Balela is a savory Middle Eastern Bean Salad made with chickpeas, black beans, and tomatoes. It's easy to make and is naturally vegan and gluten-free!
Does this Balela salad look familiar to you? Even if you've never tried it in a restaurant, you may have seen this Middle Eastern Bean Salad in the refrigerated case at Trader Joe's!
Personally, I've been buying it for years. It makes a great lunch.
And it can be paired with other favorites such as stuffed grape leaves, hummus and veggies, or a simple green salad.
But one day I asked myself why I keep buying it rather than making it myself. So I jotted down the ingredients from the package and went to work creating a copycat recipe.
Ingredients
The only special ingredient you'll need to make Balela is sumac.
Sumac is one of my favorite herbs.
I use it when I make Roasted Fall Vegetables. And it's also delicious sprinkled on top of White Bean Dip.
It has a tangy, lemony flavor that brightens your food. If you've ever cooked with za'atar spice blend, it's one of the components.
Sumac is often found in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine. I recommend trying it in salads, on roasted vegetables, and sprinkled on hummus.
Ingredients
- chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
- black beans
- onion
- garlic
- tomatoes
- fresh parsley
- fresh mint
- olive oil
- red wine vinegar
- lemon juice
- sumac
- cayenne pepper
- salt
When you make Middle Eastern Bean Salad at home instead of purchasing it at Trader Joe's, not only will you end up with enough to feed a crowd, you'll also save a lot of money.
And all you need to do is combine the ingredients together to make this flavorful healthy salad.
Middle Eastern Bean Salad can be made as mild or spicy as you like.
The heat comes from the cayenne pepper.
For me, a little goes a long way.
But if your bottle of cayenne has been sitting around a while, it may have lost some of it's kick.
The moral of the story is to take a tiny taste before adding it to your salad.
You can always add more, but you can't take it out!
You can make this dish ahead of time and refrigerate it until you're ready to serve it.
In my opinion, it tastes even better the next day.
It's perfect for adding to your meal prep routine so you can enjoy it all week long.
Middle Eastern Bean Salad (Balela)
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 2 cans chickpeas, (garbanzo beans) (3 cups), rinsed and drained
- 1 can black beans, (1 ½ cup) rinsed and drained
- 1 white onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 dry pint grape tomatoes, (or cherry tomatoes) quartered
- ½ cup parsley, (fresh) chopped
- ¼ cup mint, (fresh) chopped
For the dressing:
- 4 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon sumac
- cayenne pepper, to taste
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the dressing ingredients to a jar with a lid and shake to combine. (Or you can whisk the ingredients together in a small bowl.)
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve. The salad will keep well for several days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Kathleen
Oh, Amy, you've saved the day.! I was sitting in my comfortable, cool apartment in the middle of 100degreeF, smoke-filled, rural Oregon wishing there was a delivery service that could find more than fast food in my community. So I've been looking at your recipes and found this! No Trader Joe's in area so I've never tried this salad. I had everything on hand except the sumac. I did have a fabulous Za'atar that is the Lebanese kind without thyme but adds wonderful hyssop, more sumac, I used that and am fixed for the week without a single use of heat and minimal effort on my part.
So summer in Oregon will be filled with easy Middle-eastern yum Thanks!!
Amy Katz
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Kathleen! Za'atar is a great addition.
Patti
This is so AWESOME!!! I love it! I didn't have sumac though, and added extra lemon juice and Mrs. Dash lemon pepper. It was so good!! I did have a question, which I feel is a strange one, but I am on a low sodium plan for health problems, and can't eat any added extra sugar also. I wanted to buy some dried chickpeas, but noticed they had a few grams of added sugars. Will soaking them, help get rid of the sugars?
Thank you so much for these great recipes! I am so excited to try more, but would love to be able to get a bag of chickpeas! Yay!! YOU ARE WONDERFUL!!!!
Amy Katz
I'm so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Patti! And to answer your question, yes, soak the beans, then discard the soaking liquid and use fresh water when you cook them. Thank you so much for your kind words! 🙂
Angela
Omg. Delicious. Makes a ton compared to what u would buy at trader Joes. I am so thrilled with this recipe! I used everything super fresh. Left out the sumac bc didnt have it. It was still super good. Going to add sumac in the next batch. Really good right when finished and super delicious if u can let it set overnight in fridge. Def a keeper. Thank u for the awesome recipe! 😊
Amy Katz
I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Angela! And I think you're going to love the sumac. It adds a fresh hint of lemony flavor.
Joyce
I've made this probably 20 times in the past two years. We LOVE it! I do usually increase the dressing by about 50%, but that's just my preference. This recipe is fantastic as is! Thank you for sharing!!!
Amy Katz
Thank you so much, Joyce! I'm so happy you enjoy it!
Denise Touma
Made this and it was delicious! Question...if it serves 8 what would the amount per serving be?
Amy
I'm so glad you enjoyed it, Denise! A serving is about a cup.
Emese
I simply used one half a lemon for dressing along with cumin and coriander and it turned out splendidly! As the sole vegan in the family, I will definitely have to share, haha (:
Amy
Wonderful! I'm glad you enjoyed it!