Strawberry Spinach Salad

I love turning fresh strawberries into everything from strawberry salsa to bruschetta in the summertime. This is one of my favorite strawberry salads, which definitely gets 5 stars for flavor and ease! It’s a combination of leafy greens, ripe avocado, juicy sliced strawberries, red onions, and crunchy nuts, drizzled with a simple homemade honey mustard dressing (from my honey mustard chicken salad). Every bite of this strawberry avocado salad is refreshing, tangy, and a little sweet.

It’s easy to make this strawberry salad into a light meal by adding juicy air fryer shrimp, blackened salmon, or grilled chicken breast on top. Otherwise, it’s a delicious side salad for a summer dinner that I just know you’ll love.

Strawberry Avocado Salad Recipe Highlights

• 5 minutes. That’s all the time it takes to whip up this easy strawberry salad and dressing.
• All about contrast. Juicy berries, crunchy almonds, and creamy avocado offer irresistible textures and flavors.
• Adaptable. Add your favorite veggies, nuts, croutons, and add-ons. It’s also delicious with grilled protein.

Key Ingredients

Here are the easy ingredients in this strawberry, spinach, and avocado salad recipe. Check the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact ingredient amounts.

• Spinach – I prefer baby spinach for this as it’s more tender, but Swiss chard, regular spinach, kale, or any salad greens will work.
• Fresh strawberries – Please don’t use frozen/freeze-dried/anything but FRESH strawberries here! Other fresh berries, like blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries, are a great way to add variety to this salad.
• Avocados – An easy way to test if your avocado is ripe is to press it gently. It should feel firm to the touch, but with a little give.
• Almonds – Bonus points if they’re toasted! Chopped pecans and walnuts are great alternatives. Swap the nuts for croutons or crispy chickpeas to make the salad nut-free.
• Red onion – Another mild salad onion works, too.
• Salad dressing – I include my homemade honey mustard dressing, but you can use your favorite! This spinach strawberry salad would go great with any of my homemade salad dressings.

How to Make a Strawberry Avocado Salad

This 2-step strawberry spinach salad with avocado is pretty much foolproof. The trick, as with most green salad recipes, is adding the dressing right before it’s time to serve. Otherwise, the ingredients become a bit soggy.

1. Whisk the dressing. Mix the stone-ground mustard, dijon, honey, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper in a small bowl until well combined. Set it aside.
2. Assemble the salad. Toss the spinach, strawberries, avocados, red onion, and almonds in a large bowl until mixed. Serve with dressing on the side and enjoy.

Quick Variations

These variations are all about making this strawberry avocado salad your own with what you have on hand.

• Different fruit. Add sliced mango, peaches, or apples to make this salad even fruitier. Fresh berries are also super yummy.
• Swap the dressing. Out of honey mustard dressing, or don’t have all the ingredients to make it right now? Use your favorite store-bought dressing instead.
• Add protein. Adding sliced grilled chicken or rotisserie chicken will make the salad much more filling. It also makes a great work lunch or light dinner when I don’t feel like cooking.
• More add-ins. Swap fresh red onions with pickled red onions, or add sliced radishes, green onions, and fresh herbs, like basil.

Make-Ahead Tips

• Prep the ingredients. Slice the strawberries and onions, chop the nuts, and prepare the dressing in advance for an even quicker salad throughout the week. Store everything in separate containers in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble.
• Wait for the avocado. If you’re not serving the salad for at least another couple of hours or another day, don’t add the avocado just yet because it’ll brown. Add it until right before serving.
• Keep it away from heat. Especially when on the counter or table for serving, keep the assembled spinach strawberry salad away from heat and sunlight. It’ll spoil faster (nobody wants that!).

What to Serve With This Avocado Strawberry Salad

I like to serve this strawberry avocado salad with grilled protein, summer dishes, and appetizers washed down with a strawberry mojito or this non-boozy coconut pineapple mocktail. These are some favorite serving ideas:

• Chicken: Try my bacon-wrapped chicken breast or air fryer chicken breast for an easy dinner. I also love this garlic herb roasted turkey breast when I’m entertaining.
• Seafood: If you’re craving seafood, pair it with my pan-seared Chilean sea bass.
• Appetizers: Have this salad on the side of these loaded sweet potato fries, mini quiches, spicy honey sriracha chicken wings, or crispy bang bang shrimp.
  

Storing Extras

Store any leftover strawberry salad in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Ideally, store the dressing separately, or the spinach will soften. Serve it straight out of the fridge and enjoy.

More Summer Salad Recipes to Try

• Grilled Sweet Potato Salad
• Green Goddess Salad
• Classic Wedge Salad
• Fattoush Salad
• Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad