Healthy Salad Dishes

This is the broccoli salad you will get special requests for. The combination of bacon, sour cream, mayonnaise, scallions and Cheddar is hard to resist. And the addition of rice vinegar or cider vinegar sharpens all the flavors. Our Loaded Broccoli Salad is a delicious way to get more raw broccoli into your meal rotation with little complaint. Why? We added bacon, of course. You’ll get the antioxidant power of vitamin C from the broccoli, paired with bone-strengthening calcium from the Cheddar and the salty goodness from the bacon—all mixed with a tangy, creamy sauce. This salad is ideal for a light lunch, dinner or a make-ahead for a potluck, and it’s gluten-free. Keep reading for our expert tips, including how you can make this vegetarian and how to get the perfect broccoli floret size.

Tips from the EatingWell Test Kitchen

These are the key tips we learned while developing and testing this recipe in our Test Kitchen to make sure it works, tastes great and is good for you too!

• If you prefer not to fry bacon in a skillet, you can bake it in the oven, cook it in the microwave, or use an air fryer.
• Instead of sour cream, try using plain Greek yogurt. It has a similar tangy flavor and thick consistency.
• You can purchase broccoli florets for convenience. You can also buy pre-shredded Cheddar cheese, but freshly shredded cheese often has more flavor.
• When mixing a salad, lift the dressing from the bottom of the bowl and distribute it throughout all the ingredients to ensure that the flavors are evenly combined.

Nutrition Notes

• Broccoli is a fiber-rich cruciferous vegetable that is rich in cancer-preventive compounds called glucosinolates. Since vitamin C can be degraded or leech out into cooking water when broccoli is cooked, you’ll be sure to get maximum antioxidant benefits from choosing the raw version in this salad.
• Bacon is not an everyday food and is considered a source of fat rather than protein. Nevertheless, everyone loves bacon, and it gives a delicious smoky flavor to everything it touches. A great way to enjoy bacon in moderation but still get the full bacon experience is to use it as a flavoring, as we do in this salad.
• Cheddar cheese is an excellent choice for this salad. It has a sharp and tasty flavor, but it also has great nutrition as well. Cheddar cheese is a good source of calcium because it is a hard cheese with a low water content. This also means that it is lower in lactose, which makes it a great choice for those with difficulties digesting this sugar.

• 3 slices bacon
• ¼ cup sour cream
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 4 teaspoons rice vinegar or cider vinegar
• ¼ teaspoon ground pepper
• 4 cups chopped broccoli
• ½ cup sliced scallions
• ½ cup shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese

A classic black bean salad is a must for picnics and potlucks. This vegan version gets its creaminess from blended avocado. Any mix of salad greens will work well but try arugula if you want to give this hearty salad a peppery kick.

• ½ cup thinly sliced red onion
• 1 medium ripe avocado, pitted and roughly chopped
• ¼ cup cilantro leaves
• ¼ cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 8 cups mixed salad greens
• 2 medium ears corn, kernels removed, or 2 cups frozen corn, thawed and patted dry
• 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed

We’ve replaced chicken with shrimp in this delicious and easy spin on the classic Cobb salad. This satisfying salad takes just 20 minutes to make, so it’s perfect for weeknight dinners, but it’s elegant enough to serve to guests.

Shrimp Cobb Salad with Dijon Dressing

This Shrimp Cobb Salad with Dijon Dressing puts a yummy new twist on an old classic. Herby mixed greens are jeweled with juicy cherry tomatoes, cool cucumber chunks and creamy avocado. Protein-rich shrimp and hard-boiled eggs complement the salty bacon and dusky blue cheese. The whole presentation gets dressed in a tangy Dijon mustard vinaigrette. Keep reading for expert tips, including an easy method for cooking hard-boiled eggs.

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• ½ teaspoon ground pepper
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 10 cups mixed greens
• 12 cooked extra-large shrimp (16-20 count), peeled and halved lengthwise
• 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
• 1 cup Persian cucumber chunks
• 2 large hard-boiled eggs, peeled and halved
• 1 avocado, diced
• 2 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
• ¼ cup crumbled blue cheese