Easy, 4 ingredient Pistachio Fluff Salad, also known simply as Pistachio Salad! Best served with friends and family, this recipe makes a great potluck dish!
My grandma always made this as a cold side dish with any dinner (holiday or not). It’s also delicious with fruity marshmallows and walnuts too.
This pistachio salad recipe was originally published in May 2015. The recipe notes were updated in February 2015.
Aimee’s Notes
- Taste and Texture– sweet pistachio flavor in a creamy, light pudding fluff.
- Make Ahead– Make this the night before and give it a stir before serving.
- Ingredient Swap– swap out the mini marshmallows for the fruity flavored version.
You are living in a vacuum my friends, if you haven’t yet tried this Pistachio Fluff Salad.
Some people call it simply Pistachio Salad, Pistachio Dump Salad, Pistachio Pudding Salad or Watergate Salad. Or Green Fluff. Or just the Green Goop.
Pistachio Fluff Salad is only 4 ingredients (5 if you count the cherries on top)! I know many people add extra nuts to theirs, but not us. Occasionally I’ll swap out the mini white marshmallows and use the fruity, colored mini marshmallows instead.
Any party is a great time to whip up a batch of this pistachio salad. I know I keep calling this a salad when it clearly is more like a dessert. But after all, Mom always said to eat your greens, haha!!
Featured Review⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“It’s a awesome a dessert. If you like pistachio pudding you’ll love this pistachio dessert. It’s delicious. It’s a great choice for a party.” -Roxy
Ingredient Notes
Easy as 1,2,3. And four if you’re counting ingredients!
- Crushed Pineapple- you’ll need a can of this, with the juices (do not drain). Fresh pineapple is not the same here.
- Pistachio Pudding Mix- two of the small boxes of instant pudding mix are perfect.
- Cool Whip- you don’t want to use homemade whipped cream here, as it will tend to get too weepy. However, if you don’t want to use Cool Whip, try our stabilized whipped cream instead.
- Marshmallows- these create the perfect texture. Whether you use plain mini marshmallow, or toss in the fruity colored marshmallows, either are delicious.
The hardest part of this Pistachio Fluff Salad recipe is giving everything time to mingle. Allowing it to thicken up. You can make it the night before, or whip it up at least 4 hours in advance, making it perfect for holiday gatherings.
If you don’t want to put the cherries on top, you can toss them into the mix. This also makes a beautiful Christmas side dish or dessert with the red cherries and green pudding mixture!
More Pudding Based Recipes
- Love easy desserts? My Ambrosia Salad could easily be a side dish too. Or try my cranberry fluff salad for a frozen side dish at any holiday table!
- Change things up and try my lemon fluff next! Perfect for spring!
- Looking to use pudding mix in more recipes? Adding a box of pudding to cookies creates the most amazing, soft and chewy, Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies.
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Pistachio Fluff Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 boxes JELL-O Instant Pistachio pudding mix 3.4 ounce each
- 1 can crushed pineapple 20 ounce
- 16 ounce Cool Whip thawed
- 1 bag mini marshmallows 10 ounce
- maraschino cherries for garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine pudding mix with crushed pineapple. Mix with a wooden spoon until pudding mix is blended with pineapple liquids.
- Add in Cool Whip and mini marshmallows. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours, or overnight. Serve with maraschino cherries as a garnish. Or, if desired, add cherries to fluff right before serving. ENJOY.
Notes
- Swap out the cool whip for our homemade stabilized whipped cream instead.
- Store salad in refrigerator for up to 3 days for best results.
- See blog post for more tips.
Video
Nutrition
More Side Dishes
Easy, 4 ingredient Pistachio Fluff Salad, also known simply as Pistachio Salad! Best served with friends and family, this recipe makes a great potluck dish!
Everyone I’ve known since the 1970s calls it Watergate Salad. My recipe calls for chopped toasted pecans or walnuts.
It would not be a holiday in my family without, what my Grandma, Mom, Aunts & Uncles call, Watergate Salad and what my kids call “green salad” We do add the nuts (and no cherries). I grew up in the midwest where this kind of thing is normal but moved to MA where it isn’t. After many years living here my MA family is now requesting this ‘salad’ too!
I have made this for years. Its called ‘Watergate Salad’. I use Kraft’s pastel FunMallows instead of white. All the flavors mingled together makes this so delicious and a pretty party dish!
I’ve had it with the colored mallows too…so yummy!!
Try it with sugar free pudding mixes, also s/f cool-whip, eating like a diabetic.
Is there anything that can be subbed for the sweetened milk? My husband is diabetic
Really this whole recipe is probably too much sugar for a diabetic. You might be better off looking at a lower sugar website 🙂
Wow! I’m loving the color of this fluffy pistachio salad! I love the consistency of its thickness. It’s so fluffy and refreshing. I love it!
My mother has made this for years but she’d put it in a ready made graham cracker pie crust (minus the marshmallows ) so good!
This looks like the next dessert recipe that I will make all the time. So simple and delicious = )
THIS is my kinda salad! Looks wonderful!
I remember this salad well from my pre-diabetic days. I now realize it’s not a salad at all but a dessert instead. It can be a silent killer for the diabetic.
Well, I would hope a diabetic would know that pudding mix, cool whip and marshmallows are not part of their diet 😉
We called it Watergate Salad and we add nuts to it. It’s so refreshing and great for a cook out.
Oh my goodness! I learned this in “Foods Class” in about 1982. I loved it! I will have to make this for my kids. Thanks for posting!
haha!! Everyone has a story about this recipe 🙂
Can you believe that I’ve never made Fluff Salad before. I know, I know I am living in a vacuum. Hehe. So gonna make this when its hot outside. It looks like the perfect for this lazy days. PS have a wonderful vacay! Hope you great time and get to relax and be with the family!! Hugs!
I grew up calling the Waldorf Salad, haven’t had it in years. Use to love it!
I have never tried any kind of fluff or dump salad… so I haven’t been living yet! Ahh! This one is on my “to cook” list for sure!
I must be living under a rock. I’ve never tried this! And I love pistachio pudding mix, and marshmallows, and so really, it’s time. This looks great!
I have to try this ASAP!
This is so fun! My kids {and I} would love this!
Best way to eat your greens right there 😉 I adore all the different fluff salads and have been having fun jazzing them up for different picnics! But one of my favorites is the pistachio…I need to make that one again soon!!!
You are definitely the queen of fluff. BWAHAHAHAHA 🙂 Love you!!
When I was little I called it “green stuff”. I just adored it and didn’t know what it was called. I haven’t made it in years. I have got to make it again very soon. Yours looks so goergeous and tasty.