Easy Bacon Pea Salad is one of our family’s all-time favourite summer salads. It goes well with anything from the grill but it also makes a great standalone light lunch. Enjoy!
Salad and I are like *THIS*. That probably comes at no surprise at this point. What you may not know, though, is that I have an especially soft spot for marinated salads.
You know which ones I mean… The ones that fill bowl after bowl at late spring and summer parties. The ones in oil and vinegar or mayonnaise based dressings that become even tastier the day after they’re made.
Macaroni salad, potato salad, corn salad, and baby… that pea salad you see in the picture above.
Even when I was a picky kid, peas were always a friendly food at the dinner table. A bowl of peas meant I had something I could dig into with abandon.
I always loved the little POP of biting into peas. I love them so much that I’ve even been known to dig into the bag of frozen peas for a fast, cold snack in the dog days of summer.
When I saw my friend Amy’s Pea Salad pop up in my feed reader a couple of weeks ago, it was a no-brainer that I was going to make it. I did. And it was glorious.
The next day when I made my second batch (I told you I liked peas), I added a bunch of crispy bacon and upped the cheddar and onion a bit and loved it so much that we polished off the whole batch in a matter of hours.
Yes. I’ve done the math. I am completely aware of how many pounds of peas we ate in two days. I self-imposed a two-day moratorium on pea-salad in the house.
But PEOPLE! (Pea-ple?) Easy Bacon Pea salad? Well, it’s like hand and glove, Rocky and Bullwinkle, peas and, er, bacon!
It just goes together. I haven’t done anything but eat it directly from the tupperware container with a spoon, yet, but I guarantee you couldn’t find a tastier or easier side dish for just about any grilled, roasted, or broiled meat or fish.
The sweet POP of the pea, creamy mayonnaise dressing, crunchy mild red onion, and crispy bacon taste great right after being stirred together, but they taste even better after having sat in the refrigerator for a day, making this an IDEAL side dish to serve with an Easter Ham, summer picnics, Labor Day festivities and everything else the whole dad-burned year. Easy peasy, my pea-ple!
Cook’s Notes:
- I prefer to use frozen peas that have thawed overnight in the refrigerator. I prefer the texture and flavour of them over canned peas. If you have fresh peas, blanch them as you would to freeze them and use them after they’ve chilled before using them to make your Easy Bacon Pea Salad.
- We served scoops of Easy Bacon Pea Salad on top of tossed salad the other day and loved it. Bonus: No dressing necessary.
- This can be served immediately after stirring it together, but tastes even better if allowed to sit, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for an hour or up to three days. It should be eaten within 3 days of being made, which is NOT a problem. Trust me.
Use this to make Easy Bacon Pea Salad:
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Love Bacon Pea Salad? Try these!
Here’s another great pea recipe: One Skillet Beef Meatballs with Rice and Peas, and here are excellent recipes to serve alongside Bacon Pea Salad: Creamy Buffalo Chicken for Instant Pot or Slow Cooker, Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf, Slow-cooker Apple Cider Pulled Pork, Big Batch Greek Lemon Garlic Chicken, and Oven Baked Crispy Chicken.
It doesn’t get much easier than Bacon Pea Salad! Look how simple it is to make.
Bacon Pea Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound of bacon cooked according to package instructions, drained and crumbled or finely chopped
- 2 pounds frozen peas thawed in the refrigerator overnight
- 3/4 cup coarsely grated sharp Cheddar cheese
- 1/2 small red onion peeled, and finely chopped
- 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
Instructions
- Stir together all of the ingredients and serve immediately, or (preferably) put in a tupperware, Gladware, or other tightly covered container in the refrigerator to give the flavours a chance to meld for an hour but up to three days prior to serving. Give it a gentle stir from top to bottom before serving.
Nutrition
This post was originally published April 7th, 2014 and was updated May 11th, 2017 with a video and improved notes.
Mary Hollaway says
Try it with 1/2 sour cream, 1# of cubed ham, and Swiss cheese instead of cheddar, or both! Don’t like peas in any other way than pea salad. Love your recipe!
Rebecca says
Thank you, Mary! That sounds delicious, too!!
Chris Patrick says
My friends and family LOVE this salad. It has become a staple at every cook out! the feozen peas are so easy. I cut the raw bacon into small bacon bit size peices and then cook them. It is quick, easy, and delicious!
Rebecca says
Thanks so much for taking the time to rate the recipe and let me know you love it, Chris!!! You made my day!
Lisa Neal says
Please notify me of my question I just put in comment I accidentally hit the check off in the email
Lisa Neal says
I’m severely allergic to dairy and eggs so what can I replace the mayonnaise with? I always have this problem when it comes to so many recipes, they call for cheese and dairy. I can have the dairy and eggs only if they are cooked at a very high temperature in the oven in a recipe but no cheese no matter what. I have tried goat cheese and I don’t like it due to the strong taste ,I know that alot of the Bigger Grocery Store Chains are carrying more Dziry Free Products but I have to still be cautious and always read ingredients due to finding some have eggs if dairy free or there may be somewhere hidden in there dried form of dairy 😥They also have a much higher price tag on them unfortunately. I have alot of Autoimmune Diseases and I’m slowly finding out that some of my childhood food allergies are coming back and I had to take shots when I was a toddler due to them being so bad.I could hardly eat anything, my parents had to get Goats butter, milk ,meat and I had to be watched cause I couldn’t even put a piece of gum in my mouth. I out grew these as I got into school and had no more problems till about 8 years ago ,I was diagnosed with M.S. in 2001 then the list grew with other Autoimmune Diseases and my Allergies come back but the Insurance doesn’t cover for anyone to be tested anymore but for the basic food groups. I only weigh 93 pounds due to trying to figure out how to replace these ingredients and to this day I have had no luck.If you know how to make Mayonnaise without dairy and eggs I would so appreciate the help,Desperate in Alabama
Rebecca says
Hi Lisa- I personally do not make mayonnaise without eggs, but mayonnaise is naturally dairy free, so you don’t have a dairy concern with it. I know there are quite a few vegan mayos on the market, though, which would suit your needs!! Even Hellman’s makes a vegan mayonnaise you can order through Amazon.com Why don’t you give one of those a try? 🙂
Bren says
Awesome salad … have made numerous times!
Linda Harrington says
Best salad ever-hands down. A complete hit at church potlucks and simple family get togethers. I leave left out the cheese and add a cup, or so, of cashews or honey dry roasted peanuts, if no known allergies. Also, a nice touch.
Rebecca says
Thanks so much, Linda! I’m glad you love it.
Rosie M. says
I make my pea salad the same way. Sometimes for dinner, I’ll plate some chopped iceberg lettuce, top it with pea salad and top it all with sliced hard-boiled eggs… Viola… you’ve just made a “Seven Layer Salad”!
Rebecca says
That sounds like a lovely light dinner!