• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Veggie Desserts
  • Home
  • Recipe Index
  • Vegan Recipes
    • Vegan Cake and Desserts
    • Vegan Dinner
    • Vegan Breakfast
    • Vegan Guides
  • Cookbook
    • About My Cookbook
    • Buy Veggie Desserts + Cakes
  • About Me
    • About Me
    • Contact
    • Work With Me
    • Press
    • Newsletter
  • Subscribe
  • Instagram Posts
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Vegetarian Recipes
  • Vegan Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • About Me
  • Cookbook
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Vegetarian Recipes
  • Vegan Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • About Me
  • Cookbook
×
Home » Recipes » Side Dishes

Popped Beans with Herbs

Published: Dec 20, 2017 · Modified: Jul 28, 2020 by Kate Hackworthy · 13 Comments

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

Popped Beans with Herbs make a fantastic side dish. They're a super quick and easy dish that tastes great. Why popped? When you pan-fry them, they pop! Ready in 10 minutes with 5 ingredients.

Herby Beans in a frying pan.

Why you'll love this recipe

These pan-fried fresh Popped Beans with herbs are bursting with fresh flavour.

Pan-frying the beans gives them a lovely crispy texture that contrasts well with the soft inside.

Some of the beans sort of 'pop' when they crisp up and get extra tasty.

Then a huge handful of herbs freshens it up and adds loads of flavour.

A delicious side dish, salad or soup-topper.

Ingredients

You don't need many ingredients for Popped Beans!

Beans - I use butter beans (aka lima beans) as I love their almost potato-like texture, but you could try them with any white beans, chickpeas or other beans. Great Northern Beans or canellini beans work great, too.

Garlic - everything is better with garlic, right? If you're not a fan (whaaat???), then just leave it out.

Herbs - Use whatever fresh herbs you have to hand and it will be different every time. Tarragon, rosemary, thyme, parsley etc.. 

Oil - Use your favorite frying oil. Coconut works too for a totally different flavor of dish.

Salt and pepper

What is a soup topper?

It's easy to make soup extra special and personalised.

First, you definitely need to start with a really good soup that you love.

Then you can add all sorts of soup toppings to jazz it up and make the meal heartier!

Try these crispy pan-fried beans on my vividly green healthy vegan kale soup. The fragrant herbs and crispy beans would elevate these veg-packed tasty soups to a heartier meal and make them extra special.

Croutons are a great place to start, but if you get creative there are limitless possibilities. I love adding a protein, like these fresh herb beans (recipe below!) but you could also try everything from mushrooms to crispy onions.

Favourite soup toppings

Fresh herb popped beans
Sauteed garlic mushrooms
Toasted seeds
Roasted chickpeas
Parmesan crisps
Toasted nuts
Herby croutons
Balsamic drizzle

Soup recipes

Soup toppings are perfect on these tasty soups:
Vegan Lentil Soup
Easy Tomato Soup
Easy Pea Soup (4 ingredients)
Zucchini Soup with Basil (courgette)
Beetroot Soup

Be sure to also check out my roundup of  25+ Delicious Vegan Soup Recipes!

Bowls of soup with pan fried beans.

Side dish serving suggestions

But you can do much more with these sauteed beans than top soup with them!

I love them so much that I'd eat them cold as leftovers from the fridge.

Jamie Oliver has a popped beans recipe that he serves for brunch with baked eggs and tomatoes - that's a tasty way to enjoy them, too.

Try them as a healthy, protein-packed side dish with these recipes:

Vegan Fajitas
Portobello Mushroom Steaks
Persian Tofu Veg Skewers
Mushroom Stroganoff

Bowl of soup with sauteed beans.

Recipe

If you make this easy herby beans recipe, please tag it with #veggiedesserts on Instagram or other social media. I LOVE seeing your recreations of my recipes.

📖 Recipe

Herby Beans in a frying pan. A simple, easy and fresh side dish or soup topper.

Sauteed Popped Beans

Kate Hackworthy | Veggie Desserts
Sauteeing beans with garlic until slightly crisp and then tossing them with loads of fresh herbs makes a tasty and quick soup topping or side dish! Vegan and gluten free.  
5 from 5 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prevent your screen from going dark
SaveSaved!
Prep Time 3 minutes mins
Cook Time 7 minutes mins
Total Time 10 minutes mins
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4
Calories 149 kcal

Equipment

  • Frying pan

Ingredients
 

  • 1 can white beans (400g / 15 oz can) I used butter beans/lima beans
  • 1 garlic clove crushed
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 large handful roughly chopped mixed herbs such as parsley, coriander, thyme

Instructions
 

  • Drain and rinse the beans, then pat them dry with a tea towel.
  • Heat the oil in a frying pan over a medium heat, then add the garlic and beans. Cook, stirring or tossing occasionally, for 5 minutes or until slightly crispy. Mix in the fresh herbs.
  • Enjoy as a side dish or as a soup topping.

Nutrition

Calories: 149kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 6gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 149mgPotassium: 350mgFiber: 3gVitamin C: 0.2mgCalcium: 56mgIron: 2.3mg

The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.

Tried this recipe?Mention @kateveggiedesserts or tag #veggiedesserts! I love seeing your recreations.

More Side Dish Recipes

  • Stack of naan breads on a plate.
    Easy Naan Bread Recipe (15 Min Yeast-Free Flatbread)
  • Looking down at a table with a serving dish of roasted beetroot and sweet potato salad with couscous.
    Roasted Beetroot Sweet Potato Salad
  • A wooden table with a bowl of Christmas couscous, next to a dish of pomegranate seeds and parsley.
    Christmas Couscous
  • A plate of roasted gorgonzola brussels sprouts.
    Gorgonzola Brussels Sprouts
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Email

Reader Interactions

Comments

    5 from 5 votes

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




  1. Nora

    December 30, 2017 at 10:36 pm

    Oh wow! Looks super delicious, I love the color of that soup! And beans for sure are a good topping for that, yum. 🙂

    Reply
  2. rochel

    December 27, 2017 at 10:01 am

    5 stars
    yummm..
    it sounds tasty and healthy .
    i would love to make it and taste it !
    great post with yumm recipey

    Reply
  3. Becca Talbot

    December 25, 2017 at 7:24 pm

    5 stars
    I love butter beans too, I find the texture really creamy and they're really filling beans. These soup toppers sound delicious ???? X

    Reply
  4. Crystal

    December 24, 2017 at 12:24 pm

    This is such a great recipe for soup.We always make soup more often in the winter months.

    Reply
  5. Diane Wilkins

    December 24, 2017 at 4:34 am

    5 stars
    This looks sooooooo good. Can't wait to give it a try. Nothing is than a bowl of soup in this cold weather. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  6. Hannah

    December 23, 2017 at 3:45 pm

    IVe never though to do soup toppers - I need to try!

    Reply
  7. Ali - We Made This Life

    December 22, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    Ooh I wouldn't have thought of having a soup topper, these look really delicious and I bet they make the soup more hearty and filling too.

    Reply
  8. Elizabeth

    December 22, 2017 at 4:37 pm

    5 stars
    What a lovely soup topper! I confess I had no idea lima beans were butter beans, lol! Consider me educated!

    Reply
  9. REbecca

    December 22, 2017 at 10:49 am

    These beans look delicious! I've never thought of pan frying beans before. I made soup the other week with beans in it but it didn't turn out too well! I'm pinning this to remind me to try it 🙂

    Reply
  10. Laura

    December 22, 2017 at 9:55 am

    Ohh I love slightly chunky soups and ones with toppers as it makes it a little bit more substantial. This herby bean topper looks delicious and such a good idea

    Laura x

    Reply
  11. Stacey MacNaught

    December 21, 2017 at 2:19 pm

    I love the look of this recipe. We're always making soups over the winter months (me and my slow cooker are in love between September and March!). So I'll be trying the herby bean topping in that post-leftovers bit before New Year 🙂

    Thank you

    Reply
  12. Rebecca | AAUBlog

    December 21, 2017 at 9:49 am

    I'm all for cooking from scratch, and these sound like a good alternative to traditional croutons 🙂

    Reply
  13. Lynne Harper

    December 20, 2017 at 7:33 pm

    5 stars
    I love items made at home 🙂 I also love a good warm soup in winter time. I haven't really thought of soup toppers before but these sound delicious

    Reply

Primary Sidebar

Kate Hackworthy in the kitchen

Hi, I'm Kate, a journalist, author and multi-award-winning food blogger. Here you'll find vegetarian recipes and vegan recipes celebrating vegetables, from dinner to dessert! If you love vegetables, you've come to the right place. About Me

Collage of press logos that Veggie Desserts has appeared in, including The Guardian, Marie Claire, Vancouver Sun, The Globe and Mail, Seattle Times and The Sunday Telegraph.

Popular recipes

  • Stack of naan breads on a plate.
    Easy Naan Bread Recipe (15 Min Yeast-Free Flatbread)
  • Close up of a plate of red lentil dahl with rice and spinach.
    The BEST Easy Red Lentil Dahl
  • A jar of quick, easy and tasty raspberry compote, with a spoonful of it next to a blue and white tea towel.
    Quick Raspberry Compote Recipe
  • Bowl of stewed pears with a serving spoon and a cinnamon stick.
    Easy Stewed Pears Recipe

Vegetable Cake Recipes

  • A cake and a piece of cake sitting on top of a table.
    Apple Kale Cake with Apple Icing
  • Close up of cut loaf cake.
    Parsnip Loaf Cake
  • Cake on a cake stand with slices missing
    Vanilla Spinach Cake
  • A slice of lemon cucumber cake on a plate.
    Lemon and Cucumber Cake

My cookbook

Veggie Desserts and Cakes Cookbook cover.

Check out my Veggie Desserts Cookbook, full of tasty desserts with vegetables!

Footer

↑ back to top

About

  • About me
  • Contact
  • Work with me
  • Press
  • Veggie Desserts Cookbook

Newsletter

  • Sign Up for newsletter updates

Partner Sites

  • You Say Potatoes

Disclaimers

  • Disclosures & Affiliate Policies
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility Policy

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Copyright © 2025 Kate Hackworthy / Veggie Desserts

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




Let us know what you thought of this recipe:

This recipe worked out perfectly!
The whole family loved this recipe!
Easy and tasty!
I'm sure we'll be making this recipe again and again!

Or write in your own words:

A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required

Recipe Ratings without Comment

Something went wrong. Please try again.