This simple Pea Salad with Bacon is a classic potluck side dish that never goes out of style. It’s a cold creamy salad full of sweet green peas, big chunks of cheddar cheese, crispy bacon bits, diced onion, and ranch dressing.
I highly recommend using frozen peas for this sweet pea salad because they hold up great. But if fresh peas are in season, those will obviously work well. If you like creamy salads, you can also try this Easy Frog Eye Salad, or this creamy Pesto Pasta Salad.
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Creamy Pea Salad with Bacon
Don’t knock it until you try it. Even if you aren’t the biggest peas fan, you just may find yourself falling in love with this creamy Pea Salad recipe with bacon, onions, and cheddar cheese chunks. The sweetness of the peas combined with the creamy dressing, salty bacon, and big pieces of cheese are what makes this salad so great.
For the pea salad dressing, I usually use ranch dressing (store bought or homemade ranch work great). If you wanted to add a little extra kick, you could use our Southwest Ranch Dressing. Besides being delicious, this is probably such a classic barbecue recipe because it is so dang easy. You can make the entire salad from start to finish in less than 15 minutes.
Old Fashioned Pea Salad Recipe Ingredients
- Peas - You can use fresh or frozen peas, but I personally prefer to use frozen peas. The texture is far better than canned peas and they hold up so much better. If you make this recipe in the summer and have access to fresh green peas, by all means you can use those too.
- Bacon - you can purchase prepared bacon bits or make your own. Any kind of bacon will work well.
- Onion - I like to use red onion for this recipe. It has a nice flavor and adds a little extra color to the salad.
- Cheddar Cheese - this should be cut into small bite sized cubes. I like to use sharp cheddar cheese but really any kind will taste good.
- Ranch Dressing - you will need between ½ to 1 cup of ranch dressing, depending on how much you like. You could also try using our Southwest Ranch Dressing for a slightly different flavor profile. If you want to keep things a little more healthy you could try substituting Greek yogurt or sour cream and mixing in ranch seasoning mix. As always, you can add salt and pepper to taste.
How to Make Pea Salad
- Cook the bacon bits. Heat a saute pan over medium high heat and add the bacon slices. Saute until crispy, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel until cooled.
- Mix the rest of the ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, add the frozen peas, bacon bits (reserve some for the top of the salad), diced red onion, ¾ cup of the cubed cheddar cheese, and ½ cup ranch dressing. Stir until combined. Add more ranch dressing according to your creaminess preference.
- Serve. Transfer the pea salad to a serving bowl and top with the reserved bacon bits and ¼ cup of cubed cheese. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Nope! You can add the peas in frozen. It doesn’t take long for them to thaw and this way they won’t get too soft before you need to mix with the rest of the ingredients.
Absolutely! If green peas are in season, you can use those instead. They make this salad even more delicious, flavorful, and fresh.
In order to serve this salad at its very best, you can store it in the fridge up to a few hours ahead of time. Leftovers will still taste great even three days after you have made it, but I recommend first serving it soon after you have made it because the peas will still taste super fresh.
Storing Pea Salad
- Refrigerator: store in an airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge.
Pea Bacon Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 24 oz Frozen Peas
- 8 slices Bacon or 1 ½ cups prepared bacon bits (reserve a little for garnish on top)
- ½ cup Red Onion diced
- 1 cup Cheddar Cheese cubed (reserve a little for garnish on top)
- ½-1 cup Ranch Dressing
Instructions
- Heat a saute pan over medium high heat and add the bacon slices. Saute until crispy, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel until cooled.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the frozen peas, bacon bits (reserve some for the top of the salad), diced red onion, ¾ cup of the cubed cheddar cheese, and ½ cup ranch dressing. Stir until combined. Add more ranch dressing according to your creaminess preference.
- Transfer the pea salad to a serving bowl and top with the reserved bacon bits and ¼ cup of cubed cheese.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Nutrition
More Classic Salad Recipes
- Pasta Salad
- Broccoli Salad with Bacon
- Coleslaw
- Caesar Salad
- Caesar Salad Dressing
- Easy Frog Eye Salad
- German Potato Salad
- Fruit Salad
- More Side Dishes
- More Easy Salad Recipes
This creamy sweet Green Pea Salad recipe is a quick and easy side dish to bring to potlucks and BBQs. It's full of frozen peas, bacon, red onion, and cheddar cheese all mixed with ranch dressing.
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