This beet salad is the perfect winter salad – it’s packed with flavor, thanks to the roasted beets, peppery arugula, crunchy apples, and salty feta cheese. The dressing is tangy and delicious, making it a great option for any occasion. Plus, it looks pretty fancy when topped with crunchy toasted pistachios.
If you’re looking for a beautiful and flavorful salad to impress your guests, this beet salad is the perfect choice. It’s got everything you could want in a salad: beautiful bright colors, the best ever tangy dressing, and a mix of crunchy and soft textures. Plus, it’s so simple to make.
Looking for more great recipes that use beets? Try my Vinegret Salad, or my Russian Borscht Soup!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy – This beet salad comes together quickly and easily, making it the perfect light weeknight dinner option. Or a quick salad that you can serve on your holiday table.
- Looks Fancy – I love the beautiful colors and the textures in this salad, the bright beets, with fresh arugula, apples, feta, and pistachios look so beautiful and taste amazing too!
- Versatile Recipe – I will give you suggestions to swap out any ingredients that you don’t like, and add your own twist to the salad.
Ingredients In Beet Salad
Here’s what you need to make it:
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
- Beets: The star of the show! I’m using store-bought roasted beets to save time, you can also buy steamed ones. They come in little pouches and last for long. You can also roast or steam them on your own if you prefer.
- Greens: I’m using fresh peppery arugula here, but you can use any other greens that you like. Spring mix, kale, or spinach also work well here.
- Apples: Gala, Fuji, or Honeycrisp apples would be perfect here. Slice them up and toss with a little lemon juice so they don’t brown.
- Feta: Crumbled salty feta is amazing in this salad. I recommend that you buy a feta block and crumble it before adding to the salad, rather than buying feta crumbles (tastes better!). You can also use goat cheese or even blue cheese if you like.
- Pistachios: I LOVE adding pistachios here, the flavor of pistachio is nicely paired with peppery arugula and sweet beets and they instantly elevate this salad. If you don’t love pistachios, substitute with walnuts, pecans, almonds, or pine nuts.
- Tangy Homemade Dressing: Extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper get shaken up in seconds to create the best ever dressing to finish off this beautiful salad. If you like a little sweetness, add 2 teaspoons of maple syrup or honey to the dressing.
How to Roast Beets
Scrub the beets thoroughly and individually wrap loosely in aluminum foil. Roast in a preheated oven at 400°F/200°C until fork tender. Small beets will roast quicker, but large beets may take hours to be done.
How To Make Beet Salad with Feta
- Get the Dressing Ingredients: in a bowl or a small jar combine the olive oil with lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Make Dressing: Whisk or shake well until combined. You want the dressing to be emulsified and creamy.
- Slice and Apples: Get a dark in color cutting board, and slice the apples. Add to a bowl, and toss with a little lemon juice. Lemon juice prevents oxidation of the apples which means that they won’t turn brown and will look beautiful in the salad.
- Dice the Beets: To prevent staining the cutting board (other than getting a dark in color cutting board), you can use a piece of parchment paper. Wear gloves, and dice the beets into small half-inch pieces.
- Assemble the Salad: To a large bowl, add the arugula, diced beets, half of the apples, half of the feta, half of the pistachios, and add the dressing. Gently toss to combine. Transfer to a serving dish, and top with the remaining apples, feta, and pistachios.
Tip!
To keep beets from staining your hands, wear gloves as you chop them. And to keep them from staining your cutting board, use a sheet or parchment paper and lay it over the cutting board.
Recipe Tips
- Staining: Keep in mind that the beets will stain the apples and feta when tossed together. Everything will turn pink! Which I think is pretty. But for presentation purposes, I like to top the salad with more crumbled feta, and fresh apple slices.
- Use any Nut you Like: If you don’t love pistachios, substitute with walnuts, pecans, almonds, or pine nuts. If you want to make this salad nut-free, use pepitas, or sunflower seeds.
- Swap the Apples: If you don’t love apples, you can swap them out for pears instead!
- Plan Ahead: If you’re roasting fresh beets, make sure that you plan ahead. Large beets may take hours until they’re done!
- Meal Prep: If you’re making ahead, roast and chop the beets and store them in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Wash the arugula and store in a separate bowl, and mix up the dressing up to 2 days ahead, then assemble the salad right before serving.
What To Serve With
This salad goes perfectly with a variety of grilled or roasted fish or meat. Or serve it as a part of your holiday meal. Serve it with any of the following dishes:
- Yogurt Marinated Chicken
- Air Fryer Pork Chops
- Pan Fried Tilapia
- Grilled Salmon
- Garlic Grilled Shrimp
- Stuffed Pepper Soup
More Healthy Salads To Try
All Salads ➜
FAQs
Yes you can eat raw beets. This salad calls for roasted beets, but if you want to try raw beets, grate them on a box grater and add them to your salad.
If you want to add protein to this salad, go for poached shredded or sliced chicken, seared steak, or cooked brown lentils.
My favorite cheese to be paired with beets is feta, but goat cheese is also a popular choice. Sharp cheddar would also be delicious in this salad.
Whether you decide to serve this as a side dish, or as a light meal, I hope that you like it as much as I do! Don’t forget to review this recipe and share your experience in the comments section below.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Beet Salad
Ingredients
For the Dressing
- 3 tablespoons (45ml) extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 clove garlic pressed or very finely minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Salad:
- 1 medium apple
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 pound (450g) cooked beets boiled or steamed, see note 2
- 5 cups (60g) arugula/rocket washed and spinned
- 3 ounces (85g) feta cheese or goat cheese
- ½ cup (50g) toasted pistachios roughly chopped, see note 4
Instructions
- In a bowl or a small jar combine the olive oil with lemon juice, Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. Whisk or shake well until combined. You want the dressing to be emulsified and creamy.
- Get a dark in color cutting board (see note 3), and slice the apple. Add to a bowl, and toss with a little lemon juice. Wear gloves, and dice the beets into small half-inch pieces.
- To a large bowl, add the arugula, diced beets, half of the apples, half of the feta, half of the pistachios, and add the dressing.
- Gently toss to combine. Transfer to a serving dish, and top with the remaining apples, feta, and pistachios.
Notes:
- This recipe serves 6 as a side dish or 2-3 as a main dish salad.
- Scrub the beets thoroughly and individually wrap loosely in aluminum foil. Roast in a preheated oven at 400°F/200°C until fork tender. Small beets will roast quicker, but large beets may take hours to be done.
- To keep beets from staining your hands, wear gloves as you chop them. And to keep them from staining your cutting board, use a sheet or parchment paper and lay it over the cutting board.
- If you don’t love pistachios, substitute with walnuts, pecans, almonds, or pine nuts. If you want to make this salad nut-free, use pepitas, or sunflower seeds.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Blair says
This is very similar to a salad I’ve been making for years. I use Granny Smith apples since they’re a bit lower in sugar and I like the contrast between them and the red beets. I also add seasonal low sugar berries – typically, blackberries and/or raspberries…maybe 1/2 cup of each. And I do use goat cheese instead of feta, for health reasons. Your dressing looks delicious. I usually am lazy and have found a bottled raspberry vinaigrette that works well for me.
Von says
I love the combination of flavors in this salad. it is always a plus when I can get the hubby to try new things, he enjoyed the salad.
Diana says
Awesome! So glad to hear you both enjoyed it!