Spinach Salad with Bacon

Last night as I watched my kids play with each other . . . . aggressively, I thought of my mom. I was watching them, knowing that any second it was going to go from fun “roughhousing” (that makes me feel epically old) to actual murder, and remembering my mom yelling at us saying, “One of you is going to get hurt!” and then when we were older, “Just don’t kill each other!” and then when we were even older, “Just don’t break my house!”

The struggle of motherhood is sometimes a little too real.

For the record, our evening did in fact end in tears, and once again it was proven that mothers know all and see all.

Another time my mom knew all was in the making of this amazing spinach salad. This is a family favorite recipe that I grew up on. It was at all of our big family functions and became so synonymous with family holidays that after my mom passed away and I found this recipe in her cookbook, my sister-in-law was overjoyed! She’d grown to love it too.

My mom’s handwritten recipe is below. You can tell it’s been well-loved. I just love her handwriting.

Spinach Salad Ingredients

If you aren’t a big fan of spinach, I beg you to give this spinach bacon salad a go. The other ingredients that you add to the fresh spinach combine perfectly. Then you top it with the most amazing spinach salad dressing that pulls it all together. My family always requests this at holidays and birthdays!

To make it taste perfect top it with these ingredients:

• Hard boiled eggs: Such a yummy addition to this salad. They can be made on the stovetop or, my favorite way to make them, in the Instant Pot!
• Water chestnuts: Add a great crunch to the salad.
• Bean sprouts (trust me)
• Bacon: I like to dice it with kitchen shears before cooking it, but you can also cook it in the air fryer or bake it in the oven. I share more on this below.
• Homemade croutons: If you don’t feel like making them, buy some, but these are super easy to make and last for weeks!
• Spinach salad dressing: Read more on what makes this dressing perfect for spinach salad below.

How to Make a Spinach Salad with Bacon

Here is a brief overview of how this recipe for spinach salad comes together. For the full recipe including all measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Make the dressing. Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.
• Prepare the salad ingredients. Cook and chop the bacon, make the hard boiled eggs, and make the croutons.
• Put the salad together. Toss all of the salad ingredients together in a large salad bowl. Add a small amount of dressing, or set it to the side for each person to add their own. Enjoy!

Spinach Salad Dressing

The dressing for this salad is pretty crucial. It is made up of all the right flavor combinations to be the best spinach salad dressing! Simple ingredients combine right in your blender for a quick and flavorful dressing. Seriously, this salad would not be what it is without this dressing.

As noted in the recipe below, grating an onion can be annoying. I would suggest dicing it, throwing it in a blender to cut it more finely, adding all the rest of the ingredients for the dressing, and then blending to combine. You can find the full recipe for the dressing including all measurements at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.

Spinach Salad Dressing

Keep this recipe on hand because you’ll want it on your salads all the time!

view recipe

Cooking Bacon

Like I mentioned above, there are a few different ways to cook bacon. If you want to make it on the stovetop, I recommend dicing it into small pieces before cooking. Just as it begins to crisp, remove it from the pan with a slotted spoon and put it on a paper towel-lined plate.

You can also cook it in the air fryer or bake it in the oven to avoid the grease splatter. It comes out perfectly crisp every time without the mess. If you go one of these routes, I recommend cooking it in strips and then dicing it before adding it to the salad.