Vegetarian mains
Chargrilled courgette & butterbean salad with lemon, basil and pine nuts
This summery salad is a beautiful way to use courgettes. Chargrilling adds a smokiness to the dish, but if you don’t have a griddle pan just use a frying pan instead. This dish is perfect served at a barbecue, next to a piece of fish or eaten with a chunky slice of sourdough to mop up all the juices. Feel free to use this recipe as a starting point; it is delicious at it is, but very easy to tweak and complement.
Cook's notes
This salad is best made a few hours ahead to allow all the flavours to infuse, and is also best served at room temperature.
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 4 courgettes
- 1 x 400g tin butterbeans, drained & rinsed
- 1 small bunch of basil, leaves roughly chopped
- 20g pine nuts
- olive oil
For the dressing:
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- juiced & zest of 1 lemon
- 1 garlic clove, minced or finely grated
- salt & pepper
Method
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Step 1
Heat a griddle pan until smoking hot. Meanwhile, prepare the courgettes by cutting away the ends and thinly slicing them lengthways using a mandolin or a very sharp knife. Brush the courgette strips on both sides with oil and, working in batches, place them onto the griddle and cook until you have charred lines on both sides.
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Step 2
Meanwhile, in a dry frying pan, toast the pine nuts until they have browned a little.
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Step 3
In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Set aside.
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Step 4
In a mixing bowl, add the courgette strips, butter beans, basil, pine nuts and the dressing and toss everything gently to combine. Transfer the salad onto a serving plate and garnish with a few basil leaves before serving.