Bean

Lobios Salad (Spiced Kidney Beans with Herbs and Feta)

October  6, 2015
4
12 Ratings
Photo by James Ransom
  • Serves 4 to 6
Author Notes

This recipe come from Kachka in Portland, Oregon—henceforth known as the place I fell in love with kidney beans, of all things. (Note: I've used harissa in place of Turkish red pepper paste in this, and the salad is still great.) —Kenzi Wilbur

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • For the salad:
  • 2 quarts cooked kidney beans
  • 2/3 cup sweet onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 cup cilantro, chopped
  • 1 cup parsley, chopped
  • 1 cup walnuts, chopped and sieved to remove find crumbs
  • 1 cup crumbled sheep's milk feta
  • For the dressing:
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 4 teaspoons Turkish hot pepper paste (we use Sera brand; see note in headnote)
  • 1 teaspoon ground marigold
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • Salt, to taste
Directions
  1. Combine beans, onion, cilantro, parsley, and walnuts in a bowl. Mix to combine.
  2. Make the dressing: Whisk together garlic, pepper paste, marigold, cinnamon, pomegranate molasses, olive oil, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt in a separate bowl.
  3. Dress the bean mixture with the dressing. Taste for seasoning. Add more salt or lemon as needed. Top with crumbled feta and gently mix to combine.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Beth
    Beth
  • Annie Wogel
    Annie Wogel
  • Kari L. Jaquith
    Kari L. Jaquith
  • aclincol
    aclincol

9 Reviews

aclincol May 26, 2022
I used the dressing recipe for 2 servings of beans and rice, adding walnuts, cilantro and parsley, and yogurt instead of cheese. I did adjust the dressing using only 1/4 cup olive oil. It’s a fantastic dish with a couple adjustments, thanks!
 
Beth September 30, 2021
2 quarts of beans sounds way out of line to me too; a 15 ounce can of beans usually holds about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups of beans, so I would guess 3 to 4 cups of cooked beans would be about right. Otherwise, it sounds delicious and I'm looking forward to trying this!
 
Aileen December 31, 2019
I looked at the recipe in the cookbook, and it says 1 quart kidney beans, or 2 15-oz cans (drained and rinsed).
 
Annie W. March 5, 2018
I made this today, but substituted dill for the coriander and parsley, and added roasted courgette and leaves to make it lighter. It was delicious! I’d never thought of using harissa and feta in the same recipe but they went great together
 
Ameliorator January 15, 2018
Two quarts? Half a gallon of kidney beans? I feel strongly that that may be all out of proportion with the quantity of dressing here...
 
Jennifer N. March 14, 2017
If you can find a good "Svanetian" salt from World Spice or another good merchant, it is Georgian salt and usually includes marigold. You WOULD NOT need additional salt.
 
Kari L. January 21, 2016
This sounds really interesting and I am looking forward to trying it. I also think that two quarts of beans sounds like way too much, and I will use either saffron or Turmeric in place of Marigold.
 
margothand January 10, 2016
Kenzi, I made the salad tonite and it was fantastic! But are you sure you meant "TWO QUARTS" of kidney beans for 4-6 people? Except for the amount of kidney beans (I used 1 quart), I pretty much followed the recipe and am thrilled to have another vegetable dinner (or lunch) in my repetoire. However, I used a friend's gift of "saffron" (from her 2nd honeymoon in Egypt), which was probably turmeric, in place of the marigold; this decision was based on an Internet search that suggested marigold is often used in place of saffron. Go figure.
 
beejay45 October 7, 2015
This sounds great. I grew up with great bean salads, so I am a lover. One question: is the marigold fresh or dried, and is it the same as calendula? Thanks!