8. Rinse and drain the chickpeas and white beans. 9. Drain the mozzarella balls. 10. Add the beans and mozzarella to the bowl. 11. Cube the steak into a small pieces and add it. 12. Add in the olive oil, red wine vinegar, red pepper flakes, sea salt, and lemon juice. 13. Toss everything together and enjoy! #glutenfree #healthy #chimichurri #steak #salad #mealprep ♬ Wes Anderson-esque Cute Acoustic – Kenji Ueda
It all started when Violet Witchel, a San Francisco based culinary student also known as “dense bean salad girl”, posted a video detailing her weekend meal prep routine of batch making a large dense bean salad. What is that you ask? Simply a bulky, filling salad packed with protein, including beans.
The appeal of a dense bean salad is twofold: 1) it’s a complete, filling and yummy meal, and 2) it’s perfect for meal-prep because you can store it in the fridge and it only gets tastier over the week as the components marinate in the sauce.
When I saw her chimichurri steak dense bean salad recipe, I KNEW I had to make my own version (as a big fan of chimichurri). I adapted her recipe by omitting some ingredients I didn’t have like mozzarella balls and roasted red pepper, and bulked it up by including more greens like broccoli, salad greens, artichokes and avocados. I also made it a bit spicier to amp up the flavor factor.
The result was a delicious, flavorful and highly filling complete meal of a salad. As someone who doesn’t even typically like salads, this salad was one that I was able to enjoy on repeat for a week straight. That should tell you a lot!
Whether you’re looking for a meal prep recipe to add to your rotation, or hoping to make something impressive for a dinner party or potluck, this recipe is a GREAT one to try out. If you don’t believe a Tiktok trend can become your new favorite salad recipe, then just TRY IT OUT! Because tasting is believing. 😋
Ingredients:
Note: these ingredients make 4 to 6 servings (depending on your serving size). For me personally, it makes 6 filling servings of salad.
Chimichurri Ingredients:
- Parsley (around 2 oz or 1 small packet)
- Cilantro (around 2 oz or 1 small packet)
- 1 small onion
- Garlic (4 to 6 large cloves)
- 5 – 7 thai chilis
- 1 Jalapeno
- 1 Lime or lemon
- 3/4 cup Vinegar (Apple Cider, Rice vinegar, or Balsamic all work)
- 3/4 cup Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
Salad Ingredients:
- 1 can of garbanzo beans, kidney beans or white navy Beans
- 1 bag of mixed salad greens (6 oz)
- 1 Avocado
- Steak (12 to 16 ounces, or approximately 2 medium sized pieces)
- 1 small head of broccoli (optional)
- 1 bell pepper (optional)
- Handful of mushrooms (optional)
- 1/2 cup marinated artichokes (optional)
Supplies Needed:
- 2x medium bowls
- 1 extra large bowl (ideally with a lid!)
- Chopping board
- Knife
Chimichurri Dense Bean Steak Salad Recipe:
1. Chop up aromatics & herbs.
Chop up the onion, garlic, thai chilis and jalapeños and put them all into a bowl.
Then, chop up parsley and cilantro and put them into a separate larger bowl.
2. Season aromatics and let soak.
Season your aromatics with a ton of salt and pepper. Then pour in the olive oil and vinegar. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime or lemon into the aromatics as well.
If you’re using marinated artichokes, mix them into the aromatics as well! You can also pour some of the oil from the jar into the aromatics.
Let this sit on the side and marinate while you proceed with the next steps.
3. Cook steak.
Season both sides of the steak with a generous amount of salt, pepper and any herb seasoning you might like (I added mixed Italian herb seasoning).
Heat up olive oil in a pan on medium high heat, then lay the steak flat on one side. I like to cook each side for about 3 minutes to achieve a medium-rare cook.
To check if it’s done, press the steak gently with a wooden spoon or spatula. A medium-rare steak should have some resistance but still feel slightly bouncy—similar to pressing the muscle part of your bicep while your arm is lifted. If it feels too soft and squishy like a pillow, it needs more time; if it’s too firm like a brick, it’s likely overcooked.
You can also cut a slice of steak to check the cook on the inside. Once you’re satisfied with the cook, let the steak rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
While you’re resting the steak, pour your bowl of seasoned aromatics into the bowl of chopped herbs. Mix it up and let it continue to marinate.
After your steak is done resting, slice it up!
4. Chop up crunchy salad ingredients and mix with beans.
If you’re using any optional crunchy salad ingredients (broccoli, bell pepper, etc), nows the time to chop them up into small pieces and mix with the can of beans you’re using!
Make sure to drain and rinse out the beans a couple of times. Put it all in a very large bowl (that ideally comes with a lid).
5. Combine leafy greens, and chimichurri sauce.
Mix in your pack of leafy greens into the crunchy salad ingredients, and mix in the chimichurri sauce. Toss everything together with wooden spoons, and if you have a lid on your bowl, cover it and shake shake shake!
6. Combine steak and other toppings.
Add in your sliced steak, chopped avocado, and any other toppings you might want to add (like nuts, fruit etc.)! Give everything a good mix again to distribute the steak and toppings.
That’s it! Now you can grab a bowl and make yourself a portion and DIG IN 😋. Enjoy!
