This cool & easy Classic Pea Salad is loaded with bright, fresh flavor! A long time classic made with sweet peas, cheddar cheese, bacon and onion, you’ll love the tasty additions of toasted pecans, diced bell pepper and a sprinkle of lemon zest all wrapped in a creamy dressing.
Serve it for Easter dinner, take it your next potluck or whip it up for a backyard cookout!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- This is a classic recipe, and classics are always make the best dishes because they are time tested!
- This classic recipe has a few updated twists with the additions of pecans, bell pepper and lemon zest.
- The pecans add a little toasted crunch; the bell pepper partners with the onion for a bit of bite, and the lemon zest finishes it all up with just the right amount refreshing brightness!
- Pair that with the fresh flavor pops of the raw sweet peas, and you have a garden-style salad that even picky eaters will devour!
- And did I mention cheese cubes? Everybody’s favorite!
What To Serve with Classic Pea Salad
This salad is so fresh and bright, making it a perfect pair for all your Easter favorites. But it’s also a star at potlucks, cookouts and Sunday dinners. Here are a few of our favorite main dishes to serve it with.
- Pineapple Mustard Glazed Ham
- Crispy Southern Fried Chicken
- Crispy Ranch Chicken Tenders
- Juicy Lucy Broiler Burgers
- Cherry Cola BBQ Pulled Pork
- Crock Pot BBQ Boneless Chicken Thighs
Recipe Ingredients & Overview
I’ll walk through an overview of ingredients & steps in these next sections along with helpful tips!
Look for specifics at the end of the post in the recipe card.
- frozen green sweet peas
- cheddar cheese
- thick sliced bacon
- red onion
- green bell pepper
- toasted pecan pieces
- lemon zest
- real mayonnaise
- sour cream
- red wine vinegar
- sugar
- salt & pepper
Recipe Substitutions: Replace sour cream with Greek yogurt, if desired.
This is a wonderful recipe for leftover ham! Substitute cubed ham for chopped bacon.
How To Make Green Pea Salad
Make the Dressing. In a large measuring cup, whisk together mayo, sour cream, vinegar, sugar, salt & pepper. Refrigerate while prepping the rest of the salad.
Prep the Ingredients. Cook bacon until crisp. Toast pecans. Chop and dice all the ingredients.
Dress & Toss. Add bacon, pecans, peas, onion, bell pepper and cheese to a large bowl. Pour all of the dressing over the top. Use a spatula to gently fold ingredients together. Top with lemon zest and serve!
To make sure your pea salad is successful from the kitchen to the table, here are a few my of serving secrets that guarantee your dish is as beautiful as it is tasty.
- Keep back a few peas, pieces of bacon and pecans to add to the top of your salad after it’s dressed. This is the key to making sure any dressed salad looks light & fresh with loads of color.
- Serve your salad in a bowl that makes it look bountiful. In other words, serve it in a bowl that you can fill completely and even pile high.
- Don’t forget to finish with lemon zest. Garnishes aren’t just fluff! Done right, they add to the attractiveness AND the flavor of the dish.
- Here are a few of the items I used in these photos and to serve classic pea salad at my own table:
- Spring Green Check Napkins from Amazon
- Ruffled Eggplant Dinner Napkins by HenHouse Linens
- Peacock Cocktail Napkins by Lemondaisy Designs
- Gold Cutlery from Amazon
- Cabbage Plates from Amazon
- More Cabbage Tableware from Williams Sonoma
How to Make Ahead & Store Pea Salad
To make pea salad ahead of time, whisk together the dressing and prep all of the ingredients. Cover the dressing and refrigerate. Store the salad ingredients in zip top bags separately, not together, in the fridge. Assemble the salad and serve the next day.
After you make this salad, leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator covered in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Stir salad to freshen before serving.
More Salad Recipes To Love
- Classic 7 Layer Pea Salad
- Strawberry Asparagus Salad
- Crunchy Broccoli Salad with Strawberries
- Italian Green Bean Salad
- Southern Tomato & Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
Dressing
- ÂĽ cup real mayonnaise
- ÂĽ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ÂĽ teaspoon salt
- ÂĽ teaspoon black pepper
Salad
- 8 slices thick cut bacon, chopped
- ½ cup toasted pecan pieces
- 10 ounces frozen green sweet peas, thawed under cool water & patted dry
- ½ medium red onion, diced
- ½ medium green bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup cubed cheddar cheese (generous cup)
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
Instructions
- In a large measuring cup, whisk together all the dressing ingredients. Refrigerate while making the rest of the salad.
- Cook bacon until crisp. Toast pecans. Chop and dice all the ingredients.
- Add bacon, pecans, peas, onion, bell pepper and cheese to a large bowl. Pour all of the dressing over the top. Use a spatula to gently fold ingredients together until well mixed. Top with lemon zest and serve!
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