Strawberry Spinach Salad with Fresh Oranges (Easy 10-Minute Salad With Balsamic Dressing)
Some salads feel like a chore. This one feels like a treat. Baby spinach piled high with juicy strawberries, sweet orange segments, crunchy walnuts, and crumbled goat cheese, all pulled together with a honey balsamic Dijon dressing you whisk in a bowl in about two minutes. This strawberry spinach salad with balsamic dressing is ready in ten minutes and requires zero cooking.
Ten minutes, no stove, and a dressing you will want to put on everything. Balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, and Dijon mustard whisk into something tangy and a little sweet that makes the whole bowl sing. It works as a weekday lunch, a side for grilled chicken, or the thing you bring to a potluck when you want people to ask you for the recipe.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- The dressing does the heavy lifting. Honey, Dijon, and balsamic vinegar create a balanced sweet-tangy vinaigrette that ties every ingredient together without overpowering the fruit.
- Orange is the secret ingredient. A single large orange adds juicy citrus pockets that play off the strawberries beautifully and make this salad feel more complete than most.
- Goat cheese over feta. Creamy, slightly tangy goat cheese melts into the greens just enough to coat every bite. It is softer and more flavorful than feta here.
- Texture in every forkful. Tender spinach, juicy fruit, sharp red onion, and crunchy walnuts mean no two bites are the same.
- Ten minutes, no stove. Everything is raw, sliced, and tossed. This is genuinely fast.
Ingredients
How to Make Strawberry Spinach Salad
Step 1:First, layer the spinach, red onion, orange slices, and strawberries in a large salad bowl. Lightly season with salt and pepper to enhance the natural flavors.
Step 2: Next, whisk together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, and Dijon mustard in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper until the dressing is smooth and balanced.
Step 3: Then, pour the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat all the ingredients evenly. Finally, transfer the salad to a serving platter or individual bowls. Top with walnuts and crumbled goat cheese before serving immediately.
Tips for the Best Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Use ripe strawberries. The sweeter and juicier your strawberries, the better the salad. In-season summer berries are hard to beat here.
- Dry your spinach well. Wet spinach dilutes the dressing. Give it a good pat dry or run it through a salad spinner before building the bowl.
- Slice the onion thinly. Red onion is pungent raw, so thin rings keep the flavor in check. If you want to mellow it further, soak the sliced onion in cold water for ten minutes before adding.
- Toast the walnuts. A quick two-minute toast in a dry pan brings out nuttiness and deepens the crunch. Completely optional but worth it.
- Dress right before serving. If you are making this ahead, keep the dressing separate and toss just before plating. Dressed spinach wilts quickly.
- Make it a meal. Add sliced grilled chicken or a handful of chickpeas to turn this into a hearty main.
Substitutions and Variations
- Swap walnuts for candied pecans or sliced almonds if that is what you have.
- Feta cheese works in place of goat cheese if you prefer a saltier, firmer crumble.
- Arugula can stand in for half the spinach if you want more peppery bite.
- For a dairy-free version, leave out the cheese entirely and add a handful of sunflower seeds for extra texture.
- A splash of orange juice in place of some of the balsamic dressing leans sweeter.
- A little garlic whisked into the dressing adds depth if you are serving this alongside a heartier main.
However you make it, this spinach and strawberry salad is hard to mess up.
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Strawberry Spinach Salad with Fresh Oranges and Balsamic Dressing
Equipment
- Large salad bowl
- Small mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Cutting board and knife
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 1 cup strawberries (sliced)
- 4 cups baby spinach (rinsed and patted dry)
- ½ red onion (thinly sliced)
- 1 large orange (peeled and sliced)
- ¼ cup walnuts roughly chopped
- 2 ounces goat cheese crumbled
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
For the Balsamic Dressing
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add the baby spinach, sliced red onion, orange slices, and strawberries to a large salad bowl. Season lightly with sea salt and black pepper.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey, and Dijon mustard until smooth. Season the dressing with sea salt and black pepper to taste.
- Pour the balsamic dressing over the strawberry spinach salad and gently toss until everything is evenly coated.
- Transfer the salad to a serving platter or divide it between individual bowls. Top with chopped walnuts and crumbled goat cheese before serving. Serve immediately and enjoy.
Notes
- Dress the salad right before serving to keep the spinach crisp.
- For make-ahead: store the dressing separately in a jar in the fridge for up to 5 days, and slice the fruit and prep the toppings ahead of time.
- Toast the walnuts in a dry pan for 2 minutes before serving for extra flavor.
- To soak the sharpness out of the red onion, soak sliced rings in cold water for 10 minutes, and drain before adding.
- Add grilled chicken or chickpeas to make this a full meal.
More Vegetarian Salad Recipes
- This Antipasto Pasta Salad is fresh, filling, and easy to make ahead, with bold flavors that get even better after chilling. It’s a vegetarian pasta salad that works for lunches, picnics, or a simple side that holds up for days. Perfect when you need something low-effort that still feels like a complete, satisfying dish.
- This Mexican black bean and corn salad with crispy tortilla strips is a 20-minute vegetarian salad with a creamy avocado lime dressing and smoky oven-baked tortilla strips that make it worth coming back to. Great as a Cinco de Mayo side, a potluck salad, or an easy weeknight lunch.
- This Watermelon Panzanella Salad hits that perfect summer balance of fresh, hearty, salty, and sweet. Juicy watermelon, crispy toasted ciabatta, and a bright vinaigrette turn a simple salad into something people keep going back for. It’s the kind of summer dish that looks beautiful on the table and disappears fast at cookouts and backyard dinners.
