Strawberry Avocado Salad with Poppyseed Dressing

Name: Strawberry Avocado Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 6 cups spring mix salad greens; 3 cups strawberries (quartered or sliced); 2 avocados (diced); 1 cup feta cheese (crumbled); ⅓ cup pecans (chopped); 2 tbsp olive oil; 1 tbsp red wine vinegar; 1 tsp honey ((optional)); 1 tsp poppy seeds; ⅛ tsp ground mustard; pinch of salt and pepper ((or more to taste))

This delicious strawberry and avocado salad with homemade dressing has feta and pecans and is a keto friendly vegetarian dish.

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Strawberry avocado salad is made with juicy strawberries, creamy avocado, crunchy pecans and tangy feta cheese. This amazingly delicious salad is a true joy to eat. Whether you are looking for a healthy, keto friendly lunch or an incredible side salad, this is the recipe for you.

This scrumptious gluten free salad comes together in only 15 minutes. You can easily make strawberry avocado salad vegan. Simply leave out the feta or replace it with a vegan substitute.

Dressing being poured over strawberry avocado salad

This colorful vegetarian summer salad only uses fresh in-season ingredients and is an amazing combination of flavors and textures that you’re going to love.

Table of Contents

❤️ WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS FRESH SALAD RECIPE

✔️ Complimentary texture and flavor combination of sweet strawberries, creamy avocado, crunchy pecans and fresh crunchy greens.

✔️ It only takes 15 minutes to make! This is about as quick as a meal can get.

✔️ Strawberry avocado salad is vegetarian, keto friendly, gluten free and can easily be made vegan as well. Omit the cheese or add a vegan cheese if you want to make it vegan.

✔️ Makes a great side salad for grilled meats or a light and healthy lunch.

✔️ 10 grams of protein, 10 grams of fiber and lots of vitamin A and C.

wooden spoon scooping strawberry avocado salad

STRAWBERRY AVOCADO SALAD INGREDIENTS

This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for this healthy salad, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.

You may have all of these avocado salad ingredients in your refrigerator or pantry and not need to make a trip to the grocery store. See recipe card below for ingredient amounts.

Salad Greens: We used spring mix salad greens for this recipe. You can also use spinach, baby lettuce, arugula or your favorite mixed greens.
Strawberries: Use only fresh, red and ripe strawberries.
Avocado: Use fresh avocados that are not hard anymore. When you give the avocado a little squeeze it should feel firm but also have a slight softness or give.
Feta Cheese: You could also try goat cheese or blue cheese instead.
Pecans: Toasted nuts give this salad a bit of a crunch and add immense flavor. You can also use walnuts or chopped almonds, if you prefer.
Olive Oil: We prefer using extra virgin olive oil. Try to use high quality olive oil with this salad as the flavor of the oil really comes through.
Red Wine Vinegar: This is our preferred vinegar for this dressing but if you don’t have any on hand you can try another vinegar.
Honey: You can leave out the honey or substitute other sweeteners. Use maple syrup, agave nectar, or coconut sugar if you eat vegan.
Poppy Seeds: These are added to the salad dressing. You can omit if you’d like.
Ground Mustard: Ground mustard is an important component of the salad dressing. The dressing will not taste like mustard when it is made.
Salt and Pepper

ingredients for strawberry avocado salad

INSTRUCTIONS

This section shows how to cook healthy avocado salad, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique. For full instructions, nutritional information, to print the recipe or to have the recipe scaled to double or triple, see the recipe card below.

TOAST THE PECANS: Toss pecans in a skillet over medium heat for 3-4 minutes until fragrant. Remove from heat.

🔴 TIP: Only use fresh produce for this salad. Using fresh and ripe ingredients creates a truly spectacular and flavorful salad. Do not use frozen strawberries or avodados.

MAKE THE DRESSING: Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

🔴 TIP: Make your own salad dressing. Our poppy seed dressing combines perfectly with this salad. However, you can substitute ¼ cup of store bought salad dressing if you are in a hurry.

Salad ingredients in a bowl before being mixed.

Dressing pouring on strawberry avocado salad.

COMBINE SALAD INGREDIENTS: Add spring mix, strawberries, avocado, feta and pecans to a large bowl.

🔴 TIP: Cut the avocados just before serving. Sprinkle the cut avocado with lemon juice if you want to prevent browning for longer.

TOSS AND SERVE: Pour dressing over the salad, toss to coat and serve.

close up of ready to eat salad with poppy seeds

HOW TO MAKE STRAWBERRY AVOCADO SALAD AHEAD

You can make the dressing for this salad up to 2 weeks in advance. Store it in an airtight container in the fridge. You can also toast the pecans ahead of time. Let them cool completely, then store them in an airtight container until ready to use.

We do not recommend assembling the salad ahead of time. The avocados will get brown and the strawberries look most appetizing when cut fresh.

TIPS FOR THE BEST STRAWBERRY AVOCADO SALAD

Follow these tips to make the best healthy salad.

✔️ Use fresh ripe produce. Use ripe avocados and fresh strawberries, never frozen. We’ve attempted using frozen avocado in a salad before and it wasn’t great. Frozen avocado is better in a smoothie.

✔️ Toast the nuts. Toasting nuts enhances their flavor immensely! You can buy toasted nuts or toast your own.

✔️ Make your own salad dressing. Our poppy seed dressing combines perfectly with this salad.

✔️ Cut the avocados just before serving.

✔️ Be gentle when tossing the salad. Toss the salad gently so the strawberries and avocados don’t get mushy.

STORAGE TIPS

Refrigerate: This vegetarian salad is best when eaten fresh. We do not recommend storing it after it has been tossed with the dressing.

However, homemade vinaigrettes and salad dressing can be kept refrigerated for up to 2 weeks. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate. Shake or whisk again before using.

close up of strawberries and avocados in the salad

MORE SALAD RECIPES

If you love love strawberry avocado salad with poppy seed dressing you’ll enjoy our Caprese Salad, Italian Salad, or Strawberry Spinach Salad. We also love Chopped Asparagus Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette, Artichoke Rice Salad or Raw Asparagus Salad.

Strawberries also make mouthwatering desserts like our Deep Fried Strawberry Shortcake, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie, Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Handpies or Andrea’s delicious Strawberry Sorbet.

Some of our favorite avocado recipes are Guacamole, 7 Layer Dip, and Crab Stuffed Avocados.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

For perfect results every time, here are answers to the most common questions about cooking strawberry avocado salad.

How can I make this salad vegan?

Skip the feta cheese or substitute vegan feta cheese. Additionally, leave out the honey in the dressing or substitute a vegan sweetener like maple syrup, agave nectar or coconut sugar, for example.

Can I add some protein to this salad?

Of course. You can add some grilled chicken, shrimp, steak or crumbled up bacon to this yummy salad.

How to quickly ripen an underripe avocado?

Put your whole avocados in a paper bag and set them on the counter. As the avocados ripen, they produce ethylene gas, which will concentrate in the bag and ripen them faster. If you want your avocados to ripen even quicker, place an apple and/or a banana in the bag as well. Concentrated ethylene gas from multiple fruits speeds up the ripening process even more. The avocados should be ready to use in 1-2 days. You will get similar results by putting an avocado in a bowl and covering it with dry rice.