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Get It NowThis vegetable salad recipe has become a repeat player in my menu lately. It’s brimming with fresh summer produce that’s at peak season right now. With no leafy greens like traditional salads and a burst of flavor from caramelized veggies, tangy feta, and sweet balsamic dressing, you’ll want to serve this roasted vegetable salad for everything from healthy lunches to easy side dishes for dinner. You can even make it ahead!
Why You’ll Love This Vegetable Salad Recipe
- Savory, tangy, earthy flavors
- Caramelized roasted veggies
- Quick 10 minute prep time
- Simple, common ingredients
- Easy to customize with what you have on hand
- Perfect meal prep for lunches, dinners, or even potlucks
Ingredients & Substitutions
This section explains how to choose the best roasted vegetable salad ingredients, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
Vegetables:
- Cauliflower – Either cut a whole cauliflower head or use pre-cut cauliflower florets. The same method also works for roasted broccoli, caramelized romanesco, or roasted cauliflower and broccoli together.
- Zucchini – You can also make this vegetable salad using cucumbers (don’t roast them, ha!), yellow squash, patty pan squash, or a combination.
- Bell Pepper – I used a red bell pepper, but you could use yellow, orange, or green if you prefer. If you don’t have fresh peppers but have roasted red peppers on hand, you can toss them in after roasting the other vegetables.
- Eggplant – Look for small to medium eggplants if possible, as larger ones are more bitter and have more seeds. Make sure the skin is smooth and the flesh feels firm. I used globe eggplants (sometimes called American eggplants).
- Cherry Tomatoes – You can also use grape tomatoes. Sun-dried tomatoes would be another great substitute if you’re not a fan of fresh ones.
- Olive Oil – Helps the veggies caramelize and spices stick. You can also use extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or any oil you prefer.
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper
VARIATION: Use different vegetables.
You can make this vegetable salad recipe with just about any veggies you like, but make sure to choose veggies that will take a similar amount of time to roast. Some good options include: Broccoli florets, cherry tomatoes, asparagus, or red onion. Avoid super dense root vegetables, like carrots, beets, and potatoes.
Balsamic Dressing:
- Olive Oil – Makes up the base of the dressing.
- Balsamic Vinegar – Adds tang and a hint of sweetness. You can also use red wine vinegar, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, rice vinegar, or sherry vinegar.
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper
Add-Ins:
- Fresh Basil – I love basil here, but you can try other fresh herbs such as thyme, chives, oregano, parsley, or dill.
- Feta Cheese – Crumbled goat cheese or shaved parmesan make good alternatives if you don’t have (or don’t like) feta.
How To Make Vegetable Salad
This section shows how to make roasted vegetable salad, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique, to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
- Roast the vegetables. Cut the veggies to similar sizes, and place them in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper. Roast in the oven until tender and golden brown. Transfer to a large bowl, cover, and chill in the refrigerator.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together the dressing ingredients until emulsified. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
- Combine the vegetable salad. Toss the roasted vegetables with dressing. Top with fresh basil and crumbled feta.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Meal prep: Roast veggies and make dressing ahead of time and store in the refrigerator. Mix add-ins and dressing right before serving.
What To Serve With Vegetable Salad
Roasted vegetable salad has an Italian or Mediterranean flavor to it, so you can pair it with dishes from those cuisines, but it’s neutral enough to go with American dishes, too. Here are some ideas for what to serve with it:
- Chicken – Add some Instant Pot chicken or sliced lemon garlic chicken right over the salad if you need some protein to make it a quick and easy lunch! If you want a main dish on the side instead, try creamy Crock Pot chicken or crispy grilled chicken thighs.
- Seafood – This vegetable salad goes well with Tuscan salmon and pan fried tilapia for cost-effective options. For a fancier feast, pair it with surf and turf.
- Other Meats – Serve alongside quick and easy air fryer pork chops (or grilled pork chops), grilled lamb kofta kebab, lamb chops, juicy grilled steak, or even pork steak recipes.
- Soups – Pair the salad with a hearty soup, such as roasted tomato soup, minestrone, coconut curry, or zucchini soup for a summer meal.
- Casseroles – Veggie salad is a great way to lighten up a heavier main dish like stuffed spaghetti squash. If you have more eggplant to use up, try eggplant lasagna!
More Vegetable Salad Recipes
Here are some ideas for unique and flavorful salads that make the most of your fresh produce:
Vegetable Salad (Roasted & So Easy!)
Want an easy, unique vegetable salad recipe? Try this simple roasted vegetable salad with fresh herbs, feta, and balsamic dressing.
Ingredients
Tap underlined ingredients to see where to get them.
Roasted Vegetables
Dressing
Add-ins
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
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Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (204 degrees C).
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Arrange the veggies in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle both sides with sea salt and black pepper.
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Roast vegetables in the oven for 20 minutes.
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Flip the eggplant and cauliflower, then return to the oven and roast for 10-20 more minutes, until soft and starting to brown.
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Transfer the veggies to a bowl or container, cover, and chill for about an hour, until cold.
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Meanwhile, make the dressing. Whisk together all the dressing ingredients until emulsified. Adjust sea salt and black pepper to taste.
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Toss the veggies with the dressing. At this point you can return to the fridge to store, or serve.
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To serve, add fresh basil and crumbled feta to the salad.
Did You Like It?
Leave a rating to help other readers, or get the recipe sent to your inbox.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: ~3/4 cup (varies depending on the size of your veggies), equivalent to 1/4 of entire recipe
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
© Copyright Maya Krampf for Wholesome Yum. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link with photo instead. 🙂
18 Comments
Olivia
0This vegetable salad has become a new go-to lunch of mine! It’s so refreshing and delicious, thank you for the recipe!
Donna
0Any recommendations on How to use a bag of frozen roasted vegetables?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Donna, I would not recomend that in this recipe.
Kristyn
0What a bright & colorful salad & so yummy!! I love the roasted veggies, cold! The dressing is light & adds so much flavor, too!
jess
0The combination of the feta cheese and the balsamic vinegar with the veggies is everything I could have asked for and more. Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe.
Rebecca Schrader
0We enjoyed this. Thank you for sharing it.
Therese Fitzgerald
0I love this recipe and it is yummy!!!! I’m also a type 2 diabetic so finding low carb recipes is very important. Could you please let me know how long you can keep it refrigerated before discarding leftovers?
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Therese! Storage info is in the post above.
Doreen
0This is REALLY tasty. I made it as a light Sunday dinner. Went down a treat!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked it, Doreen! Thanks for stopping by!
William Scof
0Fantastic Recipe!
Can you recommend any other kind of dressing that would go with the salad. Thank you.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0You can use whatever low carb dressing you’d like, William!
Healthy Kitchen 101
0Lovely bowl! Olive oil and balsamic vinegar are two ingredients that I often use as dressing for my salad 🙂
– Natalie Ellis
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0I am so happy you liked it! Thanks for stopping by!
Linda
0This recipe sounds delicious. I’m anxious to try it with a nice boneless, skinless grilled chichicken breast of some sort. I’m type 2 diabetic so I have to stay low carb. Feta cheese makes anything taste amazing.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Thank you, Linda! That sounds like a perfect pairing.
Pat Marino
0I would like to make your recipe for cold roasted vegetable salad but I cannot have any kind of acidic dressing. Can you recommend any other kind of dressing that would go with the salad. Thank you. Pat
Marino.
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Pat, thanks for stopping by! You can just use olive oil with sea salt if you’d like! Enjoy!