Rhubarb has always been one of my favorite vegetables to work with. It’s light, tart and while we often see it in desserts, I think it lends itself really nicely a salad dressing! It’s like learning how to harness rhubarb’s tartness while also spreading the love with a bit of sweetness. Plus, it ends up looking bright pink, and I love pink things.
This rhubarb salad combines my favorite rhubarb dressing with a bunch of other simple elements to make a starter salad that really sings. Gone are the days of boring (and dare I say, bad??) side salads! No more! This salad is tangy, bright, salty and cheesy, but still light enough to crunch through on the way to starting your meal. If you are looking for an impressive dinner salad, look no further than this one.
How to turn rhubarb into a dressing
Now you can make the rhubarb dressing for this salad one of two ways:
The first is that you can blend everything together, which will give you the smoothest dressing and the lightest pink hue. I find this fun for when I want my dressing to have a lot of color and really cling to the leaves of the lettuce I’m using.
The second option is finely finely dicing all of your ingredients, then whisking them together with the vinegar, olive oil and honey, similar to a vinaigrette. This will give you a less thick dressing, with a look and texture that is more similar to a mignonette sauce. Italian salad dressing is also a good comparison, although this one will have a distinctly rhubarb flavor!
Ingredients you will need for the rhubarb salad dressing
This dressing only uses on stalk of rhubarb, but rhubarb is so tart that it will go a long way!
Here are all the ingredients you will need for this rhubarb salad dressing:
3/4 cup chopped rhubarb
2 garlic cloves
1/4 small shallot
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon oregano
Diamond Crystal kosher salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Above, you can see what it looks like right before it is going to be blended. But below, you can see the final product of the dressing!
But I added below another example of what the dressing would look like if you just finely chop the elements. It has a different look and a different taste, and I prefer it for salads with a heartier vegetable base – such as celery or fennel.
Ingredients you will need for the rhubarb salad
I have the dressing recipe and the salad recipe in separate boxes below, but both work together in harmony! The salad itself is simple, which is why I kept them separate, but each component has been perfectly thought out. Here are all the salad ingredients you will need:
1/3 cup Rhubarb Dressing (see recipe box below)
3 heads little gem lettuce
1/4 pound fresh strawberries
3 tablespoons hazelnuts
1 cup fresh mint leaves
2 ounces parmesan
Flaky salt
Why do I prefer little gems in my salads?
I love little gem lettuce. And it’s for a simple reason – no chopping needed, and they hold all your salad components in perfect little lettuce-sized cups. They are crisp like romaine, but less watery, and they are easy to clean, dry, toss together and come out looking supremely pretty. So yes, I’m a sucker for aesthetics, but I’m also a sucker for usefulness, ease and versatility. And a little gem has all of that!
Try to get and use your little gem lettuce on the same day though, it’s always better when it’s a fresh as possible.
Looking for similar salad recipes?
Here are a few other starter salads I love!
This salad uses one secret ingredient: canned cranberry sauce. Ok ok, you can also use any cranberry juice or jam of your choice, but the cranberry sauce was where the recipe started. The dressing is zippy and bright and finished with a smattering of frozen goat cheese, making it creamy, acidic and sweet all rolled into one.
Pink Salad is a deliciously bright mixture of pink or purple-ish salad ingredients that get enhanced into a hot pink hue by the acid in the agrodolce dressing. It’s a filling, wholesome salad that is finished with fresh herbs and feta to turn it into the perfect side dish. And if you don’t have the exact ingredients to make this pink, don’t sweat it. It is still delicious with crunchy vegetables of all sizes and colors!
The only thing better than hot honey halloumi is a ginger-infused hot honey halloumi paired with grilled peaches. This is the one snack you NEED to make before peach season is over, is the perfect mix of sweet and savory and is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
And that’s it for this Rhubarb Salad!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you.
Rhubarb Salad Dressing
Rhubarb is so often synonymous with desserts and sweet things, but its naturally tart flavor lends itself so well to salad dressings! You can make this salad dressing either by grating the ingredients, which I think makes a lovely texture for the dressing, or you can blend everything together for a nice, smooth pink dressing. It’s amazing on summer salads, quinoa bowls, or even avocado toasts.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup chopped rhubarb
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/4 small shallot
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- Diamond Crystal kosher salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
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If grating the dressing together, use a rasp-style grater to grate the rhubarb into a large bowl. Repeat this with the garlic and the shallot. Pour in the honey and red wine vinegar and whisk together. Continue to whisk as you gradually pour in the olive oil. It will begin to turn into a nice and emulsified dressing. Season with the oregano, then salt and pepper to taste.
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If making this in a blender, add all the ingredients except for two tablespoons of olive oil, the oregano, salt and pepper to a blender. Blend until light pink and smooth, about 1 minute. Pour this into a small bowl and thin it out with the remaining oil. Season with the oregano and add salt and pepper to taste.
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This salad dressing is best kept in a jar or airtight container and will store well in the fridge for up to a week.
Rhubarb Salad with Little Gems, Hazelnuts & Parmesan
This salad is everything I want in a summer salad. Light strawberries, a perfect rhubarb dressing, crisp little gems and toasty nuts to hold it all together. It’s best eaten with the little gem leaves still whole, so they can scoop up all the dressing and toppings into one refreshing bite.
Equipment
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1 chef’s knife
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1 small sauté pan
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Rhubarb Dressing see recipe above
- 3 heads little gem lettuce
- 1/4 pound fresh strawberries
- 3 tablespoons hazelnuts
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves
- 2 ounces parmesan
- Flaky salt
Instructions
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Prepare the rhubarb dressing. Set is aside.
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Tear the little gems into a large bowl. Slice the strawberries and roughly chop the hazelnuts. Tear the mint leaves into big pieces.
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Set a small pan over medium heat and toast the hazelnuts until they are a shade darker and fragrant, about 4-5 minutes.
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Dress the little gems with half of the rhubarb dressing and give them a big toss. Add in the strawberries and mint leaves.
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Plate the salad on a serving plate then sprinkle with the toasted nuts. Either grate or shave over the parmesan and sprinkle with flaky salt. Drizzle with more rhubarb dressing as preferred.
