Combine deli meats, cheese, banana peppers, tomatoes, and onions with a delicious creamy dressing made from mayo, mustard, red wine vinegar, and Italian spices, and you have the best parts of an Italian sub sandwich in a fresh, filling salad.
By now, you have probably come across the viral recipe on tik tok showing how to make a grinder sub salad. If you haven't seen it, it shows how to mix up the shredded lettuce and vegetables that you would typically place individually on your sub and mixes it into a delicious, drippy looking salad.
It always looks amazing on top of a thick stack of deli meat and cheese. It's fun and who doesn’t love a good Italian grinder sandwich?
I was inspired to create a low carb salad version of the grinder. It combines delicious meat, cheese, veggies, and dressing without the hoagie roll. It’s like eating all of the good stuff that falls out of the end of the sub.
Make this recipe, because...
The creamy Italian dressing is made up of sandwich condiments, mayo, mustard, and red wine vinegar. It is spiced up with garlic, oregano, and red pepper flake for a little kick.
The meat and cheese make this salad a real meal. It is a perfect no-cook summer recipe.
Ingredients
The salad should include a different meats, cheeses, vegetables, and peppers. You can mix it up with your favorite sandwich ingredients, just like when you order your a sub from the sandwich shop. My favorite type of sandwich is an Italian combo and that is how I decided the toppings for this recipe.
Salad Toppings
Italian Meats- Hard Salami, Ham, Turkey, Pepperoni, Roast Beef
Cheese- Provolone Cheese, Muenster, Swiss, Cheddar, Colby Jack, Mozzarella Balls
Peppers- Banana Peppers, Wax Peppers, Pepperoncini Peppers,
Vegetables- Tomatoes, Bell Peppers, Onions, Olives,
How to Make an Italian Grinder Salad
Step 1
- In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, mustard, red wine vinegar, and spices to make the grinder salad dressing.
Step 2
- Shred iceberg lettuce by cutting the head into quarters. Then make thin cuts along the edge of each quarter to get thin strips of lettuce.
Step 3
- Dice deli meat and cheese into bite size pieces. Stack up the salami and cut into small pieces, then use your fingers to separate the pieces. Do the same with other cold cuts and sliced cheese.
Step 4
- Place the shredded lettuce in a large bowl with diced deli meat and cheese. Add thinly sliced red onions, diced tomatoes, sliced bell peppers, and banana peppers.
- Add dressing and toss the salad. Serve this salad as a meal or bring it to your next potluck.
FAQs
A grinder is New England slang for a submarine sandwich. The subs are served on crusty Italian bread that takes a lot of chewing, hence, grinder. They can be filled with any variety of cold cuts and cheese. They often have shredded lettuce, a variety of thinly sliced vegetables, peppers, and red wine vinegar.
Diana's Tips For Success
Take the time to slice peppers and onions into very thin pieces so that they will integrate well with the shredded lettuce and not be overwhelming to eat.
How to Store
To keep this salad fresh, store the salad ingredients without dressing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Dress right before serving to prevent soggy salad.
Mix the homemade dressing in a container with a lid, so it can go right into the fridge.
Related Recipes
- Hot Italian Sub Sliders
- Italian Chopped Salad
- Tri Tip Sandwich with Peppers and Onions
- Italian Sausage with Peppers and Onions
- Lemon Arugula Salad with Parmesan
- Pickled Beet Salad
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📖 Recipe
Italian Grinder Salad
Ingredients
Grinder Salad Ingredients
- 6 Cups Iceberg Lettuce shredded
- 2 Ounces Salami 10 slices
- 2 Ounces Ham 4 Slices
- 2 Ounces Provolone Cheese 4 Slices
- ½ Cup Tomatoes diced
- ½ Cup Red Onion thinly sliced
- ½ Cup Bell Pepper thinly sliced
- ¼ Cup Pickled Peppers banana peppers wax peppers, pepperoncini
Grinder Salad Dressing
- ½ Cup Mayonnaise
- 1 Tablespoon Yellow Mustard
- ¼ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 Teaspoon Oregano
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes optional
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, mustard, red wine vinegar, and spices to make the grinder salad dressing.
- Shred iceberg lettuce by cutting the head into quarters. Then make thin cuts along the edge of each quarter to get thin strips of lettuce.
- Dice deli meat and cheese into bite size pieces. Stack up the salami and cut into small pieces, then use your fingers to separate the pieces. Do the same with other cold cuts and sliced cheese.
- Place the shredded lettuce in a large bowl with diced deli meat and cheese. Add thinly sliced red onions, diced tomatoes, sliced bell peppers, and banana peppers.
- Add dressing and toss the salad. Serve this salad as a meal or bring it to your next potluck.
Notes
Nutrition
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Sara Welch says
This was everything a gourmet salad should be, and then some! Quick, easy and delicious; definitely, a new favorite recipe!
Rosemary says
This sounds delicious. Do you have a particular bread you recommend?
Diana Reis says
I sometime throw this on ciabatta roll or just the bottom half of some crust Italian bread.
Carrie Robinson says
What an absolutely amazing idea for a salad! 🙂 Wish I had this in front of me right now.
Elisa says
Love this Italian Grinder Salad recipe, it looks delicious and easy to make. Definitely will make it soon. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Janie says
I must say this was a delicious salad. I loved the dressing especially cause it was tangy. Love anything with vinegar in its ingredients!
Cat says
This was super yum & easy ~ I chopped it all in a veggie chopper press.
I just used the list from your "Ingredients" ~ was a perfect amount & super filling ! The dressing is amazing 🙂
Diana Reis says
I'm so glad you enjoyed. Good Call on the Veggie Press. I think I need to get one.