Greens and Peas Salad With Bacon

By Clare de Boer

Published March 25, 2024

Greens and Peas Salad With Bacon — Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.

Total Time: 40 minutes
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Rating: 4(113)
Notes: Read community notes

This salad has all the snappy sweetness of spring, offset by the smoky saltiness of bacon and a bacon fat vinaigrette. Black pepper is a key ingredient, not an accent, so grind on. Bacon fat sets as it cools, so make the dressing when the bacon pan is still warm, and if you’re making it in advance, make sure it's just warmer than room temperature. If you store it in a jar, sit the jar in a hot water bath to melt the fat before dressing the salad. Also make sure that your salad ingredients are room temperature, rather than cold, when you dress. To make this salad vegetarian, leave out the bacon and replace the bacon fat in the dressing with olive oil.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 servings

4heads Little Gem lettuce or 2 heads romaine, at room temperature
8ounces sugar snap peas, at room temperature
¼packed cup mint leaves, at room temperature
12ounces thick-cut bacon, sliced into ½-inch pieces
1tablespoon red wine vinegar
1tablespoon lemon juice
1tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and black pepper
½cup grated Parmesan (4 ounces)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
Click the leaves off the heads of lettuce by hand and place them in a large bowl. If using romaine, tear the leaves in halves. Slice the snap peas in halves or thirds on a steep diagonal and add them to the bowl along with the mint leaves.
Step 2
Place the bacon in a large frying pan and warm it over a low flame. Cook until the fat is translucent, and at least a tablespoon of fat has rendered into the pan, about 10 minutes. Then turn the flame up to high and stir attentively for 3 to 5 minutes to brown the bacon. When the bacon is almost but not quite browned fully, turn off the flame. It’ll continue to cook in the residual heat of the pan. Stir occasionally to caramelize evenly and prevent over-browning and the resulting bitterness. After 5 minutes, use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Spread rather than pile the bacon so it remains crisp. Discard all but about 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat in the pan.
Step 3
To make the vinaigrette, deglaze the bacon pan by adding the red wine vinegar and lemon juice and scraping any good bits from the pan into the acid. Add the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Swirl to combine everything, then drizzle the vinaigrette over the vegetables and toss to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Step 4
Toss in half of the bacon and Parmesan and spread on a large platter. Sprinkle over the remaining bacon and Parmesan and finish with an extra grind of black pepper.

Ratings

4 out of 5

113 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Lydia Sugarman3 months ago

Can't wait to make this. Bacon fat/grease is a magic ingredient in a spectrum of recipes. thinking I'll add English peas and snowpeas, too, for a pea symphony!

KP3 months ago

I used chopped smoked almonds instead of bacon. Delicious!

Nancy2 months ago

Absolutely!

ML17 hours ago

so good! managed to make eating bacon appear healthy :) didn't have snap peas so it was just butter lettuce, i should have gotten two.

Crazy cat lady3 weeks ago

I misread the recipe and cooked bacon slices as directed, then drained and chopped. It strikes me that frying whole slices is easier. Regardless, this was absolutely delicious.

Janet Carlson2 months ago

I made this salad for dinner last evening. It was excellent. The bacon flavoring in the salad dressing made it all really yummy. I had some avocados I needed to use up, so I added them along with the sugar snap peas. I am sure that I will make it regularly.

Ami2 months ago

This is a great recipe. I used blanched asparagus instead, because that's what I had and needed to use up. Added tablespoon-ish of maple syrup in the salad dressing, too, for balance.

Kerry2 months ago

The addition of bacon is, of course, tasty. But we didn’t think the bacon fat in the dressing added anything to the salad given how much bacon flavor was already present. Snap peas were a nice touch. But overall it turned out to be a pretty average salad. Will not make again.

Karin2 months ago

This salad was a hit with my family - even the non-salad-eating teen. It’s like a Caesar with bacon for the salt/fat instead of fish. I like a lightly dressed salad and used less bacon and maybe 1 tbsp bacon fat in the dressing - still delicious!

Jo2 months ago

Nice spring salad.

Ranita3 months ago

Who doesn’t enjoy bacon on or in a salad! Delicious

Jane Gowers3 months ago

Fresh and delicious - a perfect. spring salad! Thank you

KP3 months ago

I used chopped smoked almonds instead of bacon. Delicious!

sally3 months ago

Bacon. In a side salad (or any salad). Really?

Nancy2 months ago

Absolutely!

RJ2 months ago

Respectfully, absofattenlutely! My arteries may say no but my lips and palate say yes let me have some fun.

Lydia Sugarman3 months ago

Can't wait to make this. Bacon fat/grease is a magic ingredient in a spectrum of recipes. thinking I'll add English peas and snowpeas, too, for a pea symphony!

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