Whole30 Sunday Salad
It has been the season of Sunday Salads at nocrumbsleft, and I am not one bit mad about it! We have our original Sunday Salad that I first fell in love with. Then, as I was heading to California for the holidays with my vegan son, I knew I needed to make a vegan version. Now that January has arrived, you know that means I needed a Whole30 Sunday Salad!

And don’t let the Whole30 in the name fool you. This Sunday Salad is packed with luscious deliciousness. It has a great balance of textures and flavors. Whole30 or not, this is going to become a crowd favorite. It’s easy to assemble, and a perfect entree salad for Sunday dinner with leftovers (if there are any) for the week!
What Goes Into a Whole30 Sunday Salad
When I think about Whole30 salad, I really try to diversify texture and flavor. Oftentimes, we are missing the creaminess of cheese or the crunchiness of a grain. So, I like to think through what Whole30 items can provide those textures in the meal. My go to for replacing the creamy cheese texture is hearts of palm. If you haven’t tried them, they are a must do. You’ll be blown away by what they bring to your salad.
After that, I add some crunch. In this case, we have some radicchio lettuce, celery, tomatoes and red peppers. All of these add some different levels of crunchiness for the perfect bite of salad. Finally, I want to deepen the flavors a bit, so that’s when I bring in the Marinated Onions, artichoke hearts and pepperoncini. These help with a little bit of savory goodness that you won’t want to miss.

Most importantly, you need to dress your Whole30 Sunday Salad well. We used some red wine vinegar to start, but we also served it with our Chive Dressing. If you haven’t made this one yet, it’s a run don’t walk situation. I basically want to eat it by the spoonful. And of course, don’t forget your protein if this is your entree! We used the chicken breasts from my Epic Salad in the cookbook for this one. A dream in a bowl, quite frankly!
If you make this Whole30 Sunday Salad, make sure you rate and review it below! If you’re looking for more inspiration, sign up for our Friday Favorites newsletter, and follow along on Pinterest and Instagram to join in all the fun!
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Whole30 Sunday Salad
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Salad
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Salad
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This Whole30 Sunday Salad is perfect for a dinner salad. And make extra, because the leftovers are excellent for meal prep.
Ingredients
For the Salad
10 ounces of your choice of greens, we used baby romaine, cut into bite sized pieces, we recommend not using a soft lettuce
2 ounces of arugula, optional
Kosher Salt
Marinated Red Onions and its oil
2 oz of California green olives, halved
1 cup thinly sliced radicchio lettuce
2 tablespoons olive oil
¾ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
¾ cup thinly sliced pepperoncini peppers
¾ cup thinly sliced celery
¾ cup Artichoke
¼ cup red bell peppers
2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes, thiny sliced
3/4 cup hearts of palm, cut into tiny bite pieces
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
For the Chicken:
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 skin-on, boneless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil for searing
For the Creamy Chive Citrus Dressing:
1 large egg
¾ cup light olive oil
3 tablespoons finely chopped chives
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 anchovy
1 teaspoon hot sauce
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Make the Creamy Chive Citrus Dressing
In a wide mouth mason jar, using an immersion blender to blend, place the egg and slowly add the light olive oil until it emulsifies and thickens. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until thoroughly combined. Cover and refrigerate to allow the dressing to thicken while you make the salad.
Make the chicken:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
In a blender, combine the olive oil, lime juice, red wine vinegar, onion, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and blend. Put the chicken breasts in a shallow container, pour the marinade over and toss well. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in an oven-safe sauté pan over high heat. Once the oil is hot, lower the temperature to medium-high and sear the chicken breasts until browned, about 2 minutes per side, then bake for 25 minutes until cooked through. Set aside.
Assemble the Salad:
In a large bowl, add the greens and sprinkle with salt. If your greens are big, tear the leaves into smaller pieces. Sprinkle salt and add about 3 tablespoons of Marinated Red Onion oil and around ½ cup of marinated red onions. Add the olives, radicchio, tomatoes, pepperoncini, celery, artichoke, red bell peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, and heart of palms. Toss to fully combine. Add more marinated onion oil until salad is fully coated and red wine vinegar. Season to taste with more salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Serve with the dressing on the side and enjoy!
Note: This salad is also perfect without the dressing, but we love it with a few spoonfuls!
Keywords: whole30 salad, whole30 sunday salad
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I can’t eat anchovies-can I make the dressing without? This looks amazing!
If you must you can leave them out… Won’t be quite as good
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This salad was amazing! The chopping and prep work are totally worth it. My husband said it could be on a restaurant menu! Leftovers were amazing too. It’s so good that I am making it again three days later to bring to a party!
★★★★★
nicee
how are the artichokes prepared? Fresh, Canned, frozen Marinated, grilled?
Fantastic salad! Lots of prep which is probably why it’s a Sunday Salad! Absolutely worth the prep- the ingredients and meld together so well. Added croutons so not whole30 and also left out artichokes, but added roasted beets. Will make again and for guests too.
★★★★★
Sounds so delicious! I am so glad you enjoyed it!
I’ve seen this on the @nocrumbsleft Instagram several times, and always said to myself “this looks great, but it’s just a salad”. I have news for you- this is NOT just a salad. The layers of flavor and texture are top notch and now I’ve been eating it for 3 days. Thank you as always for a perfect recipe!
★★★★★
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The dressing will be on repeat!! So good
★★★★★
Do you have any nutritional info for this salad? I am now doing carb counting. Thank you! Looks delicious!
I didn’t see when to throw the chicken in so I just chopped it up and threw it in before adding more red onion oil and red wine vinegar. This salad is really delicious and gorgeous, albeit labor intensive. Flavors just work and I want to keep eating it. Definitely a keeper!