Yawzu

Seven Layer Salad

A glass trifle bowl with seven layer salad.

Seven Layer Salad with tons of rich add-ins like bacon, cheese, hard-boiled eggs and more! The dressing is killer and totally makes it!

A glass trifle bowl with seven layer salad.

Picnic food is, without a doubt, some of our favorite food around. Hot dogs charred to a crisp on the grill… potato salad… baked beans… coleslaw… watermelon! You name it, and we'll fill our plate with it at a picnic. We've had versions of this 7-layer salad at countless family picnics growing up, and it’s no wonder that we love it so much. Two main reasons:

1) It’s filled with lots of stuff. Like Elaine from Seinfeld, we love a big salad with lots of stuff. Things like bacon, cheese and hard-boiled eggs definitely make salads infinitely more appealing.

2) The dressing mimics the one that our grandma uses in her legendary broccoli salad. We could drink that dressing!

Three slices of bacon on a cutting board.

We couldn’t come across any family recipes for this salad, as we think it’s one of things that you just know and throw together.

We did three sections of seven layers each, so that there was a superb mix of ingredients; no digging around for specific ingredients. Plus, more dressing throughout is good for everyone, right?!

Sliced hard boiled eggs on a cutting board.

With Memorial Day on our doorstep (hello, how is it the beginning of summer already?!), we thought some picnic food was in order. If you’re hosting a bash or going to one, this is a reliable dish that feeds an army and is a huge crowd-pleaser.

Have a fantastic holiday weekend; we hope you get to eat some awesome picnic food!

Watch How to Make Seven Layer Salad:

One year ago: Frozen Brownie Sundae
Two years ago: Grilled Chicken Drumsticks with Spicy Apple Glaze
Three years ago: Peanut Butter Brownies
Four years ago: Blackberry Pie Bars
Five years ago: Coconut Chocolate Chunk Brownies
Six years ago: Lighter Chicken Parmesan
Seven years ago: Taco Rice Salad

[photos by The Almond Eater]

  • Yield: 8 to 10 servings
  • Prep: 30 minutes
  • Total: 30 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1 head romaine lettuce, coarsely chopped, divided
  • 1 cup ( 145 g ) frozen peas, divided
  • ½ ( 0.5 ) red onion, finely diced, divided
  • 12 ounces ( 340.2 g ) bacon, cooked and crumbled, divided
  • 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and diced, divided
  • 1½ cups ( 169.5 g ) shredded cheddar cheese, divided
  • 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced, divided

For the Dressing:

  • 1 cup ( 230 g ) sour cream
  • 1 cup ( 224 g ) mayonnaise
  • ½ cup ( 100 g ) granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

Method

  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the dressing ingredients; set aside.
  2. Place one-third of the lettuce in the bottom of a trifle dish. Top with one-third each of the peas, red onion, bacon, hard-boiled egg, cheese and green onions. Spread one-third of the dressing over the top.
  3. Repeat layers again, ending with the dressing.
  4. For the last set of layers, begin again with the lettuce, peas and red onion, then cover with the remaining dressing. Top the dressing with the bacon, hard-boiled egg, cheese and green onions. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Salad should be eaten the day it is assembled.

Notes

[photos by The Almond Eater ]

Other salads

More from the same part of the kitchen, each with its own method.