Author: This Vegan Strawberry Spinach Salad is the ultimate summer salad, coming together in just 15 minutes. It features sweet strawberries, fresh spinach, toasted sliced almonds, and my homemade lemon poppy seed dressing. You can also top it with crumbly vegan feta. This fresh and easy-to-make salad is sure to become one of your go-to summer recipes! ☀️🥗
This vegan Strawberry Spinach Salad recipe is the perfect way to celebrate the fresh flavors of summer. Adam and I devoured a whole batch in one sitting-it was soooo good!! Enjoy it as a refreshing side dish; it pairs wonderfully with vegan meat dishes like my Vegan Salmon or Seitan Tenders, or even a scrumptious summer-y pasta like my Creamy Vegan Lemon & Asparagus Pasta. If you want to make this strawberry spinach salad into a meal, add some cooked quinoa, and chickpeas to bulk it up a bit.
Why You'll Love This Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Quick and easy: Some salad recipes have a TON of veggies to wash, prep, and chop, but this one just requires washing the spinach and slicing the strawberries and onions.
- Bright and lemony dressing: The salad is tossed in my 5 minute homemade lemon poppy seed dressing, which is a reader favorite!
- A celebration of summer: Light, fresh, sweet, and bright, this strawberry spinach salad is everything you want in a summer recipe.
Ingredients for Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Sliced almonds: I use sliced almonds on this salad but other nuts such as pecans or walnuts would be delicious too. If you're nut-free try substituting with pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds).
- Baby spinach: I also like this salad with a mix of arugula and spinach.
- Strawberries: If you have some on hand feel free to toss in a handful of fresh blueberries as well.
- Red onion: Amp it up even more by swapping fresh red onion for my pickled red onions.
- Vegan feta: I like using my homemade vegan feta recipe, but you could also use a store-bought version, or just omit it completely. Or if you like it funky you could even try sprinkling on some of my vegan blue cheese.
- For the dressing: A delicious mix of lemon juice, nutritional yeast (which is optional), olive oil (again, optional), poppy seeds, maple syrup or agave, Dijon mustard, and a touch of salt and black pepper. Yum! 😋
How to Make Vegan Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Make the dressing: Whisk all the dressing ingredients in a liquid measuring cup or bowl until the mixture is emulsified.
- Toast the almonds: Place the almonds in a dry pan over medium heat. Toast, shaking the pan occasionally, until the almonds are lightly golden brown. Transfer to a bowl or plate.
- Assemble the salad: In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries, and red onion. Toss with half of the dressing to coat. Add more dressing if needed, and then top the salad with crumbled vegan feta if desired.
Tips and Variations
- Make it oil-free: Leave the oil out of the dressing or replace it with broth or water.
- Soak the onions for a mellower flavor: The onions provide a nice balance to the salad so I don't recommend skipping them, but you can cut their sharpness by soaking them in ice water for 5 minutes before assembling the salad.
- Try another dressing: Like my My Everyday Oil-Free Salad Dressing!
What to Serve With Spinach Strawberry Salad
How to Store
It's best to store the salad and dressing separately, if possible. The dressing will last in the fridge for a week and the salad will last for 2 to 3 days.
If you've already dressed the salad, it will last 1 to 2 days. The greens will wilt, so to perk up the salad, you can add more fresh spinach and toss again.
If you try this recipe, let us know by leaving a comment, rating it, and don't forget to tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram.
Bon appetegan!
Sam Turnbull.
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Vegan Spinach Strawberry Salad
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Ingredients
For the Salad:
- ½ cup sliced almonds, (or sub pecan halves, or pepitas)
- 5 oz baby spinach
- 8 oz strawberries, sliced
- ¼ small red onion, thinly sliced (or use pickled onions)
- ¼ cup crumbled vegan feta cheese, optional (homemade or store-bought)
For the Dressing:
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice, (about 1 lemon)
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, (optional, adds cheesiness and thickens the dressing)
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1 tablespoons maple syrup or agave
- 1 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- salt & pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Make the Dressing: In a small bowl or measuring glass, mix all the dressing ingredients until well combined.
- Toast the Almonds: Place the almonds (or pecans or pepitas) in a dry pan over medium heat. Toast, shaking the pan occasionally, until the almonds are lightly golden brown around the edges, 2-5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl or plate to stop them from cooking further. Keep a close eye on them when toasting as they can burn quickly.
- Assemble the Salad: In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries, and red onion. Drizzle about half of the dressing over the salad and toss well. Add more dressing if needed, and top with crumbled vegan feta if desired. Serve fresh.
jess says
I made this for our Spring holiday feast and it was even better than I had hoped! I ate the leftovers 2 days later and it was still delicious! This is saying a lot because I do not love leftovers for anything. I cannot wait to make this salad again, for any reason. It did not add much to my workload for my feast, at all, so I think it would be great for a weeknight meal as a side, or for weekend entertaining as an appetizer. Cannot recommend this enough.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
This makes me so happy to hear, jess! So glad you loved it 🙂
Elizabeth W. says
This is our new favorite salad -- and that's no small feat. We are salad snobs!! We used toasted pecans instead of almonds and the nutritional yeast and vegan feta make it amazing! Perfect to share during the holidays.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Thanks Elizabeth! Love the pecan swap, sounds perfect for the holidays.
Bondie says
the sauce is to die for
Jess @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Thanks for your review!
Emily says
This salad is so refreshing, even as summer comes to an end. I used to enjoy a similar salad from Panera and I would choose to make this any day!! I used FYH fetah and followed the rest as directed. I also added some vegan chickn for extra protein. Perfect meal or side.
Jess @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing!