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Perfect for the warm summer months, these dinner salad recipes are light, easy, and satisfying! From grilled steak to rotisserie chicken, homemade dressings to store-bought varieties, you’re sure to find a simple and delicious entrée salad to add to your table in the days ahead.
While we enjoy salads for dinner all year long, there’s something particularly enticing about a big bowl of cool, crisp greens and fresh veggies, char-grilled meats, and savory dressings when the weather heats up. Throw a tablecloth down on the picnic table, grab a loaf of crusty bread, pour yourself a glass of wine, and unwind with one of these simple summer meals.
Tortellini Salad with Chicken
A simple Mediterranean-inspired cold tortellini pasta salad with chicken, veggies, feta, and olives in a red wine vinaigrette is the recipe of the season! This crowd-pleasing dish is a great make-ahead dinner, an easy contribution to your next potluck, and a packable solution for picnics or travel.
Steak Salad
The best steak salad recipe includes marinated, grilled flank steak, fresh vegetables, crispy fried onions, crumbled blue cheese and a homemade creamy balsamic vinaigrette. It’s light, flavorful and incredibly satisfying! Pair the entrée salad with a loaf of crusty bread for easy dinners all summer long.
Dorito Taco Salad
This retro favorite is a blast from the past! If you’re a child of the 80’s, then you’ve definitely enjoyed a Dorito taco salad on a number of different occasions. It’s an easy dinner and a crowd-pleasing party food that always wins rave reviews!
Tuna Pasta Salad
Full of simple and fresh ingredients, this tuna pasta salad is the perfect side dish for your next cookout, an easy entrée for a weeknight dinner, or a refreshing make-ahead lunch. You’ll love the flavorful combination of peas, lemon, dill, and a creamy mayo dressing in this cold pasta salad with tuna fish!
Greek Salad with Shrimp
A light and fresh Greek salad with tender shrimp, briny olives, juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, zesty red onion, salty feta cheese, and a homemade Greek salad dressing is a quick lunch or dinner for busy days. Substitute chicken for the shrimp, or use chickpeas to make it vegetarian. The entrée salad is delicious served alongside warm pita bread and tzatziki sauce or hummus!
Antipasto Pasta Salad
All of the delicious meats and cheeses from your favorite antipasto platter come together in a crisp, cold Italian pasta salad. This easy Antipasto Pasta Salad recipe includes pasta, salami, pepperoni, olives, cheese, marinated artichoke hearts and fresh vegetables tossed in a homemade red wine vinaigrette. Serve the bow tie Antipasto Pasta Salad with lettuce as a light entrée on a warm evening, or offer it as a side dish with grilled chicken, shrimp, salmon, or burgers. It will soon become a staple in your summertime routine!
Ham Pasta Salad
Full of simple and fresh ingredients, this ham pasta salad is the perfect side dish for your next cookout, an easy option for a light weeknight dinner, or a refreshing make-ahead lunch. You’ll love the flavorful combination of peas, lemon, dill, and a creamy mayo dressing. Serve the cold ham and cheese pasta salad with grilled chicken, steak, pulled pork, cornbread, biscuits, or blueberry muffins.
Easy Tuna Nicoise Salad
The perfect combination of flavorful ingredients, this classic Nicoise Salad is a simple, fresh, and easy lunch or dinner option for the sunny months ahead. With warm, crispy roasted potatoes and green beans, tuna, olives, and more, it’s a healthy meal that truly satisfies!
Chicken Pasta Salad with Shrimp and Pepperoni
Full of simple and fresh ingredients, this chicken pasta salad with shrimp and pepperoni is the perfect side dish for your next cookout, an easy option for a light weeknight dinner, or a refreshing make-ahead lunch. You’ll love the flavorful combination of onions, bell peppers, celery, peas, pecans, herbs, and a creamy mayo dressing. Serve the cold pasta salad with mixed greens, focaccia, garlic bread, breadsticks, or a crusty baguette!
Best Chicken Salad Recipe
Your search for the best chicken salad recipe stops here! This simple, flavorful combination of tender meat, bright green onions, herbs, and seasoning in a creamy mayonnaise dressing is quick and delicious. Use the easy chicken salad recipe to make sandwiches, or serve it on top of a bed of lettuce with a side of biscuits, rolls, or potato chips. The make-ahead dish is always a favorite!
Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad
A classic Southern chicken salad recipe is lightened up with the rich, tangy flavor of Greek yogurt. You’ll love the sweet, savory, and crunchy combination of tender meat, juicy grapes, celery, and pecans in this simple make-ahead lunch or dinner.
BLT Pasta Salad
This BLT Pasta Salad takes all of the flavors from your favorite sandwich and combines them with pasta in a zesty, flavorful make-ahead meal. It’s perfect for a summer lunch or dinner, and can be served as either a side dish or as an entree.
Southern Chicken Salad Recipe
A simple Southern chicken salad recipe that’s loaded with tender meat, sweet cranberries (or juicy grapes), celery, and almonds in a mayonnaise-based dressing. You just can’t beat a classic. Serve the old-fashioned dish on its own with cornbread, coleslaw, or crackers; or pile it high on a sandwich with a side of potato chips and pickles!
Seafood Salad
A retro classic, this seafood salad recipe has been a staple in delis and on salad bars for decades! The cold crab salad comes together in about 10 minutes for an inexpensive, easy lunch or dinner to prep ahead. Serve it with crackers for scooping, on croissants or crusty bread for sandwiches, or on a bed of leafy greens. It’s light, fresh, and flavorful!
Southern Chicken and Rice Salad
This light Southern Chicken and Rice Salad is a satisfying dish that’s perfect for easy summer dinners or a fancier lunch with the ladies. The marinated chicken, sweet fruit, crunchy almonds, and hearty brown rice, offer a variety of flavors and textures for the ultimate crowd-pleasing dish!
Aunt Bee’s Shrimp Pasta Salad
Full of simple and fresh ingredients, Aunt Bee’s Southern shrimp pasta salad has been a family favorite for decades! It’s the perfect side dish for your next cookout, an easy option for a weeknight dinner, or a refreshing make-ahead lunch. You’ll love the flavorful combination of peas, lemon, dill, and a creamy mayo dressing.
Strawberry Chicken Salad
This restaurant-quality Strawberry Chicken Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing comes together in just 15 minutes! You’ll love the combination of flavors and textures from the spinach, Romaine, rotisserie chicken, toasted almonds, celery, avocado, crumbled feta cheese, and plenty of sweet, fresh strawberries. Serve the salad with croissants, biscuits, sour cream muffins, cornbread, or a loaf of crusty French bread for a quick lunch or easy weeknight dinner — no cooking required!
