The Best House Salad Recipe

A classic house salad recipe is the perfect thing to have in your back pocket for a dinner party or just a regular ol’ Wednesday night. Filled with fresh greens, crisp veggies, and crunchy croutons this house salad takes it a step further with creamy avocado lime ranch dressing. Add chicken and make it a meal or serve it as a veggie-loaded side with dinner.

Easy House Salad Recipe

Making a house salad at home gives you the freedom to customize the ingredients and make it as wild or as simple as you’d like! The best part is you can prep it ahead of time and have an easy side for dinners all week. Don’t forget to make my easy avocado lime ranch dressing to along with it! The creamy, tangy dressing is the perfect way to brighten up your favorite veggies!

Ingredients for Making the Best House Salad

• Romaine Lettuce: I love romaine for a house salad. Feel free to use iceberg, butter lettuce, or mixed greens as well.
• Grape Tomatoes: Grape or cherry tomatoes are perfect for house salads because they are bite-sized, have a delicious flavor, and don’t have a ton of seeds/flesh inside so they won’t make the salad soggy. I like to cut them in half or quarter them.
• Cucumber: An English cucumber or mini cucumbers add the perfect crunch to this house salad.
• Carrots: Shredded or sliced carrots are ideal for this salad. You can also use a vegetable peeler to create carrot ribbons for a fun shape and texture.
• Red Onion: Red onion is typically used in a house salad but you could use yellow onion or even sliced green onions if you like.
• Shredded Cheese: We love Colby jack cheese on these house salads. I prefer to shred my own for the best flavor but storebought shredded cheese will work fine for this house salad recipe also. You can also use mild cheddar, sharp cheddar, or Parmesan cheese. If you want to add extra flavor try crumbled blue cheese, Gorgonzola, or feta cheese.
• Homemade Croutons: If you have a few extra minutes, I highly recommend trying my homemade croutons recipe. They are super easy to throw together and once you try homemade, you’ll never want store-bought croutons again! They’re filled with flavor and a great way to use up those last few slices of sourdough that are starting to go stale.
• Avocado: Freshly sliced avocado adds vibrant color and a nice mild flavor. You can leave it out if you’re not into avocado.

House Salad Dressing

My favorite dressing to serve with this house salad is my homemade avocado lime ranch dressing. It takes just 5 minutes to make and pairs perfectly with the crisp veggies in this salad. Some other delicious homemade dressings you could serve with this salad include honey Dijon dressing, creamy balsamic dressing, Italian dressing, or sun-dried tomato dressing.

How to Make a House Salad

The first step is to make the delicious homemade avocado lime ranch dressing! Then assemble the salads starting with the chopped romaine lettuce. Add tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, red onion, shredded cheese, homemade croutons, and avocado. Drizzle with dressing or serve it on the side and enjoy! 

Tips for Making the Best House Salad

• Use this recipe as a blueprint and add whatever you like! A classic house salad is typically made with crisp lettuce, sliced veggies, tomatoes, and sometimes shredded cheese but you can totally make it your own. We love to add croutons and avocado and serve it with my creamy avocado ranch dressing.
• Serve the ingredients for this salad buffet-style. If you have trouble getting your kids to eat veggies, try having them help slice the veggies up (using an age-appropriate knife) and then make their own salad to go with dinner. Does it guarantee that they’ll actually eat the veggies? No, but it might make them more likely to give them a try!

Variations

Try adding these family favorites to transform this salad:

• canned chickpeas
• diced bell pepper
• chopped broccoli
• sunflower seeds
• crispy Parmesan-crusted chicken
• air fryer chicken tenders
• air fryer chicken nuggets

FAQ

What is in a house salad?

A house salad is a green salad typically made with lettuce, tomato, onion, and cucumber. There can be other add-ins though, such as carrots, croutons, and cheese.

Is a house salad vegetarian?

Yes! This house salad recipe is totally vegetarian!

Make This Salad Recipe Ahead of Time

Prep all the ingredients for this house salad ahead of time and store in the fridge for 3-5 days until you’re ready to eat. Then it will take just minutes to assemble a fresh salad any day of the week! You can also toss all the veggies together in a large bowl or portion them out into individual bowls and store them in the fridge. Dress the salad just before eating.

Storing Leftover Salad

Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. I like to add a paper towel to the container to soak up excess moisture that accumulates as the salad sits. This will keep your greens and veggies fresh and crisp!

More easy dressing recipes!

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