Our traditional Seven Layer Salad recipe is the classic seven layer salad with a few (healthier) twists! Made with 7 simple ingredients that create this perfect side dish. Always a hit, really easy to make and perfect for holidays, family gatherings, or weeknight meals!
The Best Seven Layer Salad Recipe
This original Seven Layer Salad recipe is something I grew up eating – so excited to share the recipe with you guys! For me, I grew up eating this whenever my mom made slow cooker chili, along with gluten-free cornbread. We love this dinner tradition and continue it to this day. Whenever the weather here in Minnesota turns chilly, we turn to our go-to recipes: chili + seven-layer salad + cornbread. A combo that I look forward to making (preferably on Game Day Sunday) every year.
Looking for Another Salad Side Dish?
If you love salad side dishes as much as we do, you definitely need to try our Caesar Pasta Salad!
What You Will Need
- chopped lettuce – we have always used iceberg lettuce, but any variety of lettuce would work here (i.e. romaine lettuce, leafy greens, spring mix, etc). Be sure to rinse and dry with paper towels or in a salad spinner.
- green peas – simply pick-up a small bag of frozen peas at your local grocery store, thaw, and add to the salad.
- chopped onions – highly recommend a sweet yellow onion, but you can also use white onion or even red onion.
- celery – just cut a few celery stalks into small pieces.
- mayonnaise – any store-bought version will work great, some people even like using Miracle Whip, if you prefer those flavors.
- honey – just a little bit for that touch of sweetness!
- shredded cheese – love the flavor of shredded cheddar cheese, but you can easily swap for goat cheese, parmesan cheese, or any other type of cheese.
- bacon bits – just cook up a few strips of bacon and chop into small pieces.
How To Make Seven Layer Salad
The first steps to making this easy salad are to gather and prep all of the basic salad ingredients.
Start layering this simple salad with lettuce in the bottom of the pan (9×9 glass dish). Next, add the peas, onion, and celery. Any serving dish will work here, so feel free to use a clear glass bowl or a large trifle dish.
In a small bowl, mix together the mayo and honey.
Spread this creamy dressing on top of the layers of veggies, that you have assembled so far. Now, top this great recipe with the sharp cheddar cheese and crispy bacon bits.
Best Ways To Serve Seven Layer Salad
As stated above, our all-time favorite way to serve this side salad is with our Smoked Chili and Smoked Cornbread! The cool crispness of the salad is going to go so well with your favorite warm bowl of chili. It can really be served with just about any main course or added to your holiday table at your next family gathering. Share with us your favorite way to enjoy this 7 layer salad recipe!
Make Ahead of Time
You can prep most of this salad ahead of time. What we recommend, is prepping all the ingredients, layer the lettuce, peas, onion, and celery. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and refrigerate until ready to serve. The mayo sauce mixture can also be mixed and stored in the fridge until ready to serve. When you are ready, just spread the mayo mixture on top and add the cheese and bacon on top!
Recipe FAQs and Tips
- What other ingredients can be added to 7 layer salad? We love the combination listed in the recipe card, but feel free to use red bell pepper, green onions, grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, or even a layer of hard-boiled eggs (after peeling & cutting them up).
- Storage: Due to the mayo layer, keeping leftover salad can get a little soggy. We usually transfer to an airtight container and can still enjoy it the next day. After about 24 hours it gets too mushy for us.
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Other Side Dish Recipes You Might Like
Seven Layer Salad Recipe
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 8–10 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Counter Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Our classic Seven Layer Salad recipe with a few (healthier) twists! Always a hit and really easy to make! Perfect for holidays, get-togethers or weeknight meals!
Ingredients
- 1/2 head of ice berg lettuce, rip into small pieces
- 1 small bag frozen peas, thawed and uncooked
- 1/2 cup sweet yellow onion, diced (or white onion)
- 1 cup celery, sliced
- 1 1/2 cup mayo (homemade or store-bought)
- 1 tablespoon honey (to taste)
- 1 cup cheese (feel free to use goat cheese, shredded or dairy-free)
- 1 cup bacon bits (about 8 slices of cooked bacon)
Instructions
- Layer: In a 9×9 pan, start layering this salad with lettuce on the bottom and then the thawed peas, diced onion, and celery.
- Mayo Mixture: Put mayo and honey in a small bowl and mix to combine. Taste and add additional honey, to taste. Spread this mixture on top of the salad in an even layer.
- Top the Salad: Sprinkle the cheese on top and the bacon bits.
- Serve: Enjoy this delicious salad with any main dish – we love it with Smoked Cornbread and Smoked Chili!
Notes
- Flexible: salad ingredients are SO easy to adjust, if you have a bigger or smaller pan. Amounts listed can be used as suggestions and if you end up adding more or less of something, it will still work perfectly.
- Lettuce: feel free to use other types of lettuce if you want, we have always used iceberg and it has a nice crunch to it.
- Mayo: I grew up using Hellmann’s mayo, but if you want a healthier version we love our basic homemade mayo!
- Bacon Bits: we grew up using store-bought bacon bits, but if you want a healthier version you can always cook your favorite paleo/Whole30 bacon and chop it up into your own bacon bits!
- Prep Ahead: If you want to prepare ahead of time, simply layer everything until you get to the mayo sauce. Cover and refrigerate. Prepare the mayo sauce, cover and refrigerate. Right before serving add the mayo sauce layer and then the cheese and bacon.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6oz
- Calories: 235
- Sugar: 3.3 g
- Sodium: 417.7 mg
- Fat: 20.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 7.3 g
- Protein: 5.9 g
- Cholesterol: 43.2 mg
Originally published 12/4/19. Recipe retested and new photos added 10/21/24.
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