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20+ Delicious Salad Recipes to Make for Dinner
These salad recipes are mouthwateringly fresh, making them obvious choices for a simple, healthy dinner. Whether you love them for their flavorful dressings or their mix of perfectly complementary ingredients, you’ll surely want to revisit these dinner salad recipes again and again. Recipes like our Strawberry & Kale Salad with Burrata and our Teriyaki Chicken Salad are filling ways to end the day.
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Teriyaki Chicken Salad
Photographer: Robby Lozano; Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling; Prop Stylist: Christina Daley.
This teriyaki chicken salad is a delicious blend of tender, glazed chicken thighs and crisp sliced veggies, all tossed in a flavorful teriyaki dressing. For an extra layer of texture and flavor, you can add some crispy fried onions or shallots, which provide a satisfying crunch and a hint of sweetness. Whether you keep it simple or add the extra crunch, this salad is a versatile and satisfying dish that’s sure to become a favorite.
Strawberry & Kale Salad with Burrata
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Lydia Purcell
This strawberry-and-kale salad with burrata is a delicious, nutrient-packed dish that offers a host of anti-inflammatory benefits. The base of tender lacinato kale is rich in antioxidants, while sweet, juicy strawberries provide a healthy dose of vitamin C and anthocyanins, known for their powerful anti-inflammatory properties. Creamy burrata balances the earthy greens perfectly. It’s perfect as a side dish, or make it a meal by topping it with grilled chicken or cooked whole grains.
High-Protein Pasta Salad
Photographer: Robby Lozano, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Josh Hoggle
This high-protein pasta salad is a satisfying dish packed with plant-based protein from chickpea pasta and chickpeas, with an extra boost coming from fresh mozzarella cheese pearls. Tossed with fresh veggies and flavored with zingy za’atar seasoning, this salad is perfect for a satisfying dinner.
White Bean & Veggie Salad
Ali Redmond
This meatless main-dish salad combines creamy, satisfying white beans and avocado. Try mixing it up with different seasonal vegetables.
Eat-the-Rainbow Chopped Salad with Basil & Mozzarella
Photographer: Morgan Hunt Glaze, Prop Stylist: Shell Royster, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf
This fresh and colorful chopped salad has all of the delicious flavors you love from a classic caprese salad, plus even more healthy veggies. Add grilled or roasted chicken for a quick main dish.
Massaged Kale Salad with Roasted Sweet Potato & Black Beans
Loaded with roasted sweet potatoes, shallots, black beans, quinoa, feta and pepitas, this salad makes for a satisfying meatless meal. Massaging the kale both tenderizes it and helps the greens absorb more of the bright dressing.
Loaded Chicken & Broccoli Salad
Photographer: Hannah Hufham, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Christina Daley
This loaded chicken and broccoli salad is a protein-packed powerhouse that doesn’t skimp on the classic “loaded” flavors you love. With tender, juicy chicken and crisp, fresh broccoli as the base, this salad delivers a satisfying bite in every forkful. A creamy dressing ties everything together, while mix-ins like crispy bacon, shredded cheese and scallions add layers of flavor. It’s the perfect salad for a high-protein dinner that keeps you full and energized.
Chopped Power Salad with Chicken
Photographer: Grant Webster, Food Stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop Stylist: Joseph Wanek
Enjoy this filling and colorful salad for lunch or dinner. The dressing gets made in the same bowl that the salad is tossed in, so the greens absorb every bit of flavor.
Chickpea Chopped Salad with Pita Chips
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Julian Hensarling, Prop Stylist: Priscilla Montiel
This chickpea, cucumber and tomato salad is fresh and delicious. Packed with crunchy pita chips, creamy feta and briny olives, this salad delivers vibrant flavors in every bite. Enjoy it as a side dish or add grilled or roasted chicken or salmon to make it a main dish.
Giada De Laurentiis’ Fregola Salad with Olive Relish & Chickpeas
Ray Kachatorian
Giada likes to make hers with a small pasta shape, like orzo or, as here, fregola, a small Sardinian pasta similar to an Israeli couscous (a good substitute if you can’t find fregola). This is a fairly straightforward salad, with some chickpeas for protein, but you could add cucumber, cooked broccoli, bits of cheese, or tuna to make it even more substantial.
Salmon Salad with Crispy White Beans
Heami Lee, Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall, Prop Stylist: Christine Keeley
This anti-inflammatory salmon salad with crispy white beans is a delicious meal that delivers big on flavor. Salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are well-known for their anti-inflammatory properties, while the beans provide a nice texture and are a great source of fiber. A quick soy-sesame-ginger dressing completes this salad, perfect for lunch or dinner.
Cabbage Crunch Salad with Cider Vinaigrette
Photographer: Jacob Fox, Food Stylist: Holly Dreesman, Prop Stylist: Breanna Ghazali
This crisp and fresh cabbage-apple salad features carrots, walnuts and creamy Gorgonzola cheese. Allowing the cabbage to sit before serving helps develop the flavor and soften the cabbage. While any type of cabbage will work well, tender cabbage like napa will need less time to soften, while a sturdier cabbage like red or green cabbage will take a bit longer.
Chopped Salad with Chickpeas, Olives & Feta
Greg DuPree
This quick and easy chopped salad is inspired by the flavors of the Mediterranean, including chickpeas, cucumber and feta. A garlicky oil and vinegar dressing brings everything together.
Crab Louie Salad
At the Bayside Cafe in Morro Bay, California, this classic West Coast salad is made with Dungeness crab caught in the coastal waters. Lump crabmeat is a good substitute.
Vegetarian Chopped Power Salad with Creamy Cilantro Dressing
This healthy vegetarian salad recipe features chickpeas and quinoa for a boost of protein. Cilantro adds color and flavor when blended into a creamy dressing. Serve this cold salad for lunch or dinner.
High-Protein Cheeseburger Salad
Photographer: Hannah Hufham, Food Stylist: Marianne Williams , Prop Stylist: Keoshia McGhee
This cheeseburger salad is a fun twist on a classic burger. It features a crisp base of chopped iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced red onion, pickles and juicy cherry tomatoes. A melty cheeseburger patty is served warm on top, along with a tangy ketchup-mayo-pickle sauce that ties all the flavors together. Optional sesame seeds add a hint of crunch and nod to the traditional burger bun.
Bhel Puri-Inspired Salad
Ali Redmond
This flavorful salad was inspired by bhel puri, a type of chaat (savory snack) served across India, and features puffed quinoa and lentils for extra protein and fiber.
5-Ingredient Avocado & Chickpea Salad
Photographer: Jake Sternquist, Food Stylist: Sammy Mila, Prop Stylist: Gabriel Greco.
This avocado-and-chickpea salad is a fresh, flavorful dish that comes together in minutes. Made with just five ingredients, it’s as simple as it is satisfying. Creamy avocado pairs perfectly with hearty chickpeas for a filling, plant-based meal. With no cooking required and minimal prep, it’s a perfect quick lunch or dinner.
Roasted Squash & Lentil Kale Salad
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Jennifer Wendorf, Prop Stylist: Christina Brockman
This squash lentil salad packs 14 grams of fiber and features plenty of kale, a powerful prebiotic that helps set the stage for a healthy gut.
Roasted Cauliflower Salad with Almonds, Olives & Feta
Photographer: Jake Sternquist, Food Stylist: Annie Probst, Prop Stylist: Joseph Wanek
The combination of roasted cauliflower with crunchy toasted almonds, briny olives and tangy feta creates a well-balanced salad that’s perfect as a side dish or a light main course mixed with cooked farro or spelt.
High-Protein White Bean Salad with Feta & Lemon-Garlic Vinaigrette
Photographer: Jen Causey, Food Stylist: Chelsea Zimmer, Prop Stylist: Claire Spollen
This white bean salad with feta and lemon-garlic vinaigrette is quick and requires no stove time. White beans bring plant-based protein and fiber to help keep you full. Creamy feta cheese provides a tangy, salty contrast to the bright vinaigrette. Tossed with fresh herbs and toasted walnuts, this salad is perfect for a light dinner.
Spiced Grilled Chicken with Cauliflower “Rice” Tabbouleh
Chicken breasts on the grill have a smoky flavor that’s enhanced with an easy spice rub. We chose flat-leaf parsley in this salad because it has a stronger herbal taste than its sometimes-bitter curly counterpart.
Roasted Chicken & Winter Squash over Mixed Greens
This hearty salad comes together with little effort, since the squash and chicken can roast together on the same sheet pan. Prep the dressing and the salad greens while the chicken is roasting.
