7 Layer Salad is delicious easy salad recipe loaded up with fresh veggies and lettuce topped with an delicious creamy dressing. Even better, this recipe is intended to be made ahead of time making it the perfect potluck dish!
In this easy seven layer salad, we often add in leftover chicken or turkey to make it a complete meal and use a flavorful ranch style dressing!
The Perfect 7 Layer Salad
It’s a definite crowd pleaser, everyone seems to love a good seven layered salad which is the perfect dish for every potluck! The best part is that you can make them way ahead of time (overnight is best)!
I’ve made a traditional salad in a trifle dish but learned it was so much easier to serve when placed in a 9×13 pan! You get bits and bites of every little ingredient with less digging and more digging in every bite!
7 Layer Salad Ingredients (and Variations)
- Lettuce I use romaine or iceberg
- Green Peas these add a bit of sweetness. If you’re not a fan of peas, sub out for edamame
- Bell Peppers add color and crunch
- Tomatoes add tang and are juicy
- Onions add zest and flavor, green or red can be used. If your red onions are strong, soak them in ice water for 30 min or so.
- Cheese adds richness, sub in any kind of cheese you’d like
- Bacon adds a smoky salty flavor, sub in smoked almonds if you’d prefer
This is a ranch version of our favorite salad, you can find a traditional seven layer salad here!
7 Layer Salad Made With Buttermilk Ranch
A lot of layered salads call for a simple dressing made of mayonnaise and sugar but I prefer to add in fresh herbs to give it more flavor. My favorite dressing is this homemade Buttermilk Ranch (I could actually drink it, it’s that good) so I created a version of the ranch dressing to add to this salad. You can make this with any kind of creamy dressing like Blue Cheese Dressing.
If you’d prefer, you can substitute a traditional layered salad dressing as well!
Traditional 7 Layer Salad Dressing
A traditional 7 layer salad dressing isn’t much more than mayonnaise and sugar. We add a little bit of sour cream for some tang and salt but both of those are optional.
If you’d like, add in fresh herbs (dill, parsley or basil are all great choices).
- 1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 cup sour cream (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt (or to taste)
Add in Your Leftovers!
This recipe is great with leftover proteins added to it, anything from turkey to leftover Roast Chicken or even ham are delicious in this recipe!
More Fresh Salads
- Easy Italian Salad
- The BEST Chicken Salad
- Classic Wedge Salad
- Cucumber Avocado Salad
- Zucchini Salad (spiralized)
- Fresh Tomato Salad
Ranch 7 Layer Salad
Ingredients
- 8 cups chopped iceberg lettuce or romaine
- 1 ½ cups frozen peas defrosted
- 1 bell pepper red or yellow, diced
- 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 3 green onions sliced
Ranch Dressing
- 1 ¼ cup mayonnaise
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- salt and pepper to taste
Toppings
- 6 slices bacon cooked and crumbled
- 2 cups cheddar cheese
Instructions
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Place the lettuce in 9×13 dish. Layer remaining vegetables.
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Combine dressing ingredients and spread over lettuce. Top with cheese and bacon.
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Cover and refrigerate overnight (or at least 4 hours) before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Salad
Cuisine American
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Wonderful salad! Our friends loved the salad dressing made with 2 parts mayonaise and 1 part whole milk plain yogurt. Thank you!
Thanks for leaving a comment Gail, happy to hear this recipe was a hit!