This Italian Chopped Salad is loaded with fresh, crisp veggies, plus salami, provolone, pepperoncini, and olives. It’s light yet hearty, and extra flavorful with a zippy Italian vinaigrette!
This Italian Chopped Salad, along with a side of toasty homemade Cheesy Garlic Bread, has been gracing our table for quite a while now. I grabbed the original version from Nancy Silverton’s The Mozza Cookbook, but then every time I made it, I would make a little tweak here and a little tweak there, and slowly this salad became our own. And maybe you will make my version and do the same, making little changes to suit your own family’s tastes — that’s the best part about finding a recipe you adore!
Why This Italian Chopped Salad Belongs on Your Menu
With Nancy’s original recipe, I swapped out iceberg for romaine, skipped the radicchio and chickpeas, then added briny black olives to the mix. But I know that the number one reason my family likes this fresh chopped salad so much is because of the strips of salami and provolone cheese. (Maybe it’s because these two ingredients make this meal taste like their favorite Jimmy John’s sub sandwich, transferred to a salad bowl? I do believe so!) But enough about us — here’s why you’re going to want to add this Italian salad to your meal plan ASAP.
- A salad you can make a meal of. The savory salami and cheese definitely make this Italian chopped salad stand out. And they add heartiness, enough to call this a main course salad. Which is just plain awesome for a cold, refreshing summertime meal.
- The zippiest vinaigrette. I also played around with Nancy’s recipe for the vinaigrette, to hone in on my family’s likes. Here’s that Italian Vinaigrette recipe. We like it so much that we nearly always double the amount, to have it on hand to use whenever we like. (My Lemon Poppy Seed Dressing and Homemade Buttermilk Ranch Dressing are two other family favorites.)
- Big flavors and textures. This salad doesn’t mess around — it goes all in with bold flavors (pepperoncini! olives! salami!) and textures (crisp veggies! creamy cheese! buttery olives!), making it a salad your entire family will look forward to eating.
What You’ll Need
For such a big, colorful, satisfying salad, the ingredient list is surprisingly short. Scroll down to the printable recipe card to find the exact ingredient quantities and recipe instructions.
- Lettuce – I use crisp romaine leaves as the base. I like that they’re sturdy enough to stand up to all the mix-ins in this salad.
- Red onion – Adds sharpness and crunch. Slice them very thin to temper their bite.
- Pepperoncini – I love the kicky pickled flavor that these peppers add!
- Olives – Use the milder canned black olives, brinier kalamatas, or a combination of both if you’re on Team Never-Enough-Olives. (I’m a founding member.)
- Provolone – You can slice this into thin ribbons, which is what I like to do, or cut it into cubes for a little more substance in each bite.
- Salami – I seek out a good quality salami from the deli case, rather than standard pre-packed salami.
- Tomatoes – I like to use cherry or grape tomatoes, and cut them in half – I think this makes the perfect tomato bite.
- Black pepper – Freshly ground pepper adds a little zip and texture.
- Italian Vinaigrette – My go-to dressing for this salad.
How to Make Italian Chopped Salad
All this talk about how amazing this salad tastes and I’ve forgotten to mention another important selling point: it’s so darn easy! Here’s an overview of the steps involved if you’re planning to serve the salad right away. (In the recipe card below, I share a meal prep option too.)
- Combine salad ingredients. Fold together the lettuce, onion, pepperoncini, olives, provolone, salami, and tomatoes in a large bowl.
- Add vinaigrette. Add a half cup of dressing.
- Fold & finish. Gently fold again to coat everything evenly. Season to taste. Finish with a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper. Serve with the extra dressing.
Tips and (Several) Variations
Please take the liberty to put your own spin on this Italian chopped salad! While some recipes aren’t very forgiving, this salad is a playground for creativity.
- Dry the greens well. If they’re still wet when you assemble the salad, they’ll wilt quickly and water down the flavor of the dressing. A salad spinner is a worthwhile investment if you’re a salad fan, or just pat the leaves dry with a kitchen towel.
- Tame the red onion flavor. You can let the onions sit in a bit of the vinaigrette for 10 minutes while you prep the rest of the salad. This will pickle them a bit, so they’ll still add flavor to the salad without the sharpness of fresh onion.
- Go ahead and add the chickpeas or radicchio back in. As mentioned, Nancy Silverton’s version of this salad includes both chickpeas and radicchio – it’s just that my family does not prefer these ingredients.
- Add croutons. Croutons are a welcome addition to any salad if you ask my husband. Use store-bought croutons or make your own by cutting day-old bread into cubes, tossing them with olive oil and dried herbs, then toasting them in the oven.
- Make it with fresh mozzarella. Creamy, milky fresh mozzarella pairs perfectly with the acidity of a vinaigrette. You can tear a big ball into bite-sized pieces or add small bocconcini to your salad.
- Or try adding Parmesan. You can add grated Parmesan for an evenly-distributed flavor, or big shavings of Parmesan for a more intense, salty bite.
Serving Suggestions
This is truly a meal-worthy salad that you don’t need to round out with a protein or side. But if you want to stretch it further or you’ve got some big appetites to feed, I’d suggest pairing it with Grilled Pizza or soft, puffy Pizza Bites. My Spaghetti Casserole or Sun Dried Tomato Pasta would also pair well with the flavors in the salad. You can’t go wrong with some crusty bread, focaccia, or Rhodes Rolls either!
How to Store Leftovers
For best results, store the dressing and the salad separately, in airtight containers. This way, you can toss together a super fresh salad whenever you like.
If the salad is already dressed, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to one day. Just know that the lettuce will soften.
More Satisfying Salad Recipes
Italian Chopped Salad
Ingredients
- 2 large heads romaine lettuce, prepared according to Notes below
- ½ medium red onion, peeled and then sliced into very thin rings (I like to use a mandoline for quick, easy, uniform slices.)
- ½ cup sliced pepperoncini rings
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- ½ pound provolone, sliced ⅛" thick and then cut into ¼" ribbons
- ½ pound good quality salami, sliced ⅛" thick and then cut into ¼" ribbons
- 12 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced in half
- freshly ground black pepper
- Italian Vinaigrette
Instructions
To serve the salad already dressed
- In a large salad bowl, gently fold together lettuce, red onion, pepperoncini, black olives, provolone, salami, and tomatoes.
- Drizzle about ½ cup of the Italian Vinaigrette over these ingredients, and then gently fold again.
- Taste for seasoning and add a touch of salt and/or more of the vinaigrette, if desired. Sprinkle freshly ground black pepper over the top and serve immediately.
To serve the salad with dressing on the side
- Just combine all salad ingredients in a large salad bowl and offer the dressing on the side.
To prepare in advance
- Up to 1 day in advance, prepare Italian Vinaigrette and store in the refrigerator.
- Up to a few hours ahead of time, prep all Italian Chopped Salad ingredients. Store lettuce and sliced tomatoes in their own separate covered containers in the refrigerator. Store red onion, pepperoncini, black olives, provolone, and salami together in a covered container in the refrigerator.
- When ready to serve, assemble salad as directed in the Instructions above.
Salad was amazing! My friends are eating it as we speak and loving it :) thanks for sharing
So glad you like this salad, Laurie! :)
AMAZING! I haven’t even eaten it yet because I’m bringing it to a potluck, but I already told my husband I think this salad may be one of my love languages. Dressing tastes perfect! I accidentally bought sliced mild banana peppers, but they’ll suffice this time (I cut them a bit smaller). Next time I’ll probably buy better salami, but tasting components as I chopped, this is sure to be stellar. Thanks so much for sharing your tweaks!
I haven’t even eaten it yet because I’m bringing it to a potluck, but I already told my husband I think this salad may be one of my love languages. Dressing tastes perfect! I accidentally bought sliced mild banana peppers, but they’ll suffice this time (I cut them a bit smaller). Next time I’ll probably buy better salami, but tasting components as I chopped, this is sure to be stellar. Thanks so much for sharing your tweaks!
I made this salad for an impromptu neighborhood gathering and everyone raved about it! The amount of dressing put on the meat, cheese, onion part of the salad was plenty for the whole salad after mixing it all together. It has a lovely visual presentation and went nicely with the pizza another neighbor contributed!
I love to hear this, Nylene – so glad this salad was a pizza night success!
I think I can get hubby on board with this salad no problem Looks so good , thank you!
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I am new to this site and just found this salad recipe. When I’m feeling adventurous & confident that a recipe will turn out, I don’t mind taking a risk and trying out a new recipe on guests. That’s exactly what I did with this salad and dressing, and it did not disappoint! Guests were very happy and so was I! The combination and balance of ingredients was just perfect. I’ve been looking for a punchy, bright homemade Italian vinaigrette, and I’ve finally found it. I am thrilled. Thank you!!!
YUM! We had a friend for dinner, and served this with penne alla vodka, and it was a major success! Penne was very good, but the salad was clearly the main attraction. I didn’t use the entire amount of dressing, held back just a tad, as we can add more if needed, but this salad is mouthwatering! In fact, I am making it again tonight.
A full meal with warm Italian bread! 5 stars!
Did you add banana peppers? Looks like they are in the picture?
Yes, sliced pepperoncini rings are listed in the recipe.
I’m sorry Lauren, I just noticed your question. I did add the peppers but I sliced them after taking the seeds out there pickled so they don’t really have much heat to them.
This salad was amazing! Did taste like a sub without the bread!! Left out the onions but followed the recipe otherwise. Topped the salad with the vinaigrette dressing which was great as well!! Used Italian herb olive oil instead of EVOO. Fantastic! Thanks for sharing!
So HAPPY you liked this salad!
The Italian Vinaigrette dressing is out of this world! I will never purchase bottled dressing again! Thanks for sharing
I love to hear this! Our thoughts exactly, we LOVE this vinaigrette!
This is now my go-to recipe for salad and dressing. I keep thinking, “why would anyone buy bottled dressing full of junk when I can make better dressing so easily?” I have used a combination of green and kalamata olives and chopped coppa with the salami and it is yummy.
I’m so HAPPY to hear this! I’ll have to add green olives too! :)
Hubby and I enjoyed your Italian Salad recipe this evening for dinner. It was created just as you outlined using romaine lettuce and it was delicious. It reminded me of Jimmy John’s Italian sub just without the carbs. We will be serving this salad at dinner parties in the near future. Thank you for sharing!
Yay!! That’s our girls’ favorite sub. :) So glad you both like the salad recipe!
I would put chick peas in this too!! YUM!
I like the chickpeas, too! But the rest of my family does not. Sometimes I add them.
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you for sharing!
Oh yes! This looks and sounds delicious!!
Full of flavor and all the goodies, you’d love this Mom! xo