20+ simple healthy salad recipes

You can make most of these simplehealthy salad recipes in under 15 minutes and you’ll actually be excited to eat one every single day!

Did you know there is more than one way to make a salad? Not just the way a rabbit would prepare it (aka by eating plain lettuce or cabbage). Think we're a liar? A snake oil saleswoman? We are not and we have dignity. This list of healthy salad recipes is proof. We’ve got fiber-packed chickpea salads, high-protein recipes with chicken, simple, yet notable vegetable sides, nutritious quinoa salads and so much more! Pick one and eat it.

So, if you’re wanting to up your raw vegetable intake and enjoy it – this is the way to go! These healthy salads are solid to enjoy for dinner or lunch as part of a healthy lifestyle!

Salads Are A reliable

It might not actually feel like it, but summer is coming. And if you’re anything like us, you probably love summer. The weather, the food, the lightness of being yourself without wearing a 60-pound coat that crushes your body in two. Did we mention the food? Does a rabbit eat its feces? The answer to both: Duh! (as you can tell, we are an expert on rabbits).

Food: summer for us is a season of salads. Of as many fresh and healthy salads as possible. Tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, herbs, zucchini, spinach…It’s a reliable season to eat any of these tasty nutritious foods, even though we see them in stores all year around.

So today by sharing these simple salad recipes we want to kinda start getting ready for summer.

The salads here are simple to make, great to take to work, to share with the family at dinner, to whip up last minute or sometimes, even order when you’re at a restaurant and you want to eat something healthier. So let’s get started!

Healthy Salad Ingredients

When we were much, much, much younger we thought the only salad that existed was chopped cucumber, tomatoes, onions, olive oil, vinegar and salt. We didn’t know you can put anything else into that bowl. That’s the only recipe we made at home, every single evening.

Then we grew up, gained some life experience and realized healthy salads can basically incorporate all your favorite things. Just throw them into a bowl with some vegetables and dressing. Seriously the process of making a salad takes like 10 minutes.

This completely changed our perspective. Salads became our go-to for lunch and dinner. Of course, we still fall off the wagon for a while here and there, but a good salad can always seduce us like Mrs. Robinson, even if it’s not trying.

Here are some ingredients that will help you make your own satisfying healthy salad recipes:

• vegetables: lettuce, cucumbers, peppers, spinach, kale, onions
• fruit like tomatoes, avocado, berries, olives
• nuts & seeds: sesame seeds, flaxseed, chopped walnuts, pumpkin seeds, almonds
• whole grains: quinoa, bulgur, rice, millet
• herbs: mint, parsley, basil, cilantro, dill
• legumes: beans, chickpeas or lentils
• protein (optional): salmon, tuna, chicken, eggs, or cheese

You see, you can pretty much dump anything whole food into a bowl with some vegetables and it will become a healthy lunch.

The one thing that actually can make salads unhealthy is the dressing. We almost always use olive oil and vinegar, sometimes a mix of soy or tamari sauce with some sesame oil and wasabi and it’s always enough.

How it comes together

• Wash your vegetables and fruit (please, really, don’t count on someone else doing it for you)
• Chop vegetables and fruit into bite-sized pieces and add them to a large bowl
• Optionally: add something more filling like chickpeas, cheese, nuts, seeds, cooked quinoa, chicken, hard-boiled eggs or fish
• Add olive oil and vinegar or lemon juice or another healthy dressing of your choice
• Mix it all together, add salt and pepper to taste
• Enjoy!

Now let’s get to the healthy salad recipes.

Healthy Vegetarian Salads For Lunch Or Dinner

1. Healthy Avocado Chickpea Salad. With chickpeas, avocado, feta cheese, herbs, greens and olives this bowl is filled with antioxidants, high-fiber, satisfying and simply great for summer or any other season.

2. Flavorful Avocado, Black Bean and Roasted Pepper Salad. With roasted peppers, fresh herbs, garlic, sweet tomatoes, olives this vegetarian recipe is so good!

3. Big Healthy Dinner Salad Recipe. Baked potatoes, garlicky herby feta cheese, avocado, onions and lots of fresh produce make this dinner bowl so solid!

4. Tomato, Basil And Chickpea Salad. Probably one of our most popular recipes, this one is beautiful and a little different. It’s mixed with chickpeas, toasted sesame seeds, sesame oil and, our favorite part, basil!

5. Arugula, Parmesan and Asparagus Salad and also basil, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, radishes and onions…fresh, satiating and so tasty!

6. Mediterranean Chickpea Salad. This is one of a reliable vegetarian Mediterranean salads ever! With chickpeas, feta, roasted eggplant, roasted peppers, sweet ripe tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and parsley, we can’t!

Protein-Packed Healthy Salad Recipes With Chicken

Only envision lettuce when you think of healthy salads? Try these simple high-protein bowls with chicken and vegetables!

7. Healthy Cobb Salad. Made with eggs, olives, cooked chicken breast, avocado and fresh vegetables this healthy recipe is full of protein and a great healthy lunch or dinner.

8. Low-Carb Avocado Chicken Salad Recipe. Our sister made this recipe when she was doing the keto diet and we must tell you: we absolutely loved it (even if we'd never do keto!). To make it in 10 minutes, use rotisserie or leftover chicken.

9. Healthy Chickpea, Feta and Chicken Salad. Use some leftover chicken and canned chickpeas to make this Mediterranean-inspired recipe in 10 minutes for a tasty filling healthy lunch.

10. Mashed Avocado Chicken Salad. If you’re new to salads, but like guacamole, you might want to start with a recipe like this one. We know, it doesn’t look like much, but it’s satisfying.

Healthy Salad Recipes With Seafood

Tuna, salmon and shrimp can make a great addition to healthy salads as well!

11. Mediterranean Salmon Salad. It might sound a bit unusual, but this salmon recipe is so good, so filling and satisfying. Some of the ingredients include salmon, roasted red peppers and arugula. We're telling you it’s satisfying.

12. Fresh Avocado Arugula Shrimp Salad. Ingredients here include shrimp, basil, avocado, tomatoes and garlic. Low in carbohydrates, rich in vitamins, minerals and protein this is a great weight loss meal too!

13. Chickpea and Tuna Salad Recipe is packed with protein (27g per serving) and ready in about 10 minutes! Ingredients include chickpeas, canned tuna, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives and more!

14. Anti-Inflammatory Salmon Salad. Reduce inflammation by enjoying this filling recipe with salmon, sweet potatoes, arugula, avocado, radishes and anti-inflammatory herbs.

15. Meal Prep Tuna Salad. Use canned tuna, olives, spinach and cooked quinoa to make this nutritious and satisfying bowl in about 15 minutes.

16. Spicy Shrimp Chickpea Salad. This tasty lunch is made with peeled and deveined shrimp, that you’ll sautee for a few minutes with some herbs and spices. Do the same to the canned chickpeas and then put both into a bowl with fresh herbs, vegetables and some olives.

Simple Antioxidant-Rich Vegetable Salad Recipes

17. Simple Tomato, Cucumber and Feta Salad. This is pretty much the only salad we knew until we were 20: cucumbers, tomatoes and feta cheese. So simple and so good as a side dish. Still love it!

18. Cucumber, Avocado & Sesame Salad. Peel a cucumber into ribbons, add avocado, toasted sesame seeds and a tasty dressing with tamari or soy sauce to make this surprisingly satisfying cucumber recipe.

19. Tomato, Avocado And Arugula Salad. This deliciousness can be a side dish or a main dish. Serve it with some bread, with chicken, salmon or whatever you desire.

20. Simple Tomato Cucumber Salad. This is the ultimate summer recipe, with tomatoes, cucumbers, dill, onions and peppers! It’s so fresh and just the solid summer side dish!

Healthy Quinoa Salad Recipes

21. Quinoa, Feta and Roasted Vegetable Salad. Roasted cauliflower and red peppers, feta cheese, quinoa, onions and arugula are just some of the ingredients that come into this notable quinoa salad.

22. The Sesame Avocado Quinoa Salad Recipe. Cucumber, avocado, quinoa and basil come together in this super-satisfying vegan and gluten-free recipe. It’s light, tasty and great for lunch.

23. Fresh Quinoa Tabbouleh. Use cooked quinoa to make this simple tabbouleh. With lemon zest, parsley and tomatoes this simple dish is fresh and a great side to go with dinner.

24. Quinoa Chicken Salad. With quinoa, avocado, chicken and roasted red peppers this recipe is everything you need when you’re hungry.

25. Detox Avocado Quinoa Salad Recipe. Most often lately we're making something like this recipe. We mean we love olives, we love avocado and as we had to learn a few years ago: we also love quinoa. This bowl is clean, satisfying and simple to make.