Plantain Bean Salad

April 3, 2014 By Leanne Vogel November 4, 2018

A light bean salad recipe made with chunks of plantains and a naturally sweetened dressing.

Kevin and I are MARRIED and off enjoying ourselves on our honeymoon for the next couple of weeks. I’ll be in and out, sharing our stories along the way, inviting guests to share new recipes and continuing with our 8-week giveaway event in celebration of my new cookbook.

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Please welcome Brittany from Eating Bird Food – here to share a new bean salad recipe with you.

Hi there! I’m Brittany, the blogger behind Eating Bird Food. When I first got the email from Leanne about guest posting for her in April because she was getting married, I couldn’t contain my excitement. I absolutely love weddings and I am sooo happy for her and Kevin! As a newlywed myself, I know how crazy things can get leading up to the wedding and I also know that relaxing on your honeymoon is such a beautiful thing! Hopefully at this point Leanne and Kevin are some place gorgeous enjoying their first few days as a married couple.

So for my guest post today, I have a lovely little plantain salad to share.

When brainstorming recipe ideas I knew I wanted to include plantains but couldn’t decide whether to make something sweet or savory so this salad is a combo of sorts. It definitely has a sweet component from sautéed plantains and the citrus dressing but the beans, tomatoes and red onion balance everything out.

If you haven’t cooked with plantains before you’re in for a real treat. Although you may not see many recipes with plantains, they’re easy to find at most grocery stores (look for them near the bananas). Really ripe plantains are best for this type of recipe so skip those that are green and look for ones that are turning black with a few yellow spots.

Plantains aren’t nearly as sweet as bananas but you’ll still get a bit of sweetness to shine through — especially after sauteing the plantains in the coconut oil. I tried a few right after sauteing, before adding them to the salad, and they were really good! Probably good enough to be a recipe on their own without any other ingredients or a dressing, but I was set on making a salad out of them so that’s what I did. :)

Once you have the salad and dressing altogether, you can eat it on its own as a side dish or serve it over greens (as I did in the photos) for a light lunch or dinner. Enjoy!

Plantain Bean Salad

Author: Brittany Mullins

Recipe type: Vegan, Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Sugar-free, Yeast-free, Corn-free, Grain-free, Nut-free, Egg-free

Prep time: 15 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Total time: 30 mins

Serves: 2

A light bean salad recipe made with chunks of plantains and a naturally sweetened dressing.

Ingredients

2 ripe plantains (black with some yellow), chopped into ½ inch chunks
1 teaspoon unrefined coconut oil
1 cup cooked black beans
½ cup grape tomatoes, quartered
¼ red onion, chopped
1 medjool date, pitted and soaked in water for a bit to soften
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh grapefruit or orange juice
2 teaspoons finely chopped mint, divided
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon sea salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste
baby spinach/mixed greens for serving

Instructions

Heat coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add plantains and sauté (tossing frequently) for 5-7 minutes or until their light yellow color turns golden and some pieces begin to brown. Remove from stove and set aside to cool.
Make the dressing by blending the date, juice, apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon of chopped mint, salt and ground pepper in a high powered blender. Once smooth, slowly whisk in olive oil.
Place plantains, black beans, tomatoes, red onion into a bowl, pour on the dressing and stir well to combine. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Top with fresh mint.
Serve salad on it’s own or over a bed of greens.

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Brittany Mullins is a holistic health coach, certified NASM personal trainer and has been blogging about health and wellness since 2008. She is a lover of all things food, nutrition, and fitness. Through her blog, eatingbirdfood.com, she proves that maintaining a healthy lifestyle doesn’t have to be a struggle by sharing recipes, fitness activities, tips and snippets of her life. On a daily basis she inspires and motivates others by showing that small changes can create long-lasting health and happiness.Join Brittany on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.

This entry was tagged: bean salad, black bean, salad, spinach