Savor the flavors of summer with this strawberry spinach salad recipe with poppyseed dressing, almonds, avocado, red onion, and coconut bacon. This salad makes a great side dish for everything from brunch to dinner.
Post originally published June 2019; updated April 2024.
This strawberry spinach salad with poppyseed dressing is the quintessential salad for spring and summer! As soon as those juicy strawberries made their appearance at the farmer’s market, we’ve been buying at least 2 quarts a week. (They don’t last long with our toddler around.)
This spinach and strawberry salad is the perfect salad for strawberry season. I’m not a fan of most poppyseed dressings from grocery stores because they are often much too sweet. That’s why I’m obsessed with my homemade lemon poppyseed dressing for this recipe. It’s seriously the best dressing for strawberry spinach salad! Not too sweet and the lemon adds zippy flavor that complements the sweet strawberries.
I love serving this delicious salad with brunch for Easter or Mother’s Day, but it’s also simple enough to toss together for lunch for the week. Speaking of brunch, check out my 30+ vegan brunch recipe roundup for plenty of inspiration.
Ingredients for Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Spinach: fresh spinach that is pre-washed makes this salad so easy to put together. I prefer the fresh baby spinach variety since the leaves are smaller and more bite-sized. If you’d prefer different leafy greens, try another tender leaf variety like arugula.
- Avocado: one key to a good salad is contrasting textures – avocado adds creaminess to this vegan salad.
- Red Onion: we love the bite of some red onion in this salad, but if you want something that isn’t as strong – substitute with shallot or green onions. You can also remove some of the strength of the red onion by soaking it in ice cold water for 10 minutes after slicing.
- Ripe Strawberries: for the best flavor, use ripe fresh strawberries that are fragrant and evenly red in color with little to no white at the top of the berry.
- Almonds: we like to add some chopped almonds to this salad for extra crunch. If you want to save yourself some chopping, buy pre-sliced almonds for this fresh salad. Don’t have almonds on hand? It’s great with pistachios, sunflower seeds, and pecans too or even candied pecans if you can find them.
- Lemon Poppyseed Dressing: The lemon poppyseed dressing comes together quick with just some lemon juice and zest, extra-virgin olive oil, poppy seeds, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, salt, and pepper. I love the lemony punch from the lemon zest in this tangy poppy seed dressing. I like to use a microplane to zest the lemon.
Variations and Substitutions
- Use a different dressing: if you don’t like poppyseed dressing or you want to try something a little different – this spinach and strawberry salad is also delicious when served with your favorite store-bought or homemade balsamic dressing. This homemade strawberry balsamic dressing is also a great option for this salad.
- Add a protein: if you want to make this salad into a meal, try adding some plant-based protein liked canned chickpeas, cooked lentils, edamame, or tofu.
- Add cheese: we love serving this with some of our favorite plant-based vegan feta. If you are serving this one to vegetarians, you could add some crumbled goat cheese or a salty feta cheese.
How to Make Spinach Strawberry Salad With Poppyseed Dressing
Make the Coconut Bacon (if using): we love the smoky flavor that this easy coconut bacon adds – plus, it’s super simple to make! To make it, you’ll toss the coconut flakes in seasoning, spread into a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet, and bake until crispy. (Be sure to check out the linked post for details!)
Make the Dressing: add all of the poppyseed salad dressing ingredients to a bowl and whisk well to combine or add to a mason jar and shake to mix.
Chop Your Salad Components: cut up the strawberries, almonds, creamy avocado, and onion. To take the bite out of the red onion, soak the sliced onion in a bowl of ice water for 5-10 minutes while you chop the other ingredients.
Assemble: add the spinach to a large salad bowl and top with the strawberries, avocado, onion, almonds, coconut bacon, and dressing.
Tips for Making this Easy Spinach Salad
- You’ll want to use an avocado that is still just a little bit firm so that it holds together better in this healthy salad when sliced. The avocado will brown after slicing, so add it to this salad right before serving.
- Add the dressing right before serving! Once the dressing is added, the spinach starts to wilt over time, so it is best to add the tangy dressing right before you eat.
- You’ll have leftover coconut bacon – but it is so good, you’ll want to use it on all your salads from now on! We also like to use it on these vegan breakfast tacos, vegan nachos, or this vegan broccoli cheddar soup.
What to Serve with Strawberry Spinach Poppyseed Salad
Since this delicious strawberry spinach salad doesn’t have much protein on it’s own, you’ll want to serve it alongside a protein and some carbs to make it a meal. Since it’s the start of summer, we’ve been firing up the grill so I will sometimes have this alongside of a veggie burger or veggie sausage and roasted potato or grilled corn.
Storage and Make Ahead
Make Ahead: You can chop the strawberries and prep the dressing up to 2-3 days in advance and store in an airtight container in the fridge until you are ready to use. You can also make the coconut bacon up to a week in advance and store in an airtight container or mason jar in the pantry until ready to use.
Fridge: the assembled salad is best when enjoyed the same day you make it. If possible, store the dressing and salad in separate containers. However, you can store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 1 day in the fridge.
More Vegan Salad Recipes
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Spinach Strawberry Salad with Poppyseed Dressing
Ingredients
Lemon Poppyseed Dressing:
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Zest from 1 lemon
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon poppyseeds
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Salad:
- 8 cups fresh spinach
- 2 cups sliced strawberries
- 1 avocado thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup chopped almonds
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/3 cup coconut bacon
Instructions
For the Dressing:
- Add all of the dressing ingredients to a jar. Screw lid onto jar tightly and shake vigorously to mix.
For the Salad:
- Add spinach, strawberries, almonds, onion, and bacon to a large salad bowl. Drizzle with dressing and toss to coat. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- This salad makes 3 large meal sized salads or 4 smaller side salads.
- You’re going to love my coconut bacon recipe.
- Instead of the lemon poppyseed dressing, you could also use this strawberry balsamic dressing on this salad.
Nutrition
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