6 Fresh Herbs That Will Bring Your Canned Beans To Life

Keeping your pantry stocked with canned goods is essential for having food on hand that has a longer shelf life and will work in a pinch for a quick meal or snack. Canned beans are a worthwhile pantry staple for their many simple uses and wholesome nutrients. There are plenty of different types of canned beans you should keep in your pantry and a number of ways to perk them up with complementary spices and seasonings. Choosing fresh herbs to pair with different canned beans is a great way to mix your favorite flavors together for a dish that's as delicious as it is nutritious.

With dense bean salads, dips, and soups on the rise, knowing how to enjoy a laundry list of legumes has become easier than ever. Just make sure to drain and rinse whichever beans you choose first. Picking the best herbs to go with canned beans is simple and effective because fresh herbs are milder and have more oils than their dried counterparts. This will add more color, flavor, and texture to your beans without overwhelming the overall taste.

The dynamic duo of sage and white beans is a combination with many different iterations; for example, in a classic pasta e fagioli recipe. Great Northern beans are one of a few different types of white beans that, while similar in taste and texture to Italian cannellini beans, are a little smaller. As long as you know how to buy and store fresh sage, pairing it up with a can of Whole Foods Organic Great Northern Beans (or your favorite brand of canned beans) will be as simple as it is tasty.

Cracking open a can of Great Northern beans invites many possibilities as does the earthy-tasting element of fresh sage. For a mouth-watering appetizer, blend canned Great Northern beans with garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, and fresh sage. You can even fry up your own sage chips to use as a crunchy topping. To keep warm during the cooler months, try simmering your beans in a sage-forward broth for a delicious soup or stew. If you want an even more simple snack, just toss your Great Northern beans with olive oil and chopped fresh sage.

Canned black-eyed peas, like Whole Foods Market Black-Eyed Peas, are good to keep on hand for eating on New Year's Day and all year long, prepared as a delicious side dish, a protein-rich entree, or more. Although named "peas," they are, in fact, beans -– and incredibly versatile ones at that! Whether mixed with ham hocks and bacon fat for a Hoppin' John recipe, blended up for a countrified version of hummus, or mixed with corn and peppers in a cowboy caviar salad, there's little these canned beans can't do.

Combining fresh marjoram with canned black-eyed peas is a great idea for adding a bit of spice and intensity to your meal without going overboard. A mild herb that deserves a place in your spice blends, marjoram is a lighter alternative to the pungent oregano. This bodes well for adding to black-eyed peas in a way that will complement the natural flavors without eclipsing them. It's simple enough to drain and rinse your canned black eyed peas and stew them in a savory broth alongside your favorite flavors, including fresh marjoram for a dish that is packed with nutrients and tastes great.

Garbanzo beans, also known as chickpeas, are a great canned good to have around. Amazing as the building blocks to a satisfying meal, there are so many uses for canned chickpeas, including making hummus and falafel, mixing into soups and stews, or crisping up in the air fryer for a quick and easy snack. Grab a can of Eden Organic Garbanzo Beans (available on Amazon) or your preferred brand and get to experimenting in the kitchen.

As a note, unlike the other canned beans listed, you might want to reserve that leftover chickpea water after draining because it has a great deal of uses too. Using your canned chickpeas alongside fresh thyme is a perfect way to give a bright flavor to a bean that is relatively mild on its own. A sprig or more of fresh thyme stripped and sprinkled over a pan of garbanzo beans that have been tossed in oil is great for oven-roasting. You can also combine fresh thyme with canned garbanzo beans and lemon juice into a refreshing salad — crumble a bit of feta cheese on top for extra protein!

Of the many ways to add more flavor to canned kidney beans, a bunch of fresh dill is a top choice. Canned kidney beans such as Joan of Arc Light Kidney Beans (available on Amazon) make a great ingredient to a hearty chili and a number of other hot dishes as well; they can also be used in plenty of refreshing salads, especially those inspired by Mediterranean cuisine. Nearly synonymous with pickles, fresh dill is the perfect herb pairing for your canned kidney beans for a light yet effective burst of flavor.

Canned kidney beans and dill are an excellent base for making a fulfilling, dense bean salad that is filled with essential nutrients in every bite. The herb can be roughly chopped and sprinkled over the top or tossed with the beans along with vinaigrette and other fun additions such as beets, more beans, and garlic. Dill is for much more than just pickling cucumbers and, by this logic, you can introduce more of your favorite pickled flavors into a salad that includes a heavy application of canned kidney beans and more.

If canned tomatoes and beans are all you need for a simple one-pot dinner, then it's time to get a little bold and saucy. Add saucy beans to your weeknight dinner rotation, starting with canned cannellini beans and fresh basil. The choice of tomatoes is, of course, at your discretion. Consider all of the amazing herbs in an Italian-style white bean and tomato skillet recipe, and the one that jumps out the most is likely basil. Like Great Northern beans, cannellini beans are another example of delicious and versatile white beans that can be used in a number of satisfying dishes.

Simply grab a can of Whole Foods Organic Cannellini Beans (available on Amazon) and a bunch of fresh basil to assemble an unforgettable meal. Whether or not you add tomatoes, there's plenty of opportunity to really lean into the fresh herb flavor of the basil and create new dishes from this duo of canned beans and fresh herbs. Whip everything up with some olive oil and garlic for a bean dip that you can spread on crackers or pasta chips. You can even add a sprinkle of shaved parmesan or slices of fresh mozzarella to the mix for even more wholesome protein.

Mixing fresh cilantro with canned black beans is almost too easy and definitely fulfilling. The combination of these two powerhouses ingredients can serve as the basis for a hearty dip, filling for tacos or burritos, stews, soups, and much more. There are so many great uses for canned black beans, and the addition of fresh cilantro really amps up the flavor of a can of Amazon Fresh Black Beans or any of your other favorite canned bean brands.

It might come as a surprise that cilantro is actually one of America's favorite seasonings, but this herb's incredible versatility speaks for itself. For example, canned black beans and fresh cilantro are the basis for an absolutely scrumptious Cuban black beans recipe. Adding cilantro as a garnish on top of a hearty black bean burger will take your canned beans to the next level. Finally, a spicy black bean soup recipe that starts with canned black beans and finishes with a sprinkle of fresh cilantro is the ultimate proof that this pairing is a match made in foodie heaven.