Healthy Bean Side Dish Recipes

This veggie-packed side-dish vegetable soup can be made in the slow cooker. Just make a few tweaks (see Variation).

This 25-minute pasta side dish goes well with chicken or fish and can be served either warm or at room temperature. Kale and basil create a fresh-tasting pesto that is packed with protein and taste, thanks to the addition of chickpeas. We like shaved Parmesan sprinkled on the top, but feel free to add toasted pine nuts or walnuts for some crunch.

Take 5 minutes to toss together a fiber-rich chickpea and tomato salad for a satisfying snack.

This gluten-free butternut squash mac and cheese packs plenty of cheesy goodness in every bite. Chickpea pasta gets coated in a sauce made with pureed butternut squash that gives this comforting meal a nutrient boost and adds a sweet note to complement the savory flavors.

A simple dressing of sherry vinegar, Dijon mustard and paprika flavors this rice and lentil salad. It's a great way to use up leftovers.

By cooking your own dried beans, you save money, reduce sodium and get better flavor along with, surprisingly, more vitamins and minerals. If you can't use the whole batch, freeze surplus cooked beans for later use in soups, salads and dips. The range of time for cooking beans is wide and varies with the age and the type of beans selected.

Stash mirepoix blend—a basic building-block combo of chopped carrots, celery and onion—in your freezer and save some serious prep time on this simple bean side dish.

These slow-cooker beans are super flavorful and tender. To save time, process the garlic cloves in a small food processor instead of mincing them by hand. You can also make this a day ahead and refrigerate overnight to give the flavors more time to mingle. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves, if desired.

This simple, fresh-tasting salad adds delicious variety to grilled foods, such as salmon, halibut, chicken or pork. Browning the corn in a skillet gives it a nutty, caramelized flavor that contrasts with the sweetness of the mango.

Avocado, fresh chives and spinach are blended right into the creamy, bright-green dressing in this healthy edamame salad recipe. Pink beans are popular in the Caribbean, but you can substitute pinto beans or light red kidney beans if you can't find them.

These easy sweet potato fritters have a crispy crust and a tender middle. The beans are flavored with smoked paprika, but sweet or hot would work well too. To give it a Mexican-inspired twist, use chili powder as the spice instead of the paprika.

An easy salad to serve with grilled chicken or steak for supper or on a bed of greens for a satisfying lunch. Substitute white beans or chickpeas for the black-eyed peas if you prefer.

This bean and okra recipe is a classic Southern side dish perfect for potlucks. Adding the okra toward the end of cooking guarantees a tender--not mushy--texture.

This healthy date, carrot and lentil salad recipe is flavored with a spiced preserved-lemon dressing. While most salads taste best when freshly assembled, lentil salads appreciate time for the flavors to marry so try to make it at least a few hours ahead if you can. Bring the salad to room temperature before serving and adjust salt if needed.

This healthy and pretty beet salad recipe is dressed with a tangy-sweet maple-mustard vinaigrette. Use the leftover dressing for any salad later in the week.

Fatteh means "broken" and signifies a dish of toasted bread pieces mixed with other ingredients. In this easy recipe, the yogurt is also "broken" with tahini, garlic and oil. Enjoy it immediately, before the crispy bread gets soggy from the yogurt.

This Southern succotash is packed with flavor and fresh ingredients, including okra, tomatoes, corn and bacon—so much goodness in one bite! If you can't find fresh okra, feel free to use thawed frozen okra. Read the author's story behind the recipe: Nothing Says Summer to Me More Than My Mom's Southern Succotash.

Mango, bell peppers, and black beans combine with whole-wheat couscous in this Caribbean-inspired grain salad. The ginger-lime dressing has a touch of cayenne pepper and provides just the right amount of zing!

Look for red lentils and quinoa at a large supermarket or a store that carries a wide selection of legumes and grains. Pairing them with flaxseeds boosts the nutrition of this pilaf.

The famous Waldorf salad, full of apples, celery, raisins and walnuts, gets a healthful makeover with a touch of golden curry. It has nearly twice the fiber of typical versions.

This lima bean recipe is the creation of Mable Clarke, a South Carolina cook and activist. This side dish is on the menu for Clarke's monthly fish fry that she started to save the Soapstone Baptist Church. No need for ham hocks with this recipe--her onion-rich roast turkey stock gives these humble beans a rich, savory flavor, but store-bought will also do the trick. A long, slow simmer coaxes the creaminess out of the limas.

Savory, cool yogurt rice, or "curd rice," as it's referred to on the Indian subcontinent, is the ultimate comfort food.

This classic black beans and rice recipe is loaded with flavor!

These marinated beans are herbaceous and bright thanks to fresh dill, oregano, garlic and lemon juice. Use these versatile marinated beans on a salad, in a wrap or over a grain bowl.