How to Make a Mason Jar Salad

May 23, 2022

One of our favorite ways to utilize a mason jar is by making a salad. Mason jar salads are versatile, tasty, and super easy to assemble. Here are some ways you can upgrade your practices to make the best mason jar salad:

What Ingredients Should You Use?

The beauty of a salad is that you can include anything you want. As long as you have ingredients you like, you can create a delicious salad that totally suits your preferences.

You can use a variety of ingredients in a mason jar salad. Here are some of our favorites:

• Greens - Some greens you may want to include in your salad are romaine lettuce, arugula, spinach, kale, or even a lovely spring mix. Make sure that you have properly dried your greens before putting them in your jar, as excessive moisture is the enemy of a salad.
• Veggies - Hard veggies are perfect for mason jar salads. Carrots, celery, corn, radishes, and bell peppers are excellent options. You can add veggies like tomatoes and cucumbers, but it’s best to cut out any source of moisture before adding them.
• Grains - There are dozens of grains that you’ll love inside your salad. Quinoa, pasta, and croutons will all add a fun dimension of texture and flavor.
• Proteins - Chicken, steak, and deli meat are perfect proteins to put in a mason jar. You can add other ones, too, like chickpeas or hard-boiled eggs. You could even add beans.
• Fruit - As with vegetables, add fruits that don’t have a ton of moisture like apples, strawberries, or blueberries. You can’t totally escape the moisture, but it is important to be cognizant of it and avoid super moist fruits like watermelon.
• Toppings - You can also sprinkle toppings like bacon bits or pepitas. Nuts are great to toss in, too.

How Do You Layer Ingredients to Keep Them Fresh? 

Just as you avoid adding certain ingredients that have too much moisture, it’s important that you layer your ingredients in a certain way to avoid a soggy salad. 

Layer your mason jar salad starting with your protein at the bottom of the jar, adding fruits and vegetables on top of that, then grains, greens, and toppings. Do not add your dressing into the jar, otherwise the salad will get very, very soggy.

Utilize Different Sizes of Mason Jars

Another way you can have fun with mason jar salads is by utilizing different sizes of jars. This can give you a salad for a snack or a full meal, and it can allow you to pack different ingredients. 

If you are making a big salad for a lot of people, you can put the greens in a large mason jar, and store all your additional ingredients and toppings and smaller jars. This will keep all the ingredients fresh, and be a simple way to transport. 

You can also utilize different sized jars for dressings. A small jar is perfect for bringing a dressing along with you and adding it when it is time to assemble or toss your salad.

Try Mixing and Matching

You can also utilize the different size jars to mix and match. If you are unsure of what you want on your salad from day to day, prep by putting different ingredients in different sized jars and bringing along a different assortment each day. 

You can add different greens with different proteins and all the same toppings. Or you can have the same greens and proteins and top with different vegetables and grains. Mixing and matching gives you even more variety to your meal. Who says salads are boring?

Notes on Dressing

Mason jars are perfect for dressing. They’re excellent for making the dressing because you can easily shake to mix the ingredients, and they’re fantastic for storing.

Thanks to our mason jar spouts, you can easily dispense dressings while preventing spills. The only oily mess will be inside the jar, along with all your other tasty ingredients.

As mentioned, make sure you are storing your dressing in a separate mason jar. There’s nothing worse than a soggy salad! 

Additional Benefits

We’re sure you’re about to run to the grocery store for salad ingredients. But in case you need some convincing to make a mason jar salad this week, consider these additional benefits: 

• They’re long-lasting - Salads don’t often last in the fridge, especially when dressed. But when you store the ingredients in a mason jar and leave the dressing aside, you can store your salad for 4-5 days. This makes meal prepping a dream knowing you have a meal ready for the whole week.
• They’re healthy - Eating healthy requires a little effort, and we often choose unhealthy options because it’s easier. With mason jar salads, you only have to spend a few minutes preparing and assembling, and then you have a healthy meal at your disposal. It’s just as easy to grab a mason jar as it is to hit up a fast food drive-thru. 
• They’re mess-free - Salads in mason jars don’t make a mess because they don’t leak, and you can toss your salad inside the jar. Say goodbye to messy meals and hello to mason jar salads. 

Suggestions for Mason Jar Salads

We know your chef brain is reeling after reading all the possibilities of making a salad inside a mason jar, but if you want more ideas, we’ve got you covered:

• Mediterranean Salad - Layer your jar with chickpeas, cucumbers, kalamata olives, red onions, romaine lettuce, and feta cheese. Top it with a lemon vinaigrette for a zesty meal. 
• Club Salad - Add chicken and strips of bacon to the bottom of your jar, then add boiled eggs, cherry tomatoes, avocado, and romaine lettuce. Bring along ranch dressing to shake into your jar when it’s time to eat. 
• Deconstructed Wedge - Instead of jamming a wedge of iceberg inside your mason jar, chop it up and layer it atop bacon bits, cherry tomatoes, and blue cheese crumbles. Finish it off with a creamy blue cheese dressing for the perfect meal or appetizer. 

These are just a few of the ways to make a mason jar salad. Grab your ingredients and mason jar spout and let us know what delicious concoction you create!

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