Italian Chopped Salad Recipe
This Italian chopped salad is what I make when the fridge is halfway full and dinner still has to happen. I simply toss together romaine, radicchio, ditalini pasta, salami, and fresh mozzarella, all chopped into bite-sized pieces, with a light lemon vinaigrette for the freshest, most delicious salad that's ready in less than 30 minutes.
Ingredients
For the Vinaigrette:
- 1 lemon, juice, about 2 ½ to 3 tablespoons
- 3 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp dry oregano
- 2 tbsp honey
- 2/3 cup oil, I like a blend of olive and avocado oil
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Salad:
- 2 head romaine lettuce, core removed and cut into 1” pieces
- 1 head radicchio, core removed and cut into 1” pieces
- 1/2 pound ditalini pasta, cooked
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 1 medium cucumber, diced
- 1/2 cup olives, sliced black or Castelvetrano, or both
- 1/2 cup pepperoncini’s, diced
- 15 ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 15 ounce can artichokes, drained and medium diced
- 8 ounces genoa salami, sliced or medium diced to bite size pieces
- 8 ounces fresh mozzarella pearls, you can substitute with shreds
- grated Parmigiano for garnish
Instructions
For the vinaigrette:
- Add the lemon juice, vinegar, oregano, and honey to a medium sized bowl.Slowly drizzle in the oil while whisking until it is emulsified. Season with salt and pepper and set it to the side.
For the Salad:
- Add the ingredients to a bowl, mix and serve with vinaigrette on the side.
- The other option is to add all the ingredients to a large bowl and spoon the vinaigrette on to the inside walls of the bowl around the salad.
- Then, fold it over repeatedly coating every ingredient in the dressing.
- Serve with optional grated parmigiano.
This recipe makes a lot so feel free to cut it in half or scale back. The portion sizes are large too, but I’m a big guy and for me I can never get enough greens and veggies.
Notes
As you already saw above, this Italian chopped salad is extremely easy compared to many of the other recipes on my blog. However, the most important tip I can give you is to drizzle the vinaigrette around the sides of the bowl instead of pouring it right into the middle. Then, let the tongs do the work as you toss the salad. Every piece of tomato, every olive, every salami cut catches the dressing on the ride, and the finished bowl tastes seasoned all the way through.
Dress at the last minute: A dressed chopped salad is a right-now salad. Once the vinaigrette hits the greens, the clock starts, and the romaine and radicchio start to wilt inside 20 minutes. Prep every component ahead of time in its own container and keep the dressing in a jar on the counter. Toss the salad the second before it goes on the table.
Greens should be seasoned! A pinch of kosher salt and cracked black pepper goes on top of the folded salad right before it hits the table. A salt-and-pepper hit at the finish is what wakes up the vinaigrette on the leaves.
Toss the pasta in oil. Cool cooked ditalini clumps into one lump inside 5 minutes if it goes straight into the bowl naked. A drizzle of olive oil over the pasta once it comes out of the strainer is what keeps every piece loose and coated when it get mix in the salad.
Cut everything to the same size: Match the salami dice, the cucumber dice, and the cherry-tomato half all to the same rough size as the ditalini. That is the reason a chopped salad tastes like one bowl on the fork and not 11 separate ingredients on a plate. Ha!
Big bowl energy: Please use a bowl at least twice the size of the finished salad. Folding the salad over on itself needs room to move, and a bowl that is too small is what makes the tongs shred the greens instead of dressing them.
Scale it back if the crowd is small: This recipe makes a lot. Cut it in half for 2 people, or keep the full batch and prep in components for a make-ahead lunch rotation.
Make-Ahead: I prep every ingredient separately and keep each one in its own container in the fridge for up to a day. The dressing goes in a mason jar, the pasta gets tossed in olive oil in a small container, and the greens, vegetables, salami, and cheeses all stay in their own labeled containers so nothing wilts.
How to Store: I store leftover un-dressed components separately in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 3 days. A leftover dressed salad goes in its own container and holds for a day, but the greens will wilt against the vinaigrette after 24 hours.
How to Reheat: I do not reheat this one.
How to Freeze: I skip the freezer for this salad.
Nutrition
Calories: 1009kcalCarbohydrates: 88gProtein: 35gFat: 61gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 13gMonounsaturated Fat: 32gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 1122mgPotassium: 1409mgFiber: 16gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 27972IUVitamin C: 43mgCalcium: 526mgIron: 8mg