Black-Eyed Pea and Green Bean Salad
Updated June 15, 2026
Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
- Ready In
- 1 hr 20 min
- (50 min, plus 30 min cooling)
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
Salt
12 ounces (3 cups) frozen black-eyed peas or 1 (15.5-ounce) can black-eyed peas (see Tip)
8 ounces fresh green beans, trimmed, cut into thirds (about 2 cups)
¼ cup Dijon mustard
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
30 grams carbs; 139 calories; 1 gram fat; 6 grams fiber; 425 milligrams sodium; 4 grams protein; 13 grams sugar
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Preparation
- Step 1
Fill a medium pot with water and salt it until it tastes like sea water, then bring to a boil over high heat. If you are using frozen peas, add them once the water is boiling. (If you are using canned peas, see Tip.) Boil the peas until they are tender with a little bite, 20 to 25 minutes (begin checking at the 20 minute mark). Using a slotted spoon, scoop the peas out into a medium bowl and rinse under cold water to cool them down. Drain and set aside. Keep the pot of water boiling.
- Step 2
Add the green beans to the boiling water and stir. Fill a medium bowl with ice and cold water. (If you don’t have ice, cold water on its own is just fine.) Boil the green beans for 2 minutes, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the beans from the pot to the ice bath. Move beans to a plate lined with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels and pat them dry. Mix the green beans with the peas in the bowl.
- Step 3
In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar and honey until smooth. Pour over the peas and green beans, then toss to coat. Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving (see Tip). Season with salt to taste.
If you prefer to use canned black-eyed peas, rinse and drain them well, then begin the recipe at step 2 by boiling the green beans.
If you want to work ahead, the salad can be prepared up to 2 days in advance and kept chilled until serving.
Private Notes
Comments
There is a mistake in the recipe's ingredient list. A 15-oz can of beans, according to the nutrition facts panel, contains 3.5 one-half cup servings, or a total of 1-3/4 cups of beans, not nearly the three cups of frozen beans which is given as an equal substitute.
This was rather plain but then delicious with the addition of finely chopped mint. I reduced the honey to 1 tablespoon so added some olive oil to balance the vinegar and mustard.
Salt it until it tastes like sea water? Not sure that is a useful direction. Perhaps 1 teaspoons per x cups of water or something like that would be more helpful.
Maybe red or white wine vinegar & a bit of grated garlic?
I have been making a version of this for over 20 years. My version is one package of frozen corn microwaved, one can black eyed peas, fresh string beans or asparagus steamed until crisp tender, chopped red onion to taste The dressing is balsamic, with equal amounts of oil (half olive, half neutral, a spoonful of dijon, a couple of nice cloves of chopped garlic (or more) and salt and pepper. The salad should marinate for at least an hour. I often add a little more balsamic at the end to taste as the dressing needs to be more vinegary than regular salad dressing. It's my mom's favorite. The addition of corn makes a big difference. I love the texture of the black eyed peas but chick peas can be another option. It's my mom's favorite. I usually splash a little more balsamic at the end
Can you make this with frozen green beans when fresh are not available?
Yes, and the microwaveable, cook-in-bag kind might actually be easier than boiling fresh ones.