This Green Goddess Salad recipe is an easy take on the viral TikTok salad! Featuring lots of leafy greens and fresh veggies, it’s quick to prepare, vibrant, refreshing, and healthy. Enjoy it on its own, or serve it as a side dish with all your favorite main courses.
Table of Contents
- What Is Green Goddess Salad?
- Why Is It Called Green Goddess Salad?
- The Greatest Green Goddess Salad Recipe You’ll Ever Taste
- The Components of This Viral Green Goddess Salad
- Flavor Variations
- Blend, Assemble, Eat! How to Make the Best Green Goddess Salad Recipe
- Serving Suggestions
- Common Questions About This Viral Green Goddess Salad Recipe
- More Crowd-Pleasing Salad Recipes
- Viral Green Goddess Salad Recipe Recipe
What Is Green Goddess Salad?
A green goddess salad is a salad that features a blend of fresh greens, green vegetables, and herbs tossed with a creamy, flavorful dressing widely known as Green Goddess dressing.
The exact ingredients in a green goddess salad recipe can vary, but it almost always contains a variety of greens like lettuce, spinach, and watercress with extra green ingredients such as fresh herbs, cucumber, avocado, green onions, and peas. Then, everything is smothered and tossed with the dressing so you get creamy bites of refreshing goodness in each forkful!
Why Is It Called Green Goddess Salad?
Contrary to popular opinion, neither the green goddess salad nor its corresponding green goddess dressing is named for its green hue. Instead, green goddess dressing is named after a 1920s play called The Green Goddess.
It is said that the star of the play, George Arliss, was staying in The Palace Hotel while the play was in San Francisco, and the chef created and named the infamous dressing for Arliss. There are some differing opinions as to exactly how the dressing was created, but it is widely agreed that it was for Arliss by the Palace Hotel’s chef.
And the rest is history!
The Greatest Green Goddess Salad Recipe You’ll Ever Taste
As mentioned, there are endless versions of the classic green goddess salad recipe. For our version, we drew inspiration from the viral green goddess salad, and made it super easy!
As a result, this salad is:
- Made with simple, fresh ingredients.
- Ready in minutes.
- Full of crisp textures and refreshing, savory flavor.
- Great to whip up for a crowd.
The Components of This Viral Green Goddess Salad
One of the most common questions we get is, “What’s in green goddess dressing?” We’ll show you everything you need to make the infamous flavor of everyone’s favorite dressing and what to pair it with for the perfect green goddess salad!
For the Green Goddess Dressing
- Pine Nuts – This superfood is a great way to incorporate key vitamins and minerals into this recipe. They have a mild nutty flavor, and the oil content helps create the creamy texture of this salad dressing.
- Fresh Basil – We love to use fresh basil in this green goddess dressing, not only for the color but for the refreshing flavor it adds as well.
- Aromatics – Shallots, green onions, and garlic cloves combine to create a savory, tangy, sweet taste with a hint of tang along with a satisfying crunch for a bold, refreshing salad you’ll love! For even more flavor, try roasting the garlic for extra depth.
- Jalapeño – If you’re a fan of spice, you are going to love the jalapeño in this dressing. It gives a slight warmth without overpowering the rest of the flavors. You can always remove the jalapeño if you are sensitive to spice.
- Seasoned Rice Wine Vinegar – This adds a touch of sweetness that pairs well with the fresh ingredients and the heaviness of the fats. Regular white wine vinegar can also be used, your dressing just won’t be as sweet.
- Lime Juice – To make this dressing bright and refreshing, we find that lime juice adds the perfect amount of acidity! Freshly squeezed lime juice is best, but bottled varieties work, too.
- Oil – We use plain olive oil to create a robust taste and combine the ingredients, but feel free to use any kind of olive oil or avocado oil if preferred!
- Salt – Adjust the amount included to suit your tastes.
- Parmesan Cheese – Shredded parm is a great addition to the salad dressing. Its sharp and cheesy flavor helps to balance out the natural acidity. For the best taste and texture, use a block of Parmesan cheese, and grate it yourself. Feta would also taste great!
For the salad
- Leafy Lettuce – We use Romaine lettuce, but any greens like butter lettuce or spinach would taste great.
- Cucumbers – Use Persian cucumbers or English cucumbers for a sweeter flavor and a crisp texture with skin that is easy to chew.
- Green Onions (Scallions) – Use both the white and green parts.
Flavor Variations
As mentioned, there are endless versions of green goddess salad recipes. So, feel free to experiment and create your own!
Some of our favorite ways to switch things up include:
- Adding Nutritional Yeast. Include nutritional yeast in the dressing for a boost of nutrients and a touch of extra nutty, cheesy flavor.
- Including Protein. Transform this side dish into a complete meal with chicken, shrimp, or beef.
- Adding Extra Crunch. Sprinkle nuts and seeds like walnuts, pecans, almonds, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds over the salad for a boost of healthy fats and a satisfying crunch.
Blend, Assemble, Eat! How to Make the Best Green Goddess Salad Recipe
This salad comes together with just a couple of steps and a few minutes!
- Make the Dressing. To begin, add all the ingredients to the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until smooth, scraping down the edges as needed.
- Prepare the Salad. Next, use a sharp knife or a vegetable chopper to cube the cucumbers. Slice the scallions into thin cylinders. Add the chopped lettuce to a bowl along with the cucumbers and scallions.
- Toss. Pour the dressing over the greens, toss to combine and coat all of the veggies, and enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
As mentioned, you can easily bulk this recipe up with the addition of your favorite protein, transforming it into a complete meal. Or, serve it as an appetizer or side with main courses like:
- Spicy Cilantro Lime Chicken
- Middle Eastern Crock Pot Beef Stew
- Easy Beef Kofta
- Sheet Pan Salmon and Veggies
And don’t forget to add a side of garlic caprese bread or homemade garlic bread with spinach and artichokes!
Common Questions About This Viral Green Goddess Salad Recipe
This salad is a super healthy recipe in our book! Of course, consult your doctor with any specific concerns. However, generally speaking, this salad is made with an abundance of healthy fats, vitamins, nutrients, and fiber. As a result, it’s loaded with health benefits for a low-carb side dish you can feel good about.
This viral green goddess salad is best enjoyed right away. However, if you have leftovers, they store them in separate airtight containers in the fridge. They’ll stay fresh for up to three to four days. Then, all you have to do is assemble the ingredients, and eat!
Transferred to a sealable jar or airtight container, the green goddess dressing will stay fresh in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Yes, just remove the parmesan cheese, or swap it with a dairy-free parmesan or a spoonful of nutritional yeast.
More Crowd-Pleasing Salad Recipes
If you enjoy this easy take on the viral green goddess salad recipe, you won’t want to miss out on more of our favorite salads below!
- Mediterranean Chickpea Salad Recipe (Greek Cowboy Caviar)
- Cucumber Thai Salad
- Southwest Salad with Creamy Chipotle Dressing
- The Best Greek Salad
Viral Green Goddess Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Green Goddess Dressing:
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- 1/2 cup fresh basil
- 1 small shallot
- 1/2 jalapeño seeded for less spice
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 Tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons green onion chopped
- 2 squeezed limes
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt more or less to taste
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese freshly grated
For the Salad:
- 1 head leafy lettuce chopped into strips
- 2 large cucumbers diced
- 6 green onions chopped
Instructions
- Place the pine nuts, fresh basil, shallot, jalapeño, garlic, and chopped green onions in the bowl of a food processor. Add the lime juice followed by the olive oil and vinegar. Sprinkle in the salt and Parmesan cheese.1/4 cup pine nuts, 1/2 cup fresh basil, 1 small shallot, 1/2 jalapeño, 2 garlic cloves, 2 Tablespoons green onion, 2 squeezed limes, 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 Tablespoons seasoned rice wine vinegar or white wine vinegar
- Pulse until the mixture is smooth and well combined, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.
- Add the chopped lettuce to a large mixing bowl followed by the cucumbers and green onions.1 head leafy lettuce, 2 large cucumbers, 6 green onions
- Pour the dressing on top, and gently toss to combine and coat everything with the dressing.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Good but a bit garlicky for me!
Could you make the dressing the day before you serve it?
Looks great!
Absolutely! We found that the dressing is even better when made ahead! Let us know how it turns out!
I just made this and it was INCREDIBLE!
So glad you liked it!
Xo,
Alia & Radwa
Excellent and quick salad!