15 Salads to Eat This Summer
Salad is my jam. I eat salad every single day — often twice a day.
As a self-appointed expert on all things salad, I’ve pulled together some of my favorite summer salad recipes from the BODi Blog.
These are my favorite go-to salad recipes because they’re refreshing, filling, use seasonal ingredients, and combine flavors in unexpected ways.
The paprika dressing in the Spinach Salad with Quinoa and Chickpeas recipe is an eye-opener — I never imagined I’d put so much spice in a salad, but it really works with chickpeas.
In Orange Jicama Salad, the combination of juicy orange wedges, marinated jicama, and pine nuts is incredibly flavorful.
These summer salads easy refreshing, light, and easy to make — try one tonight!
15 Easy Summer Salad Recipes
1. Arugula Salad With Chicken and Black Beans
Sometimes, the simplest salads are the best. Like this hearty 21 Day Fix recipe that has only five ingredients and can be made in minutes.
Chicken and black beans add protein and fiber, and avocado adds healthy fats to make it a satisfying meal for lunch or dinner. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1½ Green, 1 Red, 1 Yellow, 1 Blue
2B Mindset Plate It! A great lunch option. Replace black beans with more veggies for dinner.
2. Grilled Peach Panzanella
Panzanella is an Italian salad made with crisp, day-old bread that soaks up the juices of tomatoes and dressing. Our version gets luscious sweetness from grilled peaches, which are beautifully ripe right now. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: ½ Green, 1 Purple, 1 Yellow, 2 tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great FFC side as part of breakfast or lunch.
3. Spinach Salad With Quinoa, Chickpeas, and Paprika Dressing
This colorful salad is a showstopper. Make it for your next potluck or picnic, or amaze your family for dinner any night of the week.
Quinoa and chickpeas give it a hearty serving of protein, but the stars of the recipe are the piquant paprika dressing and the full cup of torn mint leaves.
Once you taste this salad, you’ll want to add mint to all of the salads! Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: ½ Green, 1½ Yellow, ½ Blue, ½ tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! A great lunch option for the vegan plan. For non-vegans, replace beans OR quinoa with a protein for lunch.
4. Spinach and White Bean Salad With Orange and Grapefruit
Brightly flavored citrus and creamy white beans make a perfect salad for any season. This recipe is light and refreshing for summer, and the orange and grapefruit slices are a real pick-me-up. It also makes a great lunch to pack for work! Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 2½ Green, 1 Yellow, 1 Purple, 1 tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie and FFC side as part of lunch.
5. Cucumber, Watermelon, and Mango Salad With Mint
How pretty is this cucumber, watermelon, and mango salad?! It’s refreshing and colorful, and chicken adds hearty protein to make it a satisfying meal.
It’s a great make-ahead salad for a picnic. Get the recipe.
Portion Fix Containers: 1 Green, 1 Purple, 1 Red
2B Mindset Plate It! Add more veggies to make a great lunch option.
6. Summer Chickpea Salad
This salad of crunchy radishes, juicy cherry tomatoes, mild green onions, avocado, chickpeas, and feta is delicious with or without lettuce.
For a different spin, I combined my leftover bean mixture with a can of tuna…and it was a revelation. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1 Green, 1 Yellow, 1½ tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie and FFC side as part of breakfast or lunch.
7. Greek Cucumber Salad
Cucumber and onion go perfectly with salty feta and kalamata olives. Chopped fresh dill is a flavorful finishing touch. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1 Green, ½ Blue, ½ Orange
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie side as part of lunch or dinner.
8. Orange-Jicama Salad
Jicama makes this salad crunchy and really filling. Soaking the matchstick-sized pieces of jicama in a lime juice and red wine vinegar dressing infuses it with lots of extra flavor.
Orange wedges make it bright and refreshing and it tastes awesome with chicken. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1 Green, 1 Purple, 1 tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie and FFC side as part of lunch.
9. Tuna and White Bean Salad
This delicious tuna and white bean salad with tomatoes and artichoke hearts makes a hearty lunch or dinner thanks to 24 grams of protein and 8 grams of fiber. I like the cold bean mixture by itself as a snack. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1 Green, ½ Red, 1 Yellow, 1 ½ tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! A great lunch option. Replace white beans with more veggies for dinner.
10. Watermelon, Feta, and Kalamata Olive Salad
Have you ever tried this combination of watermelon and feta? Our recipe adds salty kalamata olives and fresh herbs for a surprisingly delicious Mediterranean twist. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1 Purple, ½ Blue, ½ tsp
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great FFC side as part of breakfast or lunch.
11. Kale Salad With Turkey Bacon, Egg, and Avocado
Our social media manager came up with what she calls a “breakfast salad.” She topped kale with all of the fixings of a BLAT, and then we went crazy and added a soft-boiled egg and sunflower seeds.
The result has become one of my favorites. I love the added crunchiness of the sunflower seeds and turkey bacon with the tenderness of the soft-boiled egg and tomatoes. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1½ Green, 1 Red, 1 Blue, 1 Orange
2B Mindset Plate It! Make a great dinner option or add an FFC to make it a breakfast.
12. Fig Salad With Honey-Lemon Dressing
Figs are one of those special summertime treats that should be enjoyed all season long. They add dimension and sweetness to this easy salad. Pile this on top of your favorite lean protein and dig in. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 2 Green, 1 Purple, 1 Blue, 1 Orange
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie and FFC side as part of lunch.
13. Kale Salad With Chicken
This crunchy kale salad with chicken, tomatoes, and sunflower seeds takes just a few minutes to make, so even people with busy schedules can find time to eat this healthy meal.
It keeps well in the fridge for several days, so it’s also great for meal prep! Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1½ Green, 1 Red, ½ Orange
2B Mindset Plate It! A great dinner option. Add an FFC for lunch.
14. Arugula Salad With Peaches and Mozzarella
This recipe is one of my favorite ways to eat the sweet, juicy peaches that are filling the farmers’ markets right now.
Slice them and toss with some peppery arugula, fresh mozzarella, and a drizzling of good balsamic vinegar.
Note: Not all balsamic vinegar is created equal; aged balsamic has a sweeter, more complex flavor that makes this salad sing. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 2 Green, ½ Purple, ½ Blue, ½ tsp.
2B Mindset Plate It! Makes a great veggie and FFC side as part of lunch.
15. Spinach Salad With Strawberries and Walnuts
Fresh baby spinach is topped with protein-packed chicken, sweet strawberries, and crunchy walnuts.
If you have cooked chicken on hand, and a bag of pre-washed spinach, this could be dinner in under five minutes. Get the recipe.
Container Equivalents: 1½ Green, 1 Purple, 1 Red, 1 Blue
2B Mindset Plate It! A great lunch option. Replace strawberries with more veggies for dinner.
If you have questions about the portions, please click here to post a question in our forums so our experts can help. Please include a link to the recipe.
