This is a recipe for Crunchy Spinach Salad with Bacon. Beautiful leaves of fresh spinach are topped with water chestnuts, bean sprouts, hard boiled eggs and onion. Then drizzled with the best dressing for spinach salad. Let’s take a look.
It was 9:00 a.m. on the Monday after the long Thanksgiving weekend that I found myself at Whole Foods salad bar, filling one of their cardboard containers with greens, veggies and an array of healthy toppings. For breakfast!
I’m feeling that same craving for greens following this Christmas’ splurge. Indulgent Holiday eating, in all of its carb filled glory, always finds me longing for a good healthy salad. Call if what you will, clean eating, detox … I call it sanity.
Oh sure, many times over the years, I’ve consciously made the decision to include a big healthy salad on my holiday buffet. One year after proudly announcing “I’m not going to eat all of that crap,” I included a big healthy green salad amidst the array of chicken wings and Queso dip for a Super Bowl party. No one ate it – not even me.
This year’s Christmas menu grocery list included items for this spinach salad with bacon. I wasn’t so sure it would be a finalist for my holiday dinner, but I knew I’d have the ingredients on hand when that “greens” craving hit. And it would keep me away from the Whole Foods salad $$$ bar.
If you’re a regular reader here, you’ve seen me describe a few recipes over the past few months as “I’ve had this recipe forever.” I’ve been going through my database and enjoying recipes that I collected some 20 to 30 years ago. This is one of those. Plus I was poking around for spinach salad ideas. My King Soopers has had some beautiful little bunches of spinach lately.
Best Dressing for Spinach Salad
Mature spinach from the produce department has a stronger flavor than the baby spinach you find in the clamshells in the pre-packaged section at the grocery store. Mature spinach hold up better to a thick deep flavored dressing. You’ll find most spinach salad recipes sprinkled with salty bacon. A lovely compliment to this combination is a sweet and tangy dressing.
This recipe mimics a well flavored Russian style dressing. With brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup and Worcestershire sauce, it’s a lively addition to the ingredients in this recipe.
Recipe for Crunchy Spinach Salad With Bacon
I hope you give this Spinach Salad with Bacon a try, and if you do, please come back and give the recipe a star rating and please leave a comment about your experience with the recipe.
And if you have a favorite spinach salad recipe, please let me know, I’d love to give it a try. I’m always looking for spinach salad ideas.
More Spinach Salad Ideas:
- Spinach White Bean Bacon Salad with Maple Syrup Vinaigrette
- The Only Strawberry Spinach Salad Recipe You’ll Ever Need
- Mediterranean Spinach Salad with Garbanzos and Sumac Lemon Vinaigrette, from Kalyn’s Kitchen
And if you’re salad fans like us, don’t miss my post on 9 Secrets To A Remarkable Tossed Salad. A step by step guide on how to make the best tossed salad ever.
Crunchy Spinach Salad with Bacon
Ingredients
- 2 quarts fresh torn spinach
- 1 can 16 ounces bean sprouts
- 1 can 8 ounces sliced water chestnuts, drained
- 4 hard-boiled large eggs chopped
- 6 bacon strips cooked and crumbled
- 1 small onion thinly sliced
- DRESSING:
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 1/3 cup vinegar
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine spinach, bean sprouts, water chestnuts, eggs, bacon and onion. In a bottle or jar, combine all dressing ingredients. Cover and shake well to mix. Just before serving, pour dressing over salad and toss.
