White Bean and Salami Salad

1 hour 30 minutes

Serves 4

This recipe is from Delia's Frugal Food.

This is a delicious salad to serve at lunchtime at any time of the year but especially in the summer.

Make sure you have plenty of crusty bread to go with it to mop up the juices.

The Delia Online Cookery School: Watch our cookery school video on this page showing you how to make a Basic Vinaigrette dressing Vinaigrette with Chopped Herbs for summer salads. Half Sherry Vinegar and Balsamic Vinegar, and a no-vinegar dressing which uses lemon juice instead.

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Method

First put the dried beans in a sieve and wash them under cold running water.

Then place them in a saucepan, add enough cold water to come up about 2 inches (5 cm) above the beans and bring to the boil. As soon as the water boils, switch off the heat and leave the beans to soak for about an hour. Then add the onion stuck with cloves, the parsley, bay leaf, garlic and thyme. Bring the beans back to the boil and simmer very gently without a lid for 1-1½ hours, or until the beans are tender. The length of cooking time really depends on the age of the beans.

While the beans are cooking you can make the dressing by dissolving the salt in the wine vinegar for about half an hour then adding all the other ingredients. To blend them, shake them in a screw-topped jar, then taste and add more pepper and salt if you think it needs it because this dressing needs to be very well seasoned.

When the beans are cooked, drain them, and while they are still warm, combine them with the dressing in a large mixing bowl. Mix them gently to avoid the beans breaking, then add the onion, salami and parsley and leave for at least an hour before serving.