This Chopped Blue Cheese Salad is a simple, but flavour packed salad that is impressive enough to serve up to guests. An incredible mixture of texture, with crunch and creaminess, it takes less than 10 minutes to make.
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We are big fans of salads. Whoever thinks salads are boring, has clearly been making them wrong! There is so much that you can do with a salad, and they have a little bit of everything, but this blue cheese salad is definitely one of our favourites. A great way to use creamy and flavourful blue cheese, this is a favourite for a Christmas Day starter too.
Salads are perfect for when you want to use up lots of little bits of different ingredients and you don't have a lot of time. You only need to cook the bacon in this recipe, and everything else is just thrown together. A quick and easy lunch and a serious crowd pleaser.
Looking for other ways to use blue cheese? Why not try our Broccoli and Stilton Soup, Easy Mushroom Tartlets or our amazing Grazing Platter.
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Why You Will Love It
- A delicious salad - Salads don't have to be boring, and this might be as exciting as they get. A mix of salty and sweet, and creamy and crunchy - it has it all.
- A new way to eat blue cheese - Not sure what to do with blue cheese apart from serve it on a cheese board? This is a great way to use it.
- Use up leftovers - Every special occasion needs a cheese board, and if you have leftovers then this is a good way to use it all up so that nothing goes to waste. Nobody wants to waste cheese!
- Adaptable - The great thing about a salad is that it's so easy to adapt. We have given lots of options below on how you can switch and swap ingredients.
Ingredients and Substitutions
A full ingredients list, along with US Customary and Metric measurements, can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Lettuce - This is the base of the salad, so you want to make sure that you have a good mixture. We went with some little gem, curly lettuce and radicchio for crunch and then added in some rocket lettuce (arugula) for some peppery flavour. You could use romaine too for crunch or add spinach and kale for a nutrition boost.
- Radish - This not only adds some colour, but a strong flavour and added crunch. If you don't like the flavour of radish, you could swap it for diced bell pepper instead.
- Apple - We love fruit in salads and apple and blue cheese go so well together. Thinly sliced apples add some sweetness, which balances out the saltiness.
- Celery - An easy way to add some extra crunch to the salad. It could be left out if you don't like it.
- Bacon - Blue cheese and bacon is a classic combination. A little chopped bacon on top of the salad goes a long way. You could add cooked chorizo if you wanted something a little more fancy.
- Blue cheese - The star of the salad. We used Stilton, but other blue cheese would work well in this recipe too. You could swap Stilton for Danish blue cheese, dolcelatte, Roquefort, cambozola or Gorgonzola.
- Dressing - We used our Honey and Mustard Dressing, as it would perfectly with the blue cheese and bacon.
- Pecans - This adds a lovely crunch on top of the salad, and cheese and nut always go so well together. You could use walnuts or flaked almonds instead, or maybe a mixture of nuts.
Variations
Vegetables - There is so much that you can add to a salad. Some of our favourite extras to add to this salad are cucumber, tomatoes, roasted peppers, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, broccoli, avocado and grated carrot.
Meat - We added some bacon for salty flavour and crunch. However, you could add some leftover shredded chicken, or even some slices of steak if you wanted to make it really fancy.
Grains - If you wanted to make this more of a filling salad, then there are some grains that you could add to it to bulk it out. You could add pasta, quinoa, rice, orzo or bulgar wheat. Or why not bulk it out with some chickpeas or butter beans?
Dressing - The sweetness of the honey and the strong flavour of the mustard really work in the dressing we have used. However, a balsamic dressing would work too, or something lighter like a Lemon Vinaigrette.
Step by Step Instructions
One: Cook the bacon to your liking. In a large bowl add the lettuce leaves, sliced radish and chopped celery.
Two: Add the sliced apple and pour over the dressing.
Three: Mix well and add the chopped bacon and crumbled cheese.
Four: Transfer to bowls and top with the crushed pecans.
What is Stilton?
If you haven't tried Stilton before, or you aren't really sure what it is, then read on! Stilton is a strong blue cheese made in the UK since the 18th Century. It's a crumbly, almost soft, cheese, that has a marble effect of blue veins running through it.
Although the village of Stilton is in Cambridgeshire, a cheese can only be called Stilton if it has been made in one of the three permitted counties of Leicestershire, Derbyshire or Nottinghamshire. There is a blue cheese made in the village of Stilton, but they have to call it Bells Blue because of EU regulations.
Stilton has such a strong smell and flavour, which puts a lot of people off, but we think that is part of the appeal. When it comes to cheese, it's the smellier the better for us! Because Stilton has such a strong flavour, you don't need to use a lot of it because it will overpower the dish. A little goes a long way in this dish.
Serving Suggestions
We usually serve up small portions of this as a starter to the main dish. However, if we are having it as a main then we would either add some Sourdough Croutons, or serve it with a slice of White Bread or Easy Bagels.
This blue cheese salad also makes a great side dish. Why not try it alongside one of these recipes:
Dannii's Top Tips
- You can swap the Stilton for Danish blue cheese, dolcelatte, Roquefort, cambozola or Gorgonzola.
- Make this salad meat free by leaving out the bacon.
- If you think you are going to have leftovers, only dress individual portions of the salad, rather than the whole thing. As storing the salad with the dressing tends to make it very soggy.
- If you are not a fan of blue cheese, then you could use feta instead.
- Why not try toasting the pecans to bring out their flavour.
- If you have big chunks of stilton, most will sink to the bottom. However, if you crumble it more, it will mix more evenly.
Frequently Asked Questions
I think that salads are always a good opportunity to get lots of extra vegetables in your diet. However, that doesn't automatically mean they are healthy and it is easy to load them with calories with cheese and dressings. So, if that is something you want to keep on the lower side, then be mindful for that. This is a fairly high calorie salad with the blue cheese and bacon.
This salad is best eaten fresh, however if you have some leftovers then you can store it in an air tight container in the fridge for 24 hours. Try to dress it just before you are serving it though, otherwise the salad can go soggy.
Yes, as long as you make sure the bacon you are using is gluten free (some isn't surprisingly) and there is no cross contamination, then this is a gluten free salad.
More Salad Recipes
If you've tried this Blue Cheese Salad recipe, let us know how you got on in the comments below.
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Recipe
Chopped Blue Cheese Salad
Ingredients
- 150 g (5.25 oz) Mixed lettuce leaves
- 30 g (1 oz) Rocket (arugula)
- 4 Radishes - thinly sliced
- 1 stalk Celery - chopped
- 1 Apple - sliced
- 2 portion Honey mustard dressing
- 100 g (3.5 oz) Blue cheese - crumbled
- 2 tablespoon Pecans - crushed
- 3 rasher Bacon - cooked and chopped
Instructions
- Cook 3 rasher Bacon to your liking.
- In a large bowl add 150 g Mixed lettuce leaves, 30 g Rocket (arugula), 4 Radishes and 1 stalk Celery.
- Add 1 Apple (sliced) and pour over 2 portion Honey mustard dressing.
- Mix well and add the chopped bacon and 100 g Blue cheese (crumbled).
- Transfer to bowls and top with the2 tablespoon Pecans.
Recipe Tips
- You can swap Stilton for Danish blue cheese, dolcelatte, Roquefort, cambozola or Gorgonzola.
- Make this salad meat free by leaving out the bacon.
- If you think you are going to have leftovers, only dress individual portions of the salad, rather than the whole thing. As storing the salad with the dressing tends to make it very soggy.
- If you are not a fan of blue cheese, then you could use feta instead.
- Why not try toasting the pecans to bring out their flavour.
- If you have big chunks of stilton, most will sink to the bottom. However, if you crumble it more, it will mix more evenly.
Nutritional Information
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The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
As all appliances vary, cooking times are a guide. Please note that by changing the serving size, the cooking time may also need to be altered.
Julie says
Wow! My kind of salad. Bacon, apples, radishes and blue cheese! Can eat this any day!
Michele says
I love this salad! It is the perfect combination of flavors and textures. I will be making this often! Thanks for a great recipe.
Mirlene says
Not only is this salad pretty, it is also delicious!
Jess says
I LOVE anything with Blue Cheese in it so this salad was a total win!
Shadi Hasanzade says
Love love a new salad recipe that's so flavorful! That blue cheese adds a lot of flavor!
Emily Flint says
Everything about this salad was amazing and all of the flavors worked perfectly together! I will definitely be making this again although I probably shouldn't eat blue cheese every day...LOL.
Jessie says
Refreshing salad for when you need a break from the heavy winter food
Heidy says
This Chopped Blue Cheese Salad was delicious! I took it to work for our luncheon, and it went over so well that I had about five people ask for the recipe. I gave them your blog link! Great recipe!
H
Alisa Infanti says
This salad was so tasty. The blue cheese add the perfect zip!
Toni says
I love everything about this salad! It is packed full of flavors!