Ready to Mix Some Salads this Spring? Here Are Our Top 31 Favorite
Spring is here, and what better way to celebrate it than making sure it’s on your plate? Spring salads, bursting with fresh, delicious greens, are a perfect example of why seasonal eating is not only smart and sustainable but also exciting and extremely healthy.
Spring greens such as tender baby lettuce, red and green romaine, arugula, radicchio, or mustard greens make a delicious salad base. You can build them up with cheese, legumes, crunchy root veggies, starchy vegetables or healthy protein sources.
A spring salad can be a simple, flavorful side dish for your main course, or it can be a satisfying meal in itself, if you pack it up with enough ingredients. Versatile and easy to whip up at a moment’s notice, spring salads should be on your weekly lunch and dinner rotation this season. And, as you can easily substitute ingredients and tweak recipes to your liking, spring salads can fit any type of diet, whether it’s low carbs, vegan, gluten free, and so on.
As a pro tip, make sure you purchase some good quality oils that will truly elevate your salads to the next level. Most people favor extra virgin olive oil, but there are other oils you can try, such as walnut oil, sesame oil, avocado or grape-seed oil.
A touch of acidity is extremely important as well, so experiment with balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, and freshly squeezed citrus juice until you find the perfect combination for your taste buds.
That being said, let’s take a look at some amazing spring salad recipes that will deliver the freshness of spring straight to your plate, and inspire you to come up with new and surprising combos:
1. Bright Spring Salad
This salad combines spring greens, tender asparagus, and sweet peas with the crunchiness of pistachios, radishes, and roasted chickpeas for a satisfying lunch or light dinner.
The avocado and feta cheese add creaminess, while the bright dressing makes it burst with flavor. You can add more chickpeas for extra protein, and you can pair it with a slice or two of toasted sourdough bread or ciabatta.
2. Easy Spring Mix Salad
The creamy, Greek yogurt dressing is definitely the star of the show here, while the red onions, carrots, tomatoes and cucumbers add various degrees of sweetness and crunchiness. The homemade croutons add another special touch, as you can personalize them with your favorite herbs and spices.
3. Spinach Salad with Chorizo & Feta
This distinctive salad blends the creaminess of feta cheese with the rich, smoky flavors of Spanish chorizo sausage and the peppery freshness of spinach leaves. Chorizo can be sliced and enjoyed ‘raw,’ but in this recipe, it’s fried first to release the wonderful aroma and sweet taste.
Serve this salad with warm crusty bread for a filling lunch or summer supper.
4. Edamame Salad with Brown Rice and Sesame Dressing
If you’re in the mood for a salad that’s nourishing, tasty, and keeps the pangs of hunger away for hours, look no further.
Protein from edamame, a healthy dose of carbs from the brown rice, plus plenty of nutrients from the micro greens turn this into a veritable power salad, while the sesame oil perfectly complements the flavors.
5. Field Greens Salad
The homemade ciabatta bread croutons, made with olive oil in a hot skillet, might be a dash time consuming, but they are totally worth it as they take the whole combo over the top.
The rest of the ingredients are pretty simple, with the grape tomatoes and red onion adding that something sweet, something crunchy touch that is so satisfying in a salad.
6. Apple Gorgonzola Salad with Blackberry Vinaigrette
This vibrant salad is full of contrasting elements that come together harmoniously. Crisp, sweet apple slices provide a refreshing crunch, walnuts bring in earthy and slightly bitter notes, while the creamy gorgonzola cheese adds a strong, bold flavor. Everything is topped with a slightly sweet and delicious blackberry vinaigrette.
7. Greek Asparagus Salad
Asparagus is in season right now, and it would be a shame not to make the most of it. This salad combines grilled asparagus with feta cheese, some greens, and a delicious lemony, zesty dressing.
You can, of course, personalize it even further by adding grape tomatoes, olives, capers, even pomegranate seeds could be a nice touch.
8. Herby Spring Potato Salad
Potatoes are a crowd-pleaser, and when you combine them with green beans, peas, and radishes, plus a nice mix fresh herbs, what you get is a warm salad bursting with flavor that works both as a side dish (perfect for red meat) or as a main.
You can substitute the rapeseed oil for something more flavorful, and, if you feel adventurous, you can add a big dollop of sour cream and a couple of soft boiled eggs.
9. Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts
Arugula and pine nuts are a match made in Heaven, so you won’t regret trying out this recipe. Plenty of Parmesan cheese as well, while the cherry tomatoes are the cherry on top. If you’re a fan of pesto, you’ll definitely love this salad.
10. Little Gem Salad with Dilly Ranch Dressing
The tiny lettuce heads known as Little Gems are a crossover between romaine and butter lettuce. They’re crunchy and without bitter undertones, which makes them perfect for children and for those with taste buds very sensitive to the bitter taste.
The creamy dressing is packed full with flavors, and the sunflower seeds and sprouts increase its nutritional value.
11. Celebration Salad
Sweet, savory, and creamy, with spring mix greens and/or baby spinach base, this salad goes with everything – and adding the champagne salad dressing makes it truly celebratory.
The walnuts and cranberries go a long way in terms of flavor and texture, and the feta cheese is just the perfect touch of umami saltiness.
12. Pea Salad with Mint and Microgreens
Peas and mint go together perfectly, while watercress, one of the most overlooked spring greens out there, brings a peppery, slightly spicy touch. A simple olive oil and lemon juice vinaigrette, with a garlic twist, makes it pop.
13. Shaved Asparagus & Watermelon Radish Salad
Earthy asparagus and vibrant pick radishes are the main ingredients – and the twist is that the asparagus is finely shaven and added raw to the salad.
Arugula, Parmesan cheese and raisins find their way to the salad bowl, while the dressing that brings it all together is acidic with sweet undertones, and very little oil.
14. Simple Spring Mix Lunch Salad
This customizable salad starts with radishes, shredded carrots, and microgreens, which you can then combine with your favorite protein, more spring veggies, feta cheese, and your choice of dressing. This salad makes a great wrap sandwich as well.
15. Spring Confetti Salad
Nutritious and satisfying, the spring confetti salad uses asparagus and red cabbage (a very underused ingredient in salads, which is a shame, since it’s both sweet and really crunchy).
Baby greens, olives, feta cheese, and chickpeas are some of the other ingredients. It’s a complex salad for sure, but the result makes the effort well worth it.
16. Spring Couscous Salad with Basil Vinaigrette
The couscous and peas make this salad very filling – it can definitely be a lunch in itself. The feta cheese and the nuts add texture and depth, but it’s the basil vinaigrette that truly shines.
Although it has more ingredients that your run of the mill vinaigrette, those ingredients aren’t hard to find (except for the fresh basil, you probably have everything you need in your pantry right now), so give it a try.
17. Spring Mix Salad with Mandarin Oranges
Start with spring mix greens, but elevate them with tangy mandarin oranges and a Green Goddess dressing that will very likely become your go-to dressing.
Simply blitz Greek yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar with fresh herbs and green onions for truly sensational results. You can top the salad with your favorite protein (chicken and fish work great) for a full meal.
18. Spring Nicoise Salad
A veritable rainbow, this French-inspired salad is quite filling, containing, among others, potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, avocado, artichoke hearts, and olives. You can top it with good quality canned tuna or grilled fish and call it a day.
19. Spring Radish Salad
Spring is the prime season for radishes, and this salad allows them to be the star of the show: simply chop the radishes with a bunch of parsley, and toss them with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
It complements perfectly warm pita bread with hummus, or some grilled chicken.
20. Spring Root Vegetable Hash with Creamy Herb Sauce
Overlapping from salad to warm dish territory, this recipe is interesting as it makes the most of spring root vegetables.
Baby potatoes, carrots, shallots, turnips and radishes tossed with olive oil in cast-iron skillet are elevated by a delicious sauce based on tahini and dill.
21. Spring Salad Recipe with Mango
We can all agree that a bit of fruit in salads is a genius idea, and if that fruit is mango, things can’t get much better. The flavor profile of the salad is truly impressive, from buttery and peppery watercress to sweet and crunchy bell peppers, carrots, and beets, tied together by delicious mango.
A bit of feta cheese and pumpkin seeds enhance the mango sweetness even more.
22. Spring Salad with Arugula, Creamy Burrata, and Sugar Snap Peas
The buratta cheese enriches and adds creaminess to this spring salad, balancing the nutty, slightly spicy arugula taste. The sugar snap peas and the edamame bulk up the nutritional profile, while also adding sweetness to the mix.
If you don’t have burrata in your pantry, try these great burrata substitutes for an equally delicious recipe.
23. Spring Salad with Asparagus, Goat Cheese, Lemon, and Hazelnuts
Slightly roasted asparagus and honey infused goat cheese are the star ingredients here, but radishes, arugula, peas, and fava beans add texture and flavor. Topped off with shaved Parmesan and some toasted hazelnuts, it can be your lunch or dinner – particularly with some crusty bread on the side.
24. Spring Salad with Eggs and Creamy Tarragon Dressing
This one is ideal for Easter, with the jammy eggs and tarragon dressing complementing each other perfectly. Tarragon is a very overlooked herb, which is a shame, because it has a lovely and unique flavor. Goat’s cheese, asparagus, spring lettuce, radishes, and fennel add plenty of goodness to this recipe.
25. Strawberry and Baby Lettuce Spring Salad
The quintessential spring fruit, the strawberry, combined with baby lettuce, goat’s cheese, cucumbers and pecans, plus a honey mustard vinaigrette – what could go wrong?
The answer is absolutely nothing, so you should definitely try out this simple and delicious salad.
26. Spring Tortellini Salad
Salads are great, salads with pasta are greater, and salads with cheese-filled tortellini are probably the best. The greens come in all flavor profiles, from asparagus to arugula, artichoke hearts, green onions and basil, while the Parmesan lemon dressing is delicious and easy to whip up.
27. Simple Spring Mix Salad
Classic combos are sometimes the best, and this salad, combinign spring greens with carrots, apples, nuts, shallots and feta cheese, is proof of that. Simple, nutritious, and satisfying, you can serve it with your favorite dressing, alongside some lean white meat.
28. Strawberry Spinach Salad
Mixed greens and baby spinach are the base, but the strawberries and balsamic vinegar do the heavy lifting. You can play around with the cheese – creamy goat’s cheese, gorgonzola, blue cheese, and feta are all valid options, and each changes the flavor profile.
Better make it several times, with different types of cheese, to find out which is your favorite.
29. Super Easy Spring Green Salad
Not only is this salad easy to make, it will also make you feel energized: quinoa, asparagus, spinach, spring onions, avocado, and pine nuts are choke full of healthy nutrients, while the tangy-sweet dressing makes it very tasty as well.
30. The Ultimate Spring Party Salad
Putting this salad together takes a little bit of time, but the good news is that you can prepare some (very important) ingredients, such as the vinaigrette and the pickled onions, ahead of time.
So, if you’re having guests, make sure you do these parts before they arrive – the rest is pretty simply and can be done in a couple of minutes, as you only have to combine arugula, kale, blueberries, pistachios and feta cheese. Make it really festive by adding some edible flowers.
31. Tomato Cucumber Avocado Salad
This very filling salad bets on the classic tomatoes and mozzarella combination, with some healthy fats from the avocados and crunchiness from the cucumbers and red onion. The Mediterranean theme of the salad is enhanced by a delicious basil pesto dressing.
Related: 31 Tasty Summer Mediterranean Salads
