Skip to Content

11 Fantastic Fruit Salad Recipes with Sour Cream (All Types)

Summer does not inspire baking. I don’t know about you, but where I live it can reach a more than balmy 110 degrees Fahrenheit. I need to serve dessert but cold desserts like fruit salad. Whether made with a base of sweetened mayonnaise, yogurt, sour cream, cream cheese, sorbet, or thickened juices, these salads taste …

Read More about 11 Fantastic Fruit Salad Recipes with Sour Cream (All Types)

Light and Tasty Rainbow Fruit Salad Recipe

This salad serves up a healthy portion of berries. Both blueberries and strawberries are so much more than just sweet balls of fresh tasting summer fruit. These two berries are nutritional powerhouses. When things start heating up in the summer, your appetite can vanish, especially if you spend a lot of time outdoors. That is …

Read More about Light and Tasty Rainbow Fruit Salad Recipe

Easy Rotini Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 8 Simple Steps

Some people like creamy pasta salads that include mayonnaise or sour cream, but others do not care for mayonnaise at all. This recipe is one that you can serve to pretty much everyone, whether they like mayo or not. With its light, vinegar based dressing, the dish itself is the perfect accompaniment for a heavier …

Read More about Easy Rotini Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 8 Simple Steps

BLT Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 5 Simple Steps

Featuring the classic flavors of bacon and tomato along with the crunch of delicious romaine lettuce, our recipe for BLT Pasta Salad goes great with summer barbecue menus. Coming together in less than half an hour, this recipe only requires basic cooking skills. Even a grade school student can create this tasty recipe. When the …

Read More about BLT Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 5 Simple Steps

Orange Dreamsicle Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 7 Simple Steps

While modern minds think of salad as something that is largely made up of vegetables or fruits with a light dressing, back in the 1950s, sensibilities were different. Somehow, in the 1950s the word “salad” began to mean something entirely different. Due to the invention and marketing of commercial gelatin products, salads began to consist …

Read More about Orange Dreamsicle Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 7 Simple Steps

Creamy Cinnamon Apple Fruit Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 10 Simple Steps

In the late fall and winter months, the idea of getting enough servings of fruits and vegetables may seem impossible. Although there may be fruit available in the store, often it has been imported from hundreds of miles away and the quality may be lacking. Nobody wants to eat fruits and veggies that are past …

Read More about Creamy Cinnamon Apple Fruit Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 10 Simple Steps

Parmesan Bow-Tie Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 6 Simple Steps

Myth says that Marco Polo brought pasta back to Europe after his famed trip to China, but that is actually untrue. Pasta was already becoming popular in Europe hundreds of years before Marco Polo was born. In fact, dyes for creating colored pasta have been discovered in Sicily, and they date back 3000 years! Whether …

Read More about Parmesan Bow-Tie Pasta Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 6 Simple Steps

Cool and Creamy Summer Fruit Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 15 Simple Steps

Historians say that even the ancient Greeks and Romans enjoyed mixtures of various fruits mixed up into a salad. Around the mid to late 1800s, American cooks began experimenting with various fruit salad recipes, sometimes using canned fruit, but often incorporating local seasonal fruits as well. It wasn’t until the early 1900s when the modern …

Read More about Cool and Creamy Summer Fruit Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 15 Simple Steps

Healthy and Delicious Chicken Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 13 Simple Steps

What does chicken salad bring to mind for you? If you think of little plastic tubs full of nondescript, slimy chicken-based sandwich spread from the grocery store, you are probably not alone. Chicken salad often brings to mind a luncheon in a musty church basement or something that smells funny, smeared between two slices of …

Read More about Healthy and Delicious Chicken Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 13 Simple Steps

EASY Homemade Caesar Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 5 Simple Steps

If you walk into any Italian restaurant, chances are that you will be offered a Caesar Salad. This salad is a classic offering that combines savory garlic flavor with the delicious textures of Romaine lettuce and crispy croutons. But did you know that creating a Caesar Salad at home is incredibly quick and easy? You …

Read More about EASY Homemade Caesar Salad Recipe – How to Make it in 5 Simple Steps

12 Different Types of Salads

There is an almost endless list of salad varieties, but only six basic types:

A handful of salads, like German potato salad, are typically served hot. However, the majority of salads come in cold servings. Green salad’s healing properties have been lauded since ancient times.

Those were the initial vegetables to be accessible in spring and served as an antidote to the monotony of the winter diet. At the start of a mealtime, eaten with the main dish, or after it, you’ll find that green salads are common.

Types of Salads

Hundreds of salad variants are served across the globe since the literal definition of “salad” encompasses any form of cold mixed-ingredient cuisine.

A myriad of popular salads prevails because they can be made with a wide variety of ingredients. This is among the reasons there are so many salads on the market.

Starting with a Green Salad

Fresh vegetable salad with mozzarella

The term “green salad” can refer to any salad that contains lettuce. The lettuce, however, is the star of a green salad from a culinary point of view. Salad lettuce comes in four basic varieties:

Iceberg Lettuce

This type of lettuce has the most compact heads and is also the crispiest. Salad purists despise iceberg-only salads because of their color and flavor, which are barely noticeable. Iceberg lettuce adds texture and color contrast, making it an excellent addition to any mixed-green salad.

Butterhead Lettuce 

The leaves of this salad green are loose and floppy rather than neatly formed around the core, making it a “head” lettuce. In terms of flavor and texture, the Bibb butterhead is one of the most sought-after gourmet varieties.

When compared to bibb, Boston lettuce doesn’t have the buttery texture but is less expensive and has larger leaves to contrast with the smaller leaves.

Loose-leaf Lettuce

This large-leafed green is less soft than butterhead lettuce but less crisp than romaine or iceberg. Loose-leaf lettuces such as red-leaf and green-leaf lettuce are identical but for their color.

They have soft leaves and a ruffled appearance. Flat, oak-leaf lettuce leaves are also loose-leaf lettuce. Oak-leaf lettuce provides two distinct textures to a salad because of its sharp stems and tender leaves. Oak leaves come in two colors: red and green.

Romaine Lettuce

Salad dressings love to adhere to the big, crunchy dark green leaves of this popular head lettuce, which is often used in Caesar salads. Although Romaine (also known as cos) is recognized for its strong flavor, it isn’t overpowering.

Salad lovers may also want to include arugula, endive, frisée, mache, radicchio, salad burnet, and watercress in their repertoire.

There should be at least two or three varieties of salad greens in a well-made green salad coupled with either halved cherry tomatoes or beefsteak tomato chunks. Cucumbers, onions, or bell peppers can be added to the salad for extra crunch.

Using a mild oil and vinegar dressing will allow the greens to shine. To preserve the crunchiness of the croutons, they are added at the last minute.

Caesar Salad

Caesar Salad with cheese and croutons.

Anchovies, yolks, parmesan, lemon juice, and other seasonings go into the famous Caesar salad dressing. Croutons and more shaved Parmesan cheese are added to this classic salad dressing before it is spooned over the entire head of romaine.

Caesar’s Place in Mexico, in the 1920s, is credited with inventing the salad. Before being served on individual plates, it’s frequently thrown tableside on a separate stand in restaurants. Consider going to a restaurant that serves the famed salad if you’re worried about handling raw eggs in your kitchen.

Garden Salad

Overhead view of garden salad in a black bowl.

In many restaurants and on the dinner table, garden salads are commonplace. Salad greens like icebergs or romaine make up the majority of the salad’s ingredients. You might also use a spring mix.

Tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions are just a few of the vegetables that may be found in most garden salads. Garden salads are often topped with shredded cheese, which is also a typical ingredient. Garden salads can be dressed in many ways. Choose from ranch, balsamic vinaigrette, thousand Island, or French dressings.

Chef Salad had to be Here

Chef salad with ham and cheese.

The chef salad is among the most prominent salads served as a main course.

Simply a green salad with thinly sliced ham or turkey and cheeses like Swiss or cheddar plus chopped cooked eggs or bacon and your favorite salad dressing, this dish is a simple yet satisfying meal. Of course, this basic concept allows for a wide range of cheese and meat options to be incorporated.

Waldorf Salad

Waldorf salad with mozarella.

As the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City was the inspiration for its name, the salad is made out of apples and celery, as well as walnuts and split red grapes.

Mayonnaise is added in sufficient amounts to coat all of the ingredients. It can be served on a bed of lettuce if you choose.

Coleslaw Combines with Everything

Coleslaw salad with carrot and cabbage.

Some aficionados of coleslaw argue the ratio of creaminess to tang in their coleslaw incessantly. Slaw is produced by chopping or shredding green cabbage and tossing it with mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper-based dressing.

To brighten things up, some individuals like to toss in shredded red cabbage or carrots. You can pair coleslaw with anything from barbecued pork and beef to grilled vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower.

Make some Asian coleslaw to go along with your takeaway Chinese meal, and you’ll have the perfect meal. To the shredded red and green cabbage foundation are added radish, scallions, rice vinegar, and miso, which give the mayonnaise dressing a tangy kick. Sliced mandarins, peanuts, or almonds may also be added.

Pasta Salad

Pasta salad garnished with parsley.

While pasta is cooled, it takes on a flavor and texture that is entirely distinct from what it was when it was hot. Pasta salads frequently call for short-cut pasta shapes. A vinaigrette dressing is almost always included in a list of pasta salad recipes.

Feta cheese, in addition to baby bora n, sweet peppers, tomatoes, and other vegetables give pasta salad a unique flavor. Artichoke hearts and olives, for example, are frequently included as extras. Add chickpeas, cubed chicken, shrimp, or ham to make it a main dish.

Macaroni Salad is for Picnic Lovers

Macaroni salad topped with spring onions and carrots.

Macaroni salad is a picnic favorite and a well-known member of the pasta salad family. Almost all macaroni salads are made with mayonnaise and elbow macaroni.

The addition of relish and pimentos, as well as added crunch from celery and onions, may be required in some regions. To give it a bit more zip, you can toss in some mustard or some chili peppers.

Tabbouleh

Tabbouleh salad garnished with slices of lemons.

The salad comprises tomatoes, parsley, mint, couscous or bulgur, and a mild dressing from the Middle East.

Traditionally, a marinated three-bean salad includes two cooked dried beans, such as kidney or garbanzo, as well as at least one type of fresh snap bean.

It’s Time for Cobb Salad!

A bowl of cobb salad.

Robert Cobb, the man who invented the Cobb salad, is credited with its name. He came up with the idea of the Cobb salad in the 1930s. Iceberg or romaine lettuce is commonly used in Cobb salads.

Grilled chicken, avocado, tomatoes, bacon, hard-boiled eggs, and Roquefort or blue cheese are all placed on top of the lettuce. For Cobb salads, vinaigrette dressings are the most common.

The Greek Salad

Greek salad with fresh vegetables, feta cheese and kalamata olives.

The components in Greek salads reflect the great variety seen in Greek cooking. You can use any kind of lettuce you choose.

Onions, cucumbers, olives, feta cheese, and tomatoes, are just a few of the options for garnish. The traditional Greek salad dressing consists of oil and vinegar.

The Caprese Salad

Caprese salad with basil leaves.

In Italy, the Caprese salad is a well-known dish, and it has now spread to the United States. This salad is easy to put together but packed with flavor.

Basil leaves, mozzarella cubes, and fresh tomato slices, mozzarella cubes, are layered on top. A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil or balsamic vinaigrette completes the salad.

Here Comes the Mixed Salads!

Tuna Salads 

These protein-rich salads have a legitimate place on any list of salads, even though some could argue that they should be called sandwich spreads. It has a thick, creamy dressing that binds the various ingredients.

Egg Salad

In most cases, only a few simple components go into an egg salad. Chopped hard-boiled eggs are gently tossed with mayonnaise, mustard, and paprika for color to create the typical smoothness.

Mayonnaise and flaked canned tuna are the main ingredients in tuna salad. Although relish is often included, some people like the crunch provided by the sweet onions and celery that are included in the recipe as is.

Chicken Salad

In comparison to other protein-based salads, chicken salad has a wide range of options. Chicken chopped to resemble tuna salad is preferred by some customers, but others like a dish that is less of a bound salad and more of an artfully constructed dish.

Apples and raisins can be added to the chicken salad in addition to mustard and mayo, or the dish can be transformed entirely.

Mandarin slices, almonds, fried wontons, and larger pieces of chicken, are added to this Chinese chicken salad.

A Breakdown of Salads and Their Dressings/Sauces

Various potatoes and chopped cooked vegetables are bound together with mayonnaise in a salad Russe. Salads of this type are often offered as hors d’oeuvres, but they are more commonly served as a side dish.

Crumbled blue cheese, green onions, garlic, anchovy paste, tarragon and parsley (green goddess dressing), and other seasonings can be found in these dressings, which are commonly served with salads.

Vinegar and tomato flavor is the commercial “French” dressing commonly seen in American restaurants.

Understanding Mixed Salad

There are three types of salads in a mixed salad: starchy, veggie, and green. To change the dish into a light entrée with the addition of cheese, eggs, fish, poultry, and meat. Green salad decorated with strips of veggies, meat, and cheese, known as the julienned salad, is common in the United States.

Desserts commonly consist of fruit salads dressed with a sweet sauce. Avocado, orange, and grapefruit go well with fatty meats like hog or duck and can be added to green salads.

The Waldorf salad, named after the Waldorf Hotel in New York City, is made of mayonnaise, celery, walnuts, and apples. Vegetable and fruit salads are typically garnished with gelatin.

Salads That People Seem to Like the Most

Coleslaw

Coleslaw, which gets its name from the Dutch word koolsla, or cabbage salad, has become a beloved American side dish to go along with fried or grilled meats. Dutch settlers originally brought it to New York State in the 18th century.

Shredded cabbage, mayonnaise, and carrots are mixed with sugar and vinegar, among other ingredients, to create a variety of flavors and textures. Others include elements like cheese gratings, celery seeds, and salad dressings in addition to the usual ingredients such as pineapples and peppers.

Caesar Salad

Cesare Cardini, an Italian immigrant who lived in San Diego but maintained a successful restaurant in Tijuana, just south of the Mexican border, was the inspiration for the classic Caesar salad.

Prohibition-era Tijuana was booming in the 1920s when many Californians, including Hollywood’s rich and famous, would drive across to the Mexican border to party and enjoy the good life. Many of the world’s most popular foods have been the result of improvisation and inventiveness, including Caesar salad.

Macaroni Salads

Overcooked elbow macaroni pasta is garnished with milk-thinned mayonnaise in a slightly acidic, sweet, cold salad that is often a part of the Hawaiian plate meal. For the pasta to absorb the dressing, it must be overdone.

According to some accounts, macaroni salad was famous across Mainland America during the early 1900s, while others claim that the dish was introduced in the 1980s 1980s as a component of the Nouvelle Cuisine movement.

Chinese Chicken Salad

According to rumors, Austrian chef Wolfgang Puck (known for his Asian fusion food in America) devised Chinese chicken salad, despite its name. According to some, the meal was first prepared in the 1930s, most likely in the U.S.

There is no doubt that the romaine lettuce-based salad is popular in the United States regardless of where it came from. Ginger, sesame, and soy, are just a few of the many Chinese-style flavors that go into this dish.

Cobb Salad 

It was at The Brown Derby in Los Angeles, where Robert Cobb, the restaurant’s owner, discovered some kitchen leftovers, including Roquefort cheese, tomatoes, chopped bacon, avocado, chicken breast, salad greens, and hard-boiled eggs, and that’s how the Cobb salad was born, a shining example of American originality and creativeness.

Cobb Salad was born when he combined Worcestershire sauce, garlic, lemon juice, red vinegar, and olive oil in a dressing and threw everything together. The popularity of the constructed salad is based primarily on the distinct textures and flavors of the ingredients, which range from juicy to crunchy to creamy.

Waldorf Salad

Oscar Tschirky, the dining area manager at the New York City Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, created the Waldorf salad in 1896. The apple, celery, and mayonnaise salad was a tremendous hit when it was first introduced.

However, the addition of finely chopped walnuts to the salad was only made in 1928, and most people identify walnuts with the salad.

It is now common to serve Waldorf salad as an appetizer, on a bed of lettuce, with the addition of other components such as grapes, raisins, and chicken.