These 17 delicious veggie salads without lettuce are creative, filling and wilt free. Don't get me wrong, I love lettuces but sometimes there are some very good reasons to leave them out of your salad recipes. Whether it's recall season (hello cyclospora) or you just want a salad that makes great leftovers, we all need lettuce free salads to make our summer more delicious.
What is a salad without lettuce?
Salads without lettuce are made with hardier vegetables and beans instead of tender greens that wilt quickly when dressed. These "lettuce free" salads are chock full of fiber and veggies which makes them way more filling than a regular old lettuce salad. Many traditional salads use lettuce as the base, making delicate greens the majority of the volume of the plate. While delicious, lettuce is low in calories and high in water, making them filling for the moment but quickly digested which leaves you hungry again very soon. These salads without lettuce will leave you feeling more satisfied, for longer.
Why you'll love salads without lettuce
- They last after dressing! These salads are more meal prep friendly and better for making ahead. Since there is zero lettuce involved, wilting is not a factor.
- These salads are full of "safer" ingredients. Lettuce is notoriously buggy, and has so many nooks and crannies for any pathogens to hide. Every year we have numerous food recalls due to food borne illnesses caused by improperly washed or contaminated lettuces. You will love having salad recipes that you can still enjoy durning periods of high alert.
- Easy to customize. No lettuce salads are so versatile. Throw any washed veggie from your garden into the bowl along with some rinsed canned beans and you have a delicious, lettuce free salad.
- Super fresh! These salads still include a ton of freshness and fiber, which can really scratch that itch for a summer salad.
- So much texture. Crunchy veggies like cucumbers, peppers and cabbage are great for keeping salads interesting.
Summer Tomato Salad with White Beans
This wicked summery salad is chock full of garden fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, white beans and mint. The tangy herbaceous vinaigrette ties it together with a bit of savory and sweetness.
Dill Pickle Potato Salad
The Betterfoodguru blog's most viral recipe, this simple mayo free potato salad is full of flavor, veggies and totally mayo free. Not to mention, there is zero lettuce involved!
Watermelon and Tomato Salad
This incredibly simple, no cook summer salad is full of fresh flavors and juicy hydration. The contrast of sweet watermelon and tangy tomato is one for the books.
Healthy Pea Salad with Mint and Radishes
This delicious lettuce free salad is chock full of fresh flavors. With peas, radishes, onions and pistachios tossed in a dijon and mint dressing it screams Spring and Summer.
Chimichurri Lentil and Beet Salad
This gorgeous and robust salad is packed with color, flavor and nutrition. It has tender beets, meaty lentils, crunchy radishes an herbaceous chimichurri dressing.
Smoky Mediterranean Eggplant Salad
This incredibly flavorful roasted eggplant salad has sweet red peppers, crunchy walnuts, sweet raisins and herbs. The perfect cooked but chilled salad, it has major Mediterranean vibes.
Pretty Beet and Potato Salad
This non-traditional potato salad is full of veggies and gorgeous color! With tender beets, roasted cauliflower and chickpeas in a zest lime infused vinaigrette this lettuce free veggie salad is going to be a favorite
Produce cleaning tip: Submerge your veggies in water combined with some vinegar or baking soda. It will take most of the dirt and residues off. Keep dunking, letting dirt and heavier particles fall to the bottom, lifting them out and then rinsing until all the water is clear.
Marinated Olive Salad with Beans
This incredible marinated olive salad with beans is the perfect light summer salad. It 's easy to make, looks gorgeous and tastes like a million bucks.
Beet Salad with Mint and Pistachios
This gorgeous beet salad is bright, fresh and filling. Two kinds of beets are tossed in a lemony vinaigrette with mint, green onions and pistachios. You won't even miss the lettuce.
Simple Tomato and Onion Salad
This incredibly simple and mind bogglingly delicious summer salad is made with just a handful of fresh ingredients. Garden tomatoes, onions and herbs have never tasted better.
Summer Nectarine Cantaloupe Salad with Corn
This incredible salad combines so many of the best flavors of summer in one bowl. Sweet and juicy fruits paired with roasted veggies tastes amazing, and zero lettuce involved.
Southwestern Three Bean Salad
This hearty summer salad has a base of three beans: white northern beans, pinto beans and black beans. It's packed full of veggies and flavor from the creamy cilantro lime dressing. It's tangy, a little sweet and spicy all wrapped up in a super filling dense bean salad.
Dill Cucumber Yogurt Salad
This super fresh and dill-vicious cucumber salad is the perfect recipe for summer. With cucumbers, red onions, cherry tomatoes and dill tossed in a creamy vegan yogurt dressing it is cooling, refreshing and wicked tasty.
Chickpea Tahini Salad
This super filling bean salad is made with chickpeas, cucumber, tomato, onions and herbs tossed in a lemony tahini dressing. Eat it in a sandwich or by the bowl for a great summer side salad with no lettuce.
Easy Mediterranean Dense Bean Salad with Olives
This summery bean salad is fresh, tasty and super easy to make. Simply dressed with garlic, extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice, it demonstrates the perfect flavors found in nature.
Italian Bean Salad with Broccoli Rabe and Oregano Vinaigrette
This incredibly flavorful salad contains a combo of fresh and roasted veggies plus beans to make a filling and nutritious salad everyone will love.
Creamy Vegan Cucumber Salad
This simple cucumber salad is fresh and herbaceous. It is the perfect summer side salad that comes together in a jiffy and tastes great for days. As the cucumbers and onions marinate in the creamy yogurt dressing they just get more flavorful.
Tips for Making the Best Salads without Lettuce
- Use the freshest produce available for your salads. Leave the wilted veggies for soup!
- Always wash produce thoroughly!
- When chopping, always use a sharp knife. It makes cooking more efficient and fun, and sharp knives seem to damage vegetables less than sawing away at them with a dull instrument.
- Experiment and get creative. Substitute and use whatever you have on hand. The sky is the limit in a vegetable salad and I can't think of any combination of veggies and beans that wouldn't work.
- Add your favorite grilled proteins to make them even more filling
FAQs
There are so many things you can use in place of lettuce in a salad. Since lettuces usually make up the bulk of a salad you can choose any veggies you like or beans to be the "star" attraction.
There are a couple of reasons why you would want to make salads without lettuce. Firstly, although lettuce is delicious, it's mostly made of water which doesn't keep you full for long. If you want a filling salad, choosing a non-lettuce base is a great strategy. Another reason to make a lettuce free salad is that if you want to make your salad in advance and have leftovers, lettuce is no good. Since it wilts almost immediately when dressed, it's not a great choice for make ahead salads. The last reason is a big one. Lettuce is often the culprit of food borne illness outbreaks. Recalls on bagged lettuces happen every year and when people are getting sick (like the current cyclospora situation) folks are quick to shed the suspicion on lettuce.
Some food borne illnesses cannot even be prevented by washing but you can err on the side of caution by completely submerging your greens in water mixed with some baking soda or vinegar. Move the greens around in the water and then give it a moment to settle. Most bugs, dirt and large particles will fall to the bottom. Lift the greens out and put them in a strainer. Dump the dirty water and repeat until the water is clear.
YES! Lettuce free vegetable salads are chock full of fiber, protein and vitamins and minerals. All the veggies that make up the bulk of these salads are nutritious and great for you.
Other Delicious Lettuce Free Salad Recipes
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