This copycat Panera Strawberry Salad recipe is loaded with fresh berries and candied pecans. Tossed with a sweet homemade lemon poppy seed dressing, it’s the perfect fresh salad warm summer days!
If you think salad is boring, you haven’t eaten salad at my house. Spinach and Bacon Salad and Mexican Street Corn Salad are two more favorites that can turn anyone into a salad lover!
Why This Salad is Best
If you like green salads with fruit, you just might become obsessed with this Strawberry Pecan Salad. This sweet salad is based off our favorite Panera Strawberry Poppyseed Salad recipe!
- FRUITY- It’s made with strawberries, blueberries and juicy mandarin oranges.
- CRUNCHY- Candied pecans for a satisfying sweet crunch factor.
- ZESTY- red onion adds a perfect bite.
- HEARTY- Delicious with or without grilled chicken.
- PERFECT- The sweet and tangy dressing brings it all together.
We love making this salad after a trip to the farmer’s market for fresh fruits and veggies. It’s an easy, tasty way to fill your plate with all that good-for-you produce! And it’s so full of color!
If you love our spinach salad, you can swap out the romaine in today’s strawberry salad for spinach to give you a delicious, hearty meal.
Ingredient Notes
What I love about this fresh salad recipe is how versatile it can be. LOVE mandarin oranges? Add more. Hate goat cheese? Swap it out for feta. Here’s an overview of your key ingredients.
- Strawberries. Remove the stems of fresh berries and slice them in half to add to the salad.
- Blueberries. Make sure to use FRESH berries, not frozen for this salad recipe.
- Mandarin oranges. We use canned orange slices with the juices drained out.
- Candied pecans. The salad starts by toasting pecans on the stovetop with sugar until the outsides become crisp and sweet.
- Romaine Lettuce. Or swap it for other fresh salad greens such as spring lettuce or baby spinach.
- Red onion. The sharp taste of the red onion provides a nice balance to all the sweetness going on in this salad.
- Goat cheese. The tangy flavor and creaminess of the crumbles make it perfect for sweet salads like this one. The fresher the better.
- Chicken breasts. Cook the chicken breasts on the stove or your grill first. Leftover shredded chicken or rotisserie chicken works here too!
- Lemon Poppyseed Dressing. You will need lemon juice, olive oil, sugar and poppy seeds, along with a little mustard.
Salad Tips and Tricks
- Make the poppy seed dressing ahead of time. Mix all the ingredients together and store it in a mason jar in the fridge. When the salad is ready, the dressing will be perfectly chilled and ready to drizzle over your Strawberry Pecan Salad. We save jelly jars to use for homemade dressing!
- Side dish or main course. To serve this salad as a side dish for your main course, simply omit the chicken. Adding the chicken turns it into a complete meal!
- Make it less sweet. Use unsweetened toasted pecans instead of candied nuts if you prefer a salad with less sweetness. You could also reduce the amount of sugar in the dressing to suit your taste.
- Skip Panera and try our homemade kitchen sink cookies and orange scones at home!
Recipe FAQs
I don’t recommend frozen berries for this recipe. They release a significant amount of moisture as they thaw which would make your salad mushy. This is one recipe where fresh berries are a MUST!
We often enjoy this salad as a one-bowl meal on its own. It would pair well with sides like freshly baked dinner rolls or crackers, too.
Keep the strawberry theme going and make a No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake for dessert!
Our Strawberry Pecan Salad recipe is vegetarian if made without the cooked chicken breast. To make it vegan, omit both the goat cheese and the chicken.
This salad with strawberries is best served right away once it’s assembled. You could prep the dressing and cook the chicken in advance, if you like. Store them in tightly sealed containers in the fridge until you’re ready to make your salad.
More Easy Dinner Recipes
- Egg Salad Recipe
- Meatloaf Recipe
- Coleslaw Recipe
- Southwest Chicken Salad with Avocado Dressing
- Broccoli Salad
- Bruschetta
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Strawberry Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 1 cup pecan halves
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 12 ounce package Romaine lettuce chopped
- 8 ounce fresh strawberries halved
- 4 ounce fresh blueberries
- 2 ounce goat cheese crumbled
- ¼ cup red onion sliced (cut into small pieces)
- 15 ounce can Mandarin oranges drained
- 2 chicken breasts cooked and diced
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅔ cup olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon poppyseeds
Instructions
- In a small skillet over medium heat, saute pecans with sugar. This will take several minutes for the sugar to dissolve as you stir the pecans. Set aside and cool.
- In a large bowl, combine romaine, berries, oranges, cheese and onion. Add diced chicken. Toss gently.
- In a small mason jar, combine dressing ingredients and shake with lid on.
- When ready to serve, add candied pecans and drizzle with dressing. ENJOY!
I made this salad yesterday for Father’s Day. It was a hit!!! I will make it again! Made the dressing and pecans ahead. Had all the salad fixins in a bowl in the fridge. Super easy to put together!
We just made this wonderful salad tonight to accompany smoked brisket and EVERYONE loved it. This is a keeper of a recipe. Thank you so much.♥️
So happy you loved it!
Had this salad at a party. Made it tonight with chicken. Absolutely delicious.
This is a wonderful salad, and it is easy to make. I used feta cheese and didn’t add the chicken. I made the dressing as listed. The combination of the fruit, cheese, and lettuce is light and very refreshing. This is now a ‘go to’ salad in our house!
please make this into a home delivery I love your salads but would prefer them to be ready made and delivered whatever the cost
This salad is a huge hit in our home! I use 1/2 romaine and 1/2 baby spinach. I also use very little dressing when I toss it. It doesn’t take much and tastes so fresh. I make mine meatless but sometime will try with chicken. Super good!
How many will this salad serve?
Should I double it for 6 ladies?
Thanks
I’ve made this salad multiple times and it’s definitely a family favorite. I love the dressing just as it is. Not a fan of onions so I left them out but this is absolutely a terrific refreshing salad!