Name: Beet Dense Bean Salad Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 3
Ingredients: 4 pre-cooked beets, diced; 1 (15 oz) can chickpeas; 1/2 cup parsley, chopped; 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese; 1/4 cup lemon vinaigrette (Like Newman's Own Lemon Basil Vinaigrette)

In 2025 beans took over TikTok with folks touting they were consuming between 1 cup to one can of beans a day and making claims of how it transformed their lives. The viral Dense Bean Salad craze from previous years got even more attention. One lady claimed eating beans had made people in public nicer to her and another claimed her bean consumption had cured her fear of driving over bridges. While the validity of these claims is questionable at best, I do love a good dense bean salad recipe and this Beet Dense Bean Salad is my current favorite!

The extra fiber helps with digestion, the protein keeps me fuller longer, and using high quality ingredients means I’ll actually eat it too. This Beet Salad is packed with Mediterranean flavors with just 5 ingredients: beets, chickpeas (garbanzo beans), vegan or regular feta cheese, Italian parsley, and store-bought Italian Vinaigrette dressing.

Ingredients

Cooked Beets

I grab the pre-cooked beets at my local grocer. I prefer the regular cooked beets, but if you like the pickled beets those are good too. It’s also great if beets are in season to buy them at the farmers market and cook them yourself, but to keep things simple, I call for the cooked variety.

Chickpeas

Chickpeas are one of my favorite beans to add to salads. They’re creamy, and tasty and keep me full for longer. Just be sure to drain and rinse them to keep your five-ingredient Dense Bean Salad from getting mushy.

Feta Cheese

The best vegan feta is the Follow Your Heart feta crumbles. The texture is just like the real thing and the flavors are really spot on. If you’re a cheese eater then regular feta works here as well.

Italian Flat-Leaf Parsley

I love Italian parsley in salads because it has the perfect bright, crisp flavor that really balances out richer flavors. Curly parsley would also be delicious in a beet salad.

Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing

If you have a favorite lemon vinaigrette then go with that one. In my opinion the best lemon salad dressing is Newman’s Own Lemon Basil Vinaigrette. It’s plant based, herby and packed with light, citrus flavor. But, a homemade lemon dressing would work great in beet salad too.