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This Raw Veggie Chopped Salad is perfect for summer parties, potlucks and BBQs. Full of flavor and no lettuce needed. You can easily double the recipe to feed a huge crowd. Vegan, gluten free, nut free, soy free and oil free!
Summer is here and it’s time for fresh salads of all kinds. Salads are perfect for quick lunches and a first course before dinner. They also travel really well, so pack ’em up for parties, potlucks and BBQs!
To ensure you don’t get bored of this veggie wonderland, change up your ingredients often, try different dressings and toppings, add fruit for a little sweetness and, sometimes, you can even leave out the lettuce!
This Raw Veggie Chopped Salad is one of my new favorites and there’s not a leaf of lettuce in sight!
This salad has it all: crunch from the raw broccoli and peppers, freshness from the herbs, a spicy bite from the radishes, cucumbers and grapes that are clean and crisp, seeds that are filling and hearty and a lemony oil-free dressing to bring it all together.
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes
The key to this incredibly healthy salad is super fresh ingredients. Fresh herbs are key! Please don’t make this with dried herbs, I promise it won’t be the same.
This is the perfect salad for summer when peppers, cucumbers and radishes are growing plentiful in gardens and can be found in every farmers market.
The chopped broccoli, sunflower seeds and hemp seeds add real staying power to fill you up without filling you out!
And, I love the addition of red seedless grapes for a little sweetness.
You don’t need a lot of dressing for this colorful raw salad because the fresh herbs bring a ton of flavor. But, the dressing is quite strong in the flavor in order to compete with all the hearty vegetables. So, don’t be alarmed if you try the dressing on it’s own and think it’s a bit overpowering. Once mixed with all the other ingredients, it will be perfect!
Substitutions: Feel free to leave out any veggies you don’t like and double up on the ones you do. Other yummy raw options would be cauliflower florets, shredded carrots, or chopped zucchini. Feel free to throw in some nuts, like walnuts or almonds instead of, or in addition to, the seeds.
How to make the recipe
Aside from a bit of chopping, this chopped salad recipe is really easy to make.
In a large mixing bowl, place the chopped broccoli (1), chopped orange and yellow bell peppers (2), chopped cucumbers (3), and sliced radishes (4).
Add the halved red grapes (5), chopped fresh parsley and fresh dill (6), and sunflower seeds and hemp seeds (7). Mix all the ingredients well (8).
Whisk the dressing ingredients in a small jar or bowl (9). Pour the dressing over the salad (10) and mix well to combine.
You can serve it right away, but it’s better if you prep it ahead of time and let the flavors mingle for an hour or two in the fridge. You can even make it a day or two in advance.
Storage
This veggie chopped salad will keep well for 3 to 4 days in an air-tight container in the fridge.
Do not freeze this salad.
Pro tips for success
~ Chop all the veggies about the same size.
~ Use fresh herbs, not dried!
~ Switch it up!
- Add diced avocado right before serving.
- Toss it with chopped romaine or spinach.
- Add olives or vegan feta.
- Toss it with cooked and cooled quinoa.
- Add chickpeas or white beans.
~ Make this salad ahead of time and let it mingle with the dressing for at least an hour or two. I like to toss the salad once or twice during this time so the dressing completely covers all the veggies. The veggies will start to soak up the dressing and soften just a bit, while still maintaining their crunch.
~ Double it up to serve a crowd.
~ This Raw Veggie Chopped Salad is vegan, gluten free, nut free, and oil free!
FAQs
Salads do not have to have lettuce or leafy greens of any kinds. We love eating veggie and fruit salads, grain salads, bean salads, and pasta salads.
A chopped salad contains ingredients that have all been chopped into similar size pieces and mixed with a dressing. This makes for a more even flavor and texture distribution.
With some vegetables, cooking them may destroy or reduce some of the nutrients, particularly water soluble vitamins. [source] However, the difference is small and consuming vegetables, no matter raw or cooked, is good for your health.
This is a hot topic that is always up for debate. As I always say, “A conventional apple is a better choice than an organic potato chip.” Increasing your fruit and vegetable consumption is a good thing regardless of whether they are organic or not.
Having said that, if you can afford to buy organic varieties of the “Dirty Dozen,” which are the most heavily sprayed crops with pesticides, I recommend that you do.
More vegan salads with no lettuce
- Sugar Snap Pea Salad
- Cucumber Chickpea Salad
- Healthy Broccoli Salad
- Summer Pasta Salad
- Raw Corn Radish Salad
- Hearts of Palm Salad
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment below with your feedback.
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For even more easy family recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook!
Raw Veggie Chopped Salad
Ingredients
Chopped Raw Veggie Salad
- 1 orange bell pepper chopped small (about 1 cup)
- 1 yellow bell pepper chopped small (about 1 cup)
- 5-8 radishes cut in half and sliced thin (about ¾ cup)
- 1 small head of broccoli chopped small (about 2 cups)
- 1 seedless cucumber chopped small (about 2 cups)
- 1 cup halved red seedless grapes
- 2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- ¼ cup raw shelled sunflower seeds
- ⅛ cup raw hemp hearts
Oil-free Dressing
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ⅛ teaspoon pepper or to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all the salad ingredients and mix well.
- Whisk all the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- Pour the dressing over the chopped veggies and toss well to coat.
- Cover and place in the fridge for an hour or two, tossing the salad once or twice during that time to coat evenly.
Notes
- Add diced avocado right before serving.
- Toss it with chopped romaine or spinach.
- Add olives or vegan feta.
- Toss it with cooked and cooled quinoa.
- Add chickpeas or white beans.
Storage Keep leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Paul says
Looks really tasty but I would use an oil based dressing. We need fat to absorb the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.
Jenn Sebestyen says
There are healthy fats from the seeds in the salad. But, feel free to use some oil if you wish.
BJ says
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I first made it for a Ladies Play Date on a hot Arizona day by the pool. It was s such a refreshing addition to out evening meal!! Definitely a HIT!!!
Jenn Sebestyen says
Wonderful! I’m so glad you love it. Thank you!
Kristine says
The base dressing is perfect for so many different vegetables. It is wonderful, easy, and tasty!
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Kristine! So happy you loved it!
Karen says
This is such a refreshing and replenishing salad! I didn’t add the hemp or sunflower seeds, and I didn’t have parsley, but it came out fresh and delicious! Thank you for the unique recipe!
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Karen! So happy you loved it. Happy Thanksgiving!
Karissa says
Do you know the nutritional facts on the salad?
Jenn S. says
No, I don’t Karissa. There are a number of free online sources for nutritional facts. You can plug the ingredient list into one of them if you are interested.
Kate says
Weird combination works great. Everyone loved it!
Bonus – cilantro-free!
Jenn S. says
I’m so happy to hear everyone enjoyed it! Not a cilantro lover, huh? I used to hate it, but now I love it! Funny how tastes change!
Becky says
This salad looks fabulous, Jenn!
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Becky! It is my fave! Always my go-to salad for potlucks and such.
Becky says
This looks like my kind of salad!
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Becky! It’s one of my faves!! And the veggies stay crispy for days if there are leftovers!
Aimee / Wallflower Kitchen says
What a beautiful, colourful salad!
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Aimee! It’s one of our favorites!
Shalee says
How long would this last in the fridge if I wanted to do it as apart of my meal prep for my lunch for the week?
Jenn S. says
Hi, Shalee. It should last 2-3 days. It holds up really well.
Melissa says
I made this salad for a family dinner and it was great. I omitted the radishes due to family request 🙁 and the hemp because I couldn’t find them at the big grocery store I went to. Regardless, this was so tasty and still crunchy and delicious the next day for lunch.
I will make it again for sure!
Jenn S. says
I’m so glad everyone liked it Melissa! Thank you for sharing that with me! I love that it stays crunchy for a few days. You can’t keep lettuce salads like that!
Sophia @veggies dont bite says
Love veggie salads! Especially when it’s hot I often crave nice fresh crisp veggies. YUM!
Jenn S. says
I agree, Sophia! Sometimes it’s just too hot to turn on the oven or stove in the summer! And, this gives me a great excuse to peruse the farmers markets for hours…my favorite Saturday morning activity!
winwinfood says
Yum! Love the addition of grapes Jenn! And I need to try that oil-free dressing, I’ve been looking for a good one for ages 🙂
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Lucie! The grapes are so good in this!
Natalie says
Wow this is so beautiful! The grapes are such an unexpected ingredient, but they sound perfect in there with all that herby goodness 🙂
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Natalie! The grapes really do add a nice burst of sweetness!
Linda @ Veganosity says
This is a gorgeous salad Jenn! I love salads that are lettuce free, such a nice change of pace. Pinned!
Jenn S. says
Thanks so much, Linda! Sometimes I like vegetables other than leafy greens to be the star of my salads!