The trick to healthier eating can be to focus more on what to add, rather than what you need to subtract. Cast in point? Potato salad.

Healthier eating can be as simple as green beans

With a few simple adds, summer potato salad can be added to a healthy rotation. Let’s start with the basis of a potato salad – the potatoes. Known to spike blood sugar and reside on the do-not-eat carb list for many, even the maligned potato can be part of a healthy menu rotation.

How? Resistant starch, the magical transformation that occurs when many starches are refrigerated before consuming. Here’s a quick recap of what we mean:

Resistant Starch

Resistant starches ‘resist’ digestion in the small intestine and instead are digested in the large intestine where they are fermented, effectively raising our good bacteria levels, much the way fiber does.

Because resistant starch doesn’t rapidly convert into glocose in the small intestine, it leads to a slower and more gradual increase in blood sugar, per the glycemic index. This helps with managing blood sugar levels and improving insulin sensitivity, especially as we age.

Resistant starch is more filling than regular starch because of its fermentation and slower digestion. So, you stay full, longer.

Your gut will thank you for increasing your amounts of resistant starch. Because it acts like prebiotic fiber, it supports a healthyy gut microbiome, which improves digestion and helps maintain a balance of beneficial gut bacteria.

For a deeper dive, read this.

You’re already on the road to a healthier salad

Now that you know the benefits of resistant starch, we can move to the next step in making potato salad a healthier option. Make it veggie-forward.

Adding copious amounts of a vegetable(s) adds nutrients, fiber, and more, to your salad. It also fills you quicker, does double-duty as both a salad and a starch, and just plain looks more inviting on your plate.

Get familiar with an ice bath

The key to keeping the green beans in this recipe both crisp and bright green, is an ice bath. This is exactly what it sounds like: Fill a large bowl, halfway, with cold water and fill the other half with ice. Having this at-the-ready before your beans are finished boiling ensures they’ll retain their vibrant color and non-mushy status.

Once you have boiled the green beans for 4-5 minutes, quickly drain in a colander and then immediately plunge into this ice bath bowl. Don’t remove the beans from their ice bath until they are completely cooled.

That’s it. That’s the key to great green beans.

Improvisation is another benefit

Our recipe provides the basic, but don’t be afraid to improvise based on your tastes and what’s nearing-its-end in your refrigerator. My husband loves this with the addition of some roasted red pepper. I like it with some chopped kalamata olives. But you could add leftover asparagus or broccoli to it, as well.

Walnuts are a great accompaniment to the green beans, but you could also use pistachios.

This recipes doubles or triples well, for a crowd. And the leftovers are good, even days later.

Prep Time:35

Cook Time:10

Ingredients

1 pound new potatoes or small Yukon Gold
1 pound fresh, green beans
2 tbsp red onion, minced
2 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
3/4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped and toasted in a 350° oven for about 5 minutes

Dressing

4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, finely minced
3/4 tsp salt
ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

Depending on their size, cut potatoes into halves or quarters. Try to make pieces close to uniform in size. Place in a large pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and lightly boil potatoes for 12-15 minutes, until fork tender.
While potatoes are cooking, trim green bean ends and cut in half or thirds, depending on size.
Set another pot on stove with water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the green beans and cook for 4-5 minutes. Prepare ice bath.
When green beans are cooked but still firm, drain in a colander and then immediately plunge into ice bath. Leave them here until they are completely cool.
Prepare dressing by whisking olive oil, red wine vinegar, mustard, garlic and salt and pepper together.
When potatoes are cooked, drain and add to a large bowl. Add half the dressing to potatoes and stir.
When green beans are cool, drain and pat dry. Add beans, onion, parsley and walnuts to potatoes in bowl. Add remaining dressing and carefully toss.