Green Garden Salad with Vinaigrette

This Green Garden Salad with Vinaigrette perfectly complements any lunch or dinner entrée. Bursting with fresh, customizable vegetables, this classic salad is delicious and incredibly easy to prepare. In just a few minutes, you can whip up both the salad and the homemade dressing, making it an ideal, quick addition to your meal.

Fresh Homemade Salad with Vinaigrette

Is there anything more versatile than a simple side salad? It only takes a few minutes to make (along with the vinaigrette), but it tastes incredibly fresh and delicious!

Feel free to customize it with any of your favorite additions and then pair it with practically any main course! It’s the perfect way to round out any meal.

Look at my collection of easy and delicious salad recipes for more ideas!

🥘 Ingredients

You’ll definitely want to have some fresh veggies on hand for this salad! Feel free to go through your fridge or pantry and add anything else that sounds tasty, too!

Green Garden Salad

• Lettuce – 1 small head of iceberg lettuce or other variety of lettuce, chopped.
• Cherry Tomatoes – 1 cup of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved.
• Cucumber – 1 medium cucumber, sliced.
• Carrot – 1 medium carrot that has been peeled and then grated. Of course, you could also use store-bought grated carrots.
• Radish – 2 small radishes sliced.
• Chives (optional) – 1 teaspoon of sliced chives.

Vinaigrette

• Apple Cider Vinegar – 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (or use an apple cider vinegar substitute).
• Olive Oil – 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
• Dijon Mustard – ½ teaspoon of Dijon mustard (or try a Dijon mustard substitute).
• Salt & Pepper – ¼ teaspoon of both salt and pepper.

🔪 How To Make Green Garden Salad with Vinaigrette

There is pretty much nothing easier than whipping up this fresh salad! All you need is a cutting board, a knife, a large serving bowl, and a bowl for whisking together your vinaigrette.

This recipe will make enough salad for 4 servings.

1. Prepare the salad. Place all of your salad ingredients into a large bowl: 1 chopped head (539 grams) of iceberg lettuce, 1 cup (149 grams) of halved cherry tomatoes, 1 medium (201 grams) sliced cucumber, 1 medium (61 grams) grated carrot, and 1 teaspoon (1 gram) of chives.
2. Make the vinaigrette. In a bowl or jar, combine 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of apple cider vinegar, 3 tablespoons (44 milliliters) of olive oil, ½ teaspoon (2.5 grams) of Dijon mustard, and ¼ teaspoon (1.5 grams) of both salt and pepper.
3. Toss. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and toss well.
4. Serve. Portion the salad into individual servings and serve immediately.

🍴 What To Serve With A Green Salad

This side salad pairs well with practically anything. Serve it as a side dish for some Monterey chicken, grilled pork rib tips, or peanut butter chicken. Enjoy!

📖 Add Ins & Variations

There are no rules when it comes to this simple green garden salad! You can easily add some texture by tossing in some chopped nuts or crunchy croutons. Up the protein by adding leftover cooked chicken, deli meat, or diced ham.

You could even make it heartier by adding some cooked and cooled grains, like quinoa or rice! The options are limitless!

💭 Angela’s Pro Tips & Recipe Notes

• You can easily customize your salad with any of your favorite additions! Try adding some shredded cheese, sliced red onion, sliced bell pepper, diced avocado, croutons, or chopped deli meat. 
• Add a small amount of sugar, honey, or maple syrup (choose only one) to your dressing if you want a touch of sweetness.
• If you don’t have apple cider vinegar, you could use white wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, or any of your preferred varieties. Some types are stronger than others, so you may need to adjust your oil as well. 

🥡 Storing

This salad is best when enjoyed immediately. However, you can store the salad and dressing separately in a sealed container in the fridge. The salad will last for a couple of days, and the dressing will be good for up to 4-5 days.

❓ Recipe FAQs

🥗 More Easy Salad Recipes

• Creamy Grape Salad – This mouthwatering salad uses both red and green grapes in a creamy dressing and then is topped with brown sugar and pecans.
• Ambrosia Salad – A creamy fruit-based dessert salad that is amazingly refreshing.
• Caesar Salad – Traditional Caesar salad features romaine lettuce, croutons, and Parmesan cheese with homemade Caesar dressing.
• Lobster Salad – Tender chunks of lobster are mixed together with celery, chives, and mayonnaise.
• Potato Salad – Classic potato salad is perfect for potlucks, picnics, and cookouts.
• Greek Pasta Salad – Chilled pasta is tossed with kalamata olives, red onion, artichokes, tomatoes, and Greek dressing.

📖 Recipe Card