This classic Seven Layer Salad is a crowd-pleaser with sun-ripened tomatoes, sweet peas, hard-boiled eggs, crisp bacon, and sharp cheddar cheese. Make the five-ingredient salad dressing in just a few minutes and seal all those wonderful flavors together.
Classic Seven Layer Salad
Impress your family and friends with this delicious and visually stunning salad. This easy salad is not only delicious but also packed with nutritious ingredients that everyone will love. We love to serve this tasty salad at potlucks, family gatherings, and parties. People love it, and it is always one of the first dishes gone. It is best prepared at least 4 hours before your event, covered with wrap, and refrigerated, but hold off on adding the final ingredients until right before you serve. If you like this salad, try Nicoise salad, deviled egg pasta salad, layered taco salad, and avocado salad.
What you’ll need
You need mayonnaise, sour cream, honey, kosher salt, and fresh ground black pepper for the salad dressing.
For the seven layer salad, you need iceberg or romaine lettuce, red onion, tomatoes, frozen peas, eggs, sharp cheddar, and bacon.
How to Make a Seven Layer Salad
Start by mixing your dressing. Mix the mayo, sour cream, honey, salt, and pepper. In a large clear bowl or trifle bowl, layer the chopped lettuce (reserving about 2 cups), followed by the red onions, tomatoes, and green peas. Now, position the sliced eggs on their sides while using any extra eggs and the reserved lettuce to hold them in position and finish filling the bowl. Then, spread the dressing over the top and smooth it to seal. Now cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours up to overnight.
Before serving, sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese, crisp bacon, and a few more tomatoes. This salad is very easy to dig into and toss as you go. Once it is about 1/2 consumed, I toss together what is left in the bowl.
Beth’s Recipe Tips
- This is a large salad. It serves at least 12 people, so plan accordingly. Leftovers are delicious, and the salad holds up reasonably well for about 48 hours.
- Spread the dressing to seal the salad. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate from 2 hours up to overnight.
- Feel free to swap out any ingredient you are not fond of or add layers for more texture and taste. Try bite-size pieces of broccoli or cauliflower, sliced black olives, diced red bell pepper, chopped celery, sugar snap peas, sunflower seeds, edamame, or green onions.
- Don’t add the bacon, shredded cheddar, or scallions until it is time to serve.
- Bring a large pot of water to boil with a steamer basket for perfectly peeled eggs. Carefully add the eggs and steam large eggs for 15 minutes. Plunge into ice-cold water.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can make this salad up to 24 hours in advance. The salad should be made at least 4 hours in advance for the flavors to meld. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the fridge.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. They may not be as attractive as the day you served them, but they will still taste delicious.
More Salad Recipes
Seven Layer Salad Recipe
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1 1/4 cups mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
Salad
- 1 large head iceberg lettuce or romaine lettuce chopped
- 1/3 cup chopped red onion
- 2 1/2 cups chopped tomatoes
- 2 cups frozen peas thawed
- 6 hard-boiled eggs peeled and sliced
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
- 6 slices crispy cooked bacon. chopped
Instructions
- Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, honey, salt, and black pepper.
- In a large clear bowl or trifle dish, layer the iceberg lettuce (reserving about 2 cups), followed by the red onions, tomatoes, and green peas. Using the sliced eggs, position them on their sides while using any extra eggs and the reserved lettuce to hold them in position and finish filling the bowl.
- Spread the dressing over the top and smooth it to seal. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours up to overnight.
- Right before serving, garnish with shredded cheese, bacon, and, if desired, a few tomato wedges.
Notes
- This is a large salad. It serves at least 12 people, so plan accordingly. Leftovers are delicious, and the salad holds up fairly well for about 48 hours.
- Spread the dressing to seal the salad. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate from 2 hours up to overnight.
- Feel free to swap out any ingredient you are not fond of or add layers for more texture and taste. Try bite-size pieces of broccoli or cauliflower, sliced black olives, diced red bell pepper, chopped celery, sugar snap peas, sunflower seeds, edamame, or green onions.
- Don’t add the bacon, shredded cheddar, or scallions until it is time to serve.
- Bring a large pot of water to boil with a steamer basket for perfectly peeled eggs. Carefully add the eggs and steam large eggs for 15 minutes. Plunge into ice-cold water.
Nutrition
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Prajakta
This salad was delicious and pretty! It is the perfect party salad. I am going to make it again for a pool party planned in a couple of weeks. Thanks for the great recipe, Beth
Beth Pierce
The pleasure is all mine. Prajakta!
Karletta
A healthy salad, and as pretty as a trifle. Definitely a crowd pleaser!
Beth Pierce
Thank you Karletta!
Gervin Khan
Oh my gosh, this dish looks so pretty and delicious. The perfect weekend dish to make for my family. Yum!
Richter
This salad was so delicious. I made it for a potluck luncheon and it went over so well. Thanks for the recipe!
Beth Pierce
You are most welcome, Richter!