White bean, pickled beets, and radicchio salad

From No-Cook Cookbook, by Susie Theodorou

Excerpted with permission from No-Cook Cookbook: Fresh and Healthy Meals to Assemble, Eat, and Enjoy by: Susie Theodorou; published by ‎Hardie Grant Publishing, September 2024

Credit: Alex Lau

White bean, pickled beets, and radicchio salad

Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:

• For the pickled beets

  • 1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

  • 1/4 cup water

  • 2 tablespoons sugar

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt

  • 2 to 3 handfuls of peeled, shaved beets

• For the salad

  • 1 cup pickled red and yellow beets, plus some of the pickling juices

  • Sea salt flakes and black pepper

  • A few splashes extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 can or jar (15oz/425g) white beans, drained

  • 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

  • 1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard (optional)

  • 1 small head radicchio, coarsely torn, washed and drained

  • 2 radishes, thinly sliced and soaked in a bowl of ice-cold water for 10 minutes, then drained

  • 4 slices goat cheese*

  • 2 tablespoons something crispy: crispy onions or toasted pumpkin seeds

Procedure:

1. Make your pickles. Mix rice vinegar, water, sugar, and salt in a container and stir to dissolve. Add in your veggies and let sit for 10 minutes.

2. Mix the pickled red and yellow beets in a bowl and season with pepper and a little olive oil. Set aside.

3. Place the beans in a bowl and season with some of the beet pickling juices, olive oil, and salt and pepper. Add the parsley. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed. Set aside.

4. Mix 2 tablespoons pickling juices with a few splashes of olive oil, salt, and pepper, then mix and taste. Add the wholegrain mustard, if liked.

5. To assemble, dress the radicchio with a little of the dressing and add to the base of two serving bowls. Divide the beans between the bowls, keeping to one side. Add the pickled beets, the radishes, and the sliced goat cheese. Sprinkle with something crispy and serve with any remaining dressing on the side.

Notes and Substitutions:

• If you prefer, you can swap regular goat cheese for a plant-based version.

• This 10-minute pickle recipe works well with vegetables of your choice: peeled shaved beets, carrot sticks or slices, daikon sticks, sliced radishes, sliced cucumbers, sliced red onions or shallots, Asian pears or apple sticks, sliced cauliflower florets.

• The recipe makes 1 cup of pickles. You can store them in the brine in the refrigerator for a week.