This delicious and filling salad is full of delicious fresh vegetables, marinated artichokes, roasted peppers, olives, and hearty white beans on top of crisp, chopped lettuces.
Italian Chopped Salad is a great blend of crisp bitter lettuces, fresh veggies, and delicious marinated veggies you commonly find on antipasti trays. White beans add filling protein and a rich creamy texture. It is topped off with zesty Italian salad dressing for the perfect Italian side dish.
This beautiful garden green salad showed up on many buffet tables in my catering days and was always a huge hit. The Italian Salad Dressing really makes this dish pop. Nice and vinegary with tons of spices balance out a rich pasta course.
Serve this fresh dish with a classic Italian main like Meat Lasagna, Pork Ragu, or Spaghetti with Meatballs.
Make this recipe, because...
Crisp red leaf lettuce and radicchio are the perfect combination of sweet and bitter.
Fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion slices add a great crunch.
Marinated artichokes, roasted red peppers, and kalamata olive add delicious sweet and salty flavors and lovely textures.
The white beans add creaminess and make this dish so filling.
This dish comes together very quickly and uses easy to find ingredients.
It can be made ahead of time and dressed right before serving. It’s perfect for weekly meal prep.
Ingredients
Red Leaf Lettuce- This is a great salad lettuce. The top of the leaves are red and are very tender and the green bottom is crisp and fresh tasting.
Radicchio Lettuce- This small purple bundle is crisp with a nice bitter flavor. A little goes a long way.
White Beans- You can use any canned white bean you have on hand for this recipe. Cannellini beans are one of my favorites, with their subtle nutty flavor, but navy or great northern beans work as well.
Italian Vinaigrette- You can use your favorite store bought dressing for this salad or make your own using the recipe below. I usually make my Italian Salad Dressing in a larger batch to keep in my fridge for the week. I use a variety of dried ingredients combined with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, Ketchup, and Mustard.
Mix the dressing in a mason jar or container with a lid. Give everything a good shake to get an emulsified mix.
Instructions
Step 1
- Chop red leaf lettuce and radicchio into bite sized pieces and put into a large salad bowl.
Step 2
- Next, add olives, marinated artichokes, roasted red peppers, sliced onions, cucumbers, and tomatoes.
- Then, drain and rinse the white beans and add them to the salad.
- Finally, add dressing, toss, and serve.
FAQs
It is exactly what it sounds like. In a chopped salad, all of the ingredients are cut into small pieces so that you get a little of each item in every bite.
Tips For Success
Washing lettuce correctly can make or break a good garden green salad. You definitely don’t want to have any grit left in the leaves and you don’t want soggy lettuce. For perfectly crisp lettuce…
- Fill a large bowl with water and ice cubes.
- Remove the end of the head of lettuce and submerge the loose leaves in the ice water for 5 minute. The dirt will sink to the bottom of the bowl and the cold water will crisp the lettuce.
- Lay the leaves on a dish towel and pat dry. The dry lettuce leaves are ready to use.
- Store extra cleaned lettuce in a food storage bag with a sheet of paper towel in the refrigerator to have fresh clean lettuce ready to use all week.
Making a chopped salad is super easy if you work efficiently.
Start chopping the “cleanest” items like the lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes. Then move onto items that make the cutting board a bit messy like the marinated artichokes.
This salad can be put together ahead of time and used for meal prep. Just leave off the dressing and the salad with toppings will last 3-5 days in the fridge.
Related Recipes
- Creamy Spinach Pesto Pasta
- Classic Shrimp Scampi
- Genovese Basil Pesto
- Italian Grilled Chicken
- 15 Minute Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce
- Italia Sausage and Peppers
📖 Recipe
Italian Chopped Salad
Ingredients
Italian Chopped Salad
- 6 Cups Red Leaf Lettuce
- 2 Cups Radicchio
- 1 Cup White Beans
- ½ Cup Marinated Artichoke Hearts
- ½ Cup Kalamata Olives
- ¼ Cup Roasted Red Peppers
- ¼ Cup Red Onion
- ½ Cup Cucumber
- ½ Cup Cherry Tomatoes
Italian Vinaigrette
- ½ Cup Red Wine Vinegar
- ¼ Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 Teaspoons Ketchup
- ½ Teaspoon Yellow Mustard
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Garlic
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Onion
- 1 Teaspoon Dry Parsley
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Oregano
- ½ Teaspoon Sugar
- ¼ Teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- Chop red leaf lettuce and radicchio into bite sized pieces and put into a large salad bowl.
- Next, add olives, marinated artichokes, roasted red peppers, sliced onions, cucumbers, and tomatoes.
- Then, drain and rinse the white beans and add them to the salad.
- Finally, mix together the dressing ingredients. Add half of the Italian Vinaigrette to the Italian Chopped Salad and toss. Continue to slowly add dressing to the salad until you’ve added enough for your own taste.
Notes
- Washing lettuce correctly can make or break a good garden green salad. You definitely don’t want to have any grit left in the leaves and you don’t want soggy lettuce. For perfectly crisp lettuce…
- Fill a large bowl with water and ice cubes.
- Remove the end of the head of lettuce and submerge the loose leaves in the ice water for 5 minute. The dirt will sink to the bottom of the bowl and the cold water will crisp the lettuce.
- Lay the leaves on a dish towel and pat dry. The dry lettuce leaves are ready to use.
- Store extra cleaned lettuce in a food storage bag with a sheet of paper towel in the refrigerator to have fresh clean lettuce ready to use all week.
- Making a chopped salad is super easy if you work efficiently.
- Start chopping the “cleanest” items like the lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes. Then move onto items that make the cutting board a bit messy like the marinated artichokes.
- This salad can be put together ahead of time and used for meal prep. Just leave off the dressing and the salad with toppings will last 3-5 days in the fridge.
Nutrition
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Traci says
Definitely adding this delicious salad to my collection! I love all the ingredients and how easy and healthy it is. Thanks!
Angela says
So hearty and filling especially with the beans. A great meal in itself for any time of year.
Rika says
It's a healthy and refreshing salad. The dressing is better than the store-bought ones.
Heather Perine says
I love an Italian chopped salad, but never thought to add beans. So good!! And so hearty this way. Going to make this again for sure 🙂
Mindee Taylor says
This was such a quick and easy lunch! Filling too! Keep me going the rest of the day!