If you’re looking for a healthy vegan salad to add to your line up, try this adaptable vegan cobb salad with coconut bacon. Add lots of color with a variety of veggies and toss with a homemade creamy cashew dill dressing – you’ll be making this one on repeat!
Post originally published June 2016; updated April 2024.
This colorful vegan cobb salad may become your new favorite for summer. I honestly packed this lunch for work for a couple weeks in a row – it’s just that good! This vegan take on the traditional cobb salad has a lot of the same elements like a creamy dressing, lots of protein, and bacon (well, this one has vegan bacon!).
You can easily mix and match different add-ins for this salad based on what you have on hand. I provide a few suggestions for making this vegan cobb salad your own below. Speaking of vegan salad recipes, be sure to check out my vegan Italian chopped salad and lemon kale Caesar salad.
Vegan Cobb Salad Ingredients
- Lettuce: I used a butter lettuce for this salad, but romaine lettuce is the traditional option. You can honestly swap for any leafy greens that you like – baby spinach would also be delicious.
- Chickpeas: we like to use chickpeas in place of chicken in this vegan twist on the cobb salad.
- Coconut Bacon: A delicious vegan alternative to bacon that is perfect for salads like this one. Check out my post on how to make homemade coconut bacon. If you don’t feel like making the coconut bacon, you can substitute with store-bought vegan bacon or tempeh bacon. If you just want to add some crunch, try adding sunflower seeds instead of the veggie bacon.
- Veggies (Corn, Tomato, Carrot, Cucumber, Bell Pepper): choose fresh veggies in a variety of different colors for a prettier salad. Other veggies you can try include: steamed green beans or asparagus, red onion, shredded purple cabbage, avocado, and mushrooms.
- Creamy Dill Dressing: This is the best dressing for cobb salad that is also dairy free! Soaking your cashews either overnight or for 30 minutes in boiling water softens them so they are easier to blend. I find using the blending cup vs the pitcher of my blender works better for salad dressings like this one.
Notes and Substitutions
Swap Out the Chickpeas: try a different plant-based protein instead of chickpeas on this veggie cobb salad such as: another bean (white beans and butter beans are great), vegan deli slices, vegan chicken, cubed firm tofu, vegan chick’n nuggets, or cooked soy curls.
Add Dairy-Free Cheese: if you love cheese on your cobb salad, feel free to add a vegan cheese to this one! I really like vegan cheddar shreds or vegan feta on this dairy free cobb salad recipe. Of course, if you’re cooking for vegetarians, you can use dairy cheese.
Change the Salad Dressing: if you aren’t in the mood to make the creamy dill dressing from the recipe card below, try my vegan ranch dressing (no blender required!), tahini caesar dressing, or this lemon dijon dressing if you prefer a vinaigrette.
How to Make Vegan Cobb Salad
Make the Dressing: Soak the raw cashews in water for 2 hours before making the dressing for cobb salad. (If pressed for time, soak for 10-15 minutes in boiling hot water.) Add all of the dressing ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth. Adjust water as needed to obtain desired dressing consistency.
Make the Coconut Bacon: To make the smoky coconut bacon, add coconut flakes, soy sauce, liquid smoke, smoked paprika, maple syrup, and black pepper to a bowl and toss to coat the coconut. Spread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 10-15 minutes or until crispy.
Assemble the Salads: To make the vegetarian cobb salads, divide lettuce and toppings evenly among the 4 bowls. Top with coconut bacon, dressing, fresh herbs (like dill) and serve.
Meal Prep and Storage
Meal Prep: You can meal prep all the elements of this easy vegan cobb salad recipe in advance (chop veggies, make the bacon, stir up the dressing) and store in airtight containers in the fridge. (Store the coconut bacon in the pantry.) When you’re ready to serve the salad, just combine everything in your salad serving bowl.
Leftovers: Assembled salads can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 24 hours. However, the salad can get soggy overnight once the dressing has been added – so enjoy this vegetarian cobb salad the same day as you make it if possible.
Recipe FAQs
A classic cobb salad includes chopped salad greens, tomato, bacon, chicken, hard-boiled eggs, chives, blue cheese and a red wine vinaigrette.
Yes! This healthy vegan cobb salad recipe is gluten free if you use tamari instead of soy sauce for the coconut bacon.
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Vegan Cobb Salad
Ingredients
For the Dressing:
- 1 cup raw cashew pieces soaked overnight
- 3/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons cold water Adjust to dressing consistency you prefer
- 3-4 two inch sprigs fresh dill weed 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Ground Pepper and Sea Salt to taste
For the Salad:
- 1 15 oz. can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 5 cups salad leaves
- 1/2 cucumber chopped
- 3-4 carrots chopped
- 1/2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 1/3 cup chopped red bell pepper
- 1/3 cup coconut bacon
- Kernels from 2 ears of steamed corn
Instructions
- Add all of the dressing ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth. Adjust water as needed to obtain desired dressing consistency.
- To make the salads, divide lettuce and toppings evenly among the 4 bowls. To with coconut bacon and dressing and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
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