I love three bean salad. My mom always used Italian Dressing. And that's how I make it.
Donna A.

Sounds de-lish. You can try making it without sugar, using some sweet carrots, finely chopped, and a little lemon juice. Then serve it with hummus and pitas. mmmm.

I love all the classic recipes you often reprise - thank you! This recipe brought back many wonderful memories of summer meals on my family's screened-in back porch (where my dad made a table from a tree stump and half a huge wooden cable-spool - the kind telephone wire was wrapped on - big enough for five kids plus as many friends). And you're absolutely right: the sugar is the key.

I have made a similar salad for years, but also add black beans and red bell pepper for color. I don't use a sweet dressing, though - not our family's taste. Instead, I make a simple vinaigrette of olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, salt, cayenne and black pepper, and usually a pinch of dried oregano. My elementary-school age kids go nuts for this stuff, which is wonderful given the nutritional value.

Three-bean salad is wonderful, in that you can adapt it to your own personal taste in beans. I use the recipe in Peg Bracken's I Hate to Cook Book, which is similar to yours, but uses green beans, wax beans & kidney beans. Not liking kidney beans, I substituted bean sprouts. To add color, I put in a small jar of pimentos. To add crunch, I put in a few water chestnuts, julienned.
This is a great dish to take to covered-dish events, because it doesn't need to be kept especially cold, nor does it have to be heated.
And after all the beans are eaten up, we use the liquid to marinate and season chicken or pork.
Lucy

I was asked to bring a three bean salad to cookout this week. Not being a fan of this kind of salad, I had no recipe. Found this online and made it for the pary. Wow!!! I absolutely LOVED it and so did the guests. The sugar is definitely a key ingredient.

This recipe turned out great. I substituted Splenda for the sugar and cut back on the amount (to 1/4 cup). It still tasted wonderful. Thank you.

This is beautiful and so delicious. I made if for my dad who is a diabetic so I had to replace the sugar with splenda. It was still delicious. Thanks.

I heartily recommend subbing about 1/4 cup Stevia for the sugar to provide low-glycemic and nutritional sweetening. Awesome thanks!

This salad is awesome! I made it for a BBQ and got so many compliments. Thanks!
I decided to make it after I bought a three bean salad from a gourmet deli in NY and loved it. This recipe was just as great as the pricey salad.

Wondering if I can substitute dried rosemary for the fresh...living in the midwest, our fresh herbs are outrageously priced! I LOVE your site, Elise. It's the first place I go when I am looking for a new recipe. And all that I've made my family enjoys immensely. Thank you for sharing.

Yes, but use less. Add to taste. (And thank you for your kind words regarding the site!) ~Elise

I don't use the sugar or the olive oil. Instead I use a jar of apple jelly and cook that with the apple cidar vinegar and thicken the liquid with a couple teaspoons of corn starch. Fresh basil is good in this salad too.

Use Stevia to replace the sugar.

Elise~I make this recipe often and have substituted various vegetables. I have used green and yellow beans, onion, gr. pepper, diced tomato, celery and cucumber.
I've even partially cooked asparagus and carrots until tender/crisp, cooled and added them to the salad. Great taste!