Party Time Chopped Vegetable Salad

Do salads have a vibe? I think so. Some are elegant and perfect for the holidays or a dinner party. Others put out the casual, “I’m here for lunch” sort of mood.

So what’s the vibe of a chopped vegetable salad? Party, party, party!

Chopped Vegetable Salad is a classic. Everyone has their own version depending on their favorite flavors, heritage, and time of year. A chopped vegetable salad is meant to be seen, shared, and talked about; hence its party vibes!

In this Party Time Chopped Vegetable Salad, I combine juicy, tangy tomatoes with crunchy carrots and sweet corn along with red onions and creamy peas. Layered on top of a bed of crunchy romaine and iceberg lettuce and served up with a Creamy Herb Ranch. This salad is a party-time crowd pleaser.

How to Prepare Chopped Vegetable Salad

The star of the Chopped Vegetable Salad is the veggies themselves, which are layered on top of the cool and crunchy iceberg and romaine lettuces. The idea is to chop the vegetables into similar sizes so that each bite can combine a little bit of everything.

First things first, start by thinly slicing the romaine and iceberg lettuce.

For the romaine, quarter each head of lettuce lengthwise, then create thin, ½-inch slices. For the iceberg, remove the stem of the head of lettuce, then quarter it. Slice thin, ½-inch slices and combine with the romaine in a large serving bowl.

Next, slice the corn off the cob.

There are a lot of tricks and tips out there such as using a small bowl upside down inside a tray to catch the corn kernels. After trying all of these ideas and ending up with more corn on my kitchen floor than in my dish, I’ve found the easiest and most productive method to remove fresh corn from the cob is to run a sharp knife lengthwise down each side of the cob of corn, effectively turning the cob into a rectangle.

The perfect tomato for a chopped vegetable salad is the cherry or grape variety. They hold up well when mixed into the salad and have a perfectly sweet and tangy bite. Chop each tomato into quarters creating ½-inch pieces.

Regardless of your affection for red onion, nobody wants to bite into a large piece of it in their salad. So, for the red onion, a fine dice is best!

Slice the onion in half, leaving the root intact to hold the onion together. Next run your knife horizontally through the cut end, starting at the bottom and working your way to the top until you just reach the root, but not going through. Now go the opposite direction (vertically) to create a ¼-inch crosshatch pattern. Once the crosshatch pattern is created, slice horizontally over the entire to create the fine dice.

The peas couldn’t be more simple! I use frozen peas straight from the bag and rinsed under a bit of cool water for 30 seconds to start the thawing process. That’s the best kind of “chopping” if you ask me.

I love the sweetness of carrots and in a chopped vegetable salad, I find that grating the carrots resembles the size and texture of the thinly sliced lettuces, which helps the salad come together in a single bite.

Wash, scrub and peel the carrots then grate them over the largest side of a box grater until there is about ½ inch left at the end.

Assemble the Chopped Vegetable Salad

To assemble the salad, even the lettuce mixture out into a flat layer in the serving bowl. This creates a resting place for the vegetables.

Start by adding one-half the quantity of each chopped vegetable around the bowl, creating a loose triangle shape as you go. You’ll do this process twice around the bowl, creating ten sections of vegetables, which will create a beautiful pinwheel-esq pattern.

Prepare the Creamy Herb Ranch

Nothing goes better with a Chopped Vegetable Salad than a Creamy Herb Ranch salad dressing. It perfectly pulls all the vegetables and lettuces together in a fork full of goodness as you enjoy the salad.

Creamy Herb Ranch is a very forgiving, made to be an imperfect sort of salad dressing. If you don’t have the exact herbs, you and substitute as needed, or even take some help from the grocery store with these pre-chopped options.

To make the Creamy Herb Ranch, combine the sour cream (lactose-free option), mayonnaise, half and half (plant-based option), herbs, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper into a medium-sized mixing bowl and combine with a whisk until it’s very smooth.

That’s it!

Set it aside for at least two hours before serving, but 8+ hours is best.

Serve the salad dressing on the side of the chopped vegetable salad, letting everyone add however much they’d like based on personal preference.

Between the crunchy, cool textures, the tangy, sweet vegetables, and the herby notes of the ranch dressing, Party Time Chopped Vegetable Salad will be your next party go-to dish! It’s beautiful, has something for everyone, and will surely be the talk of a party buffet table.