Seven Layer Salad is a classic recipe that is perfect for potlucks and holidays. You will love how easy this delicious salad is to throw together.
Sometimes a recipe is a classic for a reason. That is totally the case with this delicious seven layer salad. It is a hearty and delicious salad that presents in the most beautiful way, but will be devoured by your guests.
How to Make a Seven Layer Salad
Here is a brief overview of how this recipe for seven layer salad comes together. For the full recipe including all ingredients and their measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
- Cook the bacon. Cook the bacon until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Once cooled, dice it and set aside.
- Cook the eggs. While the bacon is cooking, cook the eggs in a large pot of water. Read more on this below.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together the mayonnaise, Parmesan, sugar, and pepper to make the dressing.
- Put the salad together. In a large bowl or trifle dish, spread the chopped lettuce. Top with the red onion, the diced eggs, and then the thawed frozen peas.
- Add the dressing. Spread the dressing over the salad. Then top with the shredded cheddar cheese and the cooked bacon. I also added some diced green onions. Enjoy!
Cooking Bacon
Crispy bacon adds the perfect savory crunch to this salad. If you make it on the stovetop, I like to cut it into small pieces using kitchen sheers before cooking. Be sure to remove it from the pan just as it starts to crisp.
My favorite way to cook bacon is in the air fryer because there’s no splatter of grease and no bacon cooking in fat. It also works well to cook in the oven. It cooks evenly and comes out perfectly every time. If you make it this way, I recommend cooking it whole and then dicing it.
Air Fryer Bacon
Hard Boiled Eggs
While I give you steps to make hard boiled eggs on the stovetop in the recipe card, I also love making them in the Instant Pot. They come out perfect every time and making them this way is a simple hands-off process. If they are unpeeled, hard boiled eggs can last in the refrigerator for up to one week so this is a great step to do ahead of time.
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs
Chopping Lettuce
Iceberg lettuce adds such a nice crunch to this salad. Start with a clean head of iceberg lettuce. Remove the outer leaves and rinse the head to remove any dirt and debris. Pat it dry with a paper towel. Then use a sharp knife to cut the head of lettuce in half from the top to the stem. Then cut each half in half again to total four pieces of lettuce. Continue dicing each quarter into smaller pieces until you have bite-sized pieces of lettuce.
Seven Layer Salad Dressing
The dressing in a seven layer salad is a creamy and tangy topping that ties all the flavors together. It’s made with a mayonnaise base for a rich and luscious texture. A touch of sugar is added to balance the tanginess, while Parmesan cheese adds a rich flavor.
This thick dressing is generously spread over the top layer of the salad, sealing in the freshness of the ingredients below and preventing the lettuce and other vegetables from wilting.
Substitutions
When making a seven-layer salad, there’s plenty of room to customize it with vegetables that add crunch, color, and flavor. Diced cherry tomatoes, red bell peppers, celery, corn, and shredded carrots would all be delicious additions to this salad.
Avoid cucumbers in this salad, as they have a high water content and can release too much liquid, which may make the salad soggy over time.
Making Ahead and Storing
If you want to do some preparation ahead of time, I recommend preparing your ingredients but storing them separately and not putting the salad together until the day you are ready to serve it. The dressing can be made, bacon cooked and chopped, and eggs cooked up to two days in advance. The salad can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Other Great Salad Recipes
If you make this seven layer salad recipe, I’d love to hear how your family enjoyed it!
Seven Layer Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound bacon cooked and diced
- 6 large eggs hard boiled
- 1 1/4 cups mayonnaise low fat will work great
- 2/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 large head of iceberg lettuce chopped
- 1/2 red onion finely chopped
- 10 ounces frozen green peas thawed
- 8 ounces cheddar cheese
- green onions diced
Instructions
- In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Once cooled, dice it and set aside.1 pound bacon
- While the bacon is cooking, place the eggs in a large pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Then turn off the heat and cover for 10 minutes. Transfer the eggs to a bowl filled with ice water and let sit for 5 minutes. Peel and dice.6 large eggs
- Whisk together the mayonnaise, Parmesan, sugar, and pepper to make the dressing.1 1/4 cups mayonnaise, 2/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
- In a large glass bowl or trifle dish, spread the lettuce. Top with the red onion, the diced eggs, and then the peas.1 large head of iceberg lettuce, 1/2 red onion, 10 ounces frozen green peas
- Spread the dressing over the salad. Then top with the shredded cheese and the cooked bacon. Sprinkle with diced green onions for a garnish if desired.green onions, 8 ounces cheddar cheese
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