18 Arugula Salad Recipes to Arouse Your Palate

Charred Shallot and Arugula Salad with Sunny-Side-Up Eggs
Photo:

Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Margret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Nidia Cueva

Peppery, spicy arugula — also called rocket — is a leafy green that's especially well-suited to eating raw in a salad. Its tender leaves impart a lively freshness that can stand up to bold flavors such as tangy citrus or pungent cheese. Rather assertive on its own, arugula's mild bite can be tempered by mixing it with other greens or lettuce. Some of the salad recipes featured here are quite arugula-forward, like Charred Shallot and Arugula Salad with Sunny-Side-Up Eggs; in others, arugula's presence is a bit more subdued, as in Shrimp Salad with Hominy, Arugula, and Lime. Check out some of our favorite arugula salad recipes below.

01 of 18

Citrus, Beet, and Arugula Salad with Halloumi Croutons

Citrus, Beet and Arugula Salad with Halloumi Croutons
Photo by Dan Perez / Food Styling and Prop Styling by Nurit Kariv

Resplendent with mixed citrus and jewel-toned roasted beets, this peppery arugula salad gets elevated to holiday status courtesy of crispy halloumi croutons.

02 of 18

Arugula-Fennel Salad

Arugula-Fennel Salad

Julia Hartbeck

Eugenia Bone, prolific home cook, writer, and author of Well-Preserved, serves this simple green salad with a cheese plate and plenty of rustic bread. She always includes Taleggio and aged Parmigiano-Reggiano, as well as fresh imported sheep's milk ricotta whenever she can find it at the market.

03 of 18

Charred Shallot and Arugula Salad with Sunny-Side-Up Eggs

Charred Shallot and Arugula Salad with Sunny-Side-Up Eggs

Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Margret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Nidia Cueva

This centerpiece-worthy salad pairs peppery greens, eggs, and thinly sliced prosciutto with a punchy lemon-garlic dressing. The shallots are charred under the broiler, where they develop umami and subtle sweetness. The pungent dressing tastes great alongside the spicy greens, salty cheese, fatty meat, and rich eggs, mingling with the runny yolks.

04 of 18

Strawberry Burrata Salad

Strawberry Burrata Salad

Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Debbie Wee

Creamy burrata is the centerpiece of this salad of strawberries marinated in a honey and balsamic vinaigrette and served over arugula and basil leaves. Toasted pine nuts add a little nutty crunch. Serve the salad as a main course for lunch or as a starter for dinner. Slices of crostini are perfect for scooping up the rich burrata and tangy berries.

05 of 18

Charred Focaccia and Steak Salad

Charred Focaccia and Steak Salad Recipe
Eric Wolfinger

Focaccia is the ideal crouton for a dinner salad; it’s tender yet sturdy enough to stand up to bold ingredients like the steak and Calabrian chile in this recipe. Everything sits on a bed of baby arugula and watercress.

06 of 18

Shrimp Salad with Hominy, Arugula, and Lime

Shrimp Salad with Hominy, Arugula, and Lime
© Sarah Bolla

With similar ingredients to what you'd find wrapped up in taco, this brightly colored shrimp salad is light and quite satisfying. Enjoy with chips and a refreshing beverage on a hot day.

07 of 18

Pea Shoot and Arugula Salad with Radishes and Hazelnuts

Pea Shoot and Arugula Salad with Radishes and Hazelnuts Recipe
© Ken Kochey

With their sweet, mild pea flavor and their juicy stems, pea shoots have become a popular salad addition. Here, they're the perfect foil for sharp arugula and radishes, herbal fennel, and toasty hazelnuts.

08 of 18

Brussels Sprouts and Arugula Salad with Buttermilk Dressing

Brussels Sprouts and Arugula Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
Johhny Miller

Instead of roasting brussels sprouts, toss them with arugula, parsley, and a light buttermilk dressing. If you’ve got a few extra minutes, quick-pickled shallots add color, texture, and tang.

09 of 18

Arugula and Squash Salad

Arugua-and-Squash Salad
Con Poulos

Chef April Bloomfield spices up sweet roasted winter squash with a mix of marjoram, garlic, coriander, and cinnamon. It becomes the focal point of her peppery arugula salad, which also includes pine nuts, pomegranate, and pecorino.

10 of 18

Warm Potato Salad with Arugula

Warm Potato Salad with Arugula
© John Kernick

Chef Paul Virant puts a spin on the classic summer side dish by tossing warm potatoes with a mustardy vinaigrette and handfuls of arugula. "I grow a lot of arugula in my garden," he says. "It's so easy to grow, it's a joke. A farmer once said to me that if everyone who had enough space planted a garden, we could produce enough food to feed the entire country. I don't know how that would work, but it's fun to think about."

11 of 18

Arugula Salad with Olives, Feta, and Dill

Arugula Salad with Olives, Feta and Dill
© Maura McEvoy

To jazz up arugula salad and give it a slightly Greek bent chef Michael Symon tosses it with chopped fresh dill, briny Greek feta cheese, and kalamata olives. He finishes the salad with extra-virgin Greek olive oil, which he says has a pure flavor and is generally more affordable than olive oil from Italy.

12 of 18

Summer Fruit Salad with Arugula and Almonds

Summer Fruit Salad with Arugula and Almonds
© Reed Davis

Chef Suzanne Goin typically makes this savory and sweet salad with whatever fruit looks best at the market. Ripe green or black figs are some of her favorites and a couple of crushed ones can be used as the base for the vinaigrette, in place of the nectarine.

13 of 18

Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Arugula, Pine Nuts, and Herb Dressing

Pasta Salad with Tomatoes, Arugula, Pine Nuts and Herb Dressing

© Fredrika Stjärne

This basic pasta salad is jazzed up with peppery arugula and a lively mayo-based dressing made from garlic, lemon juice, and a trio of fresh herbs. We use sweet grape tomatoes, which are delicious year-round.

14 of 18

Chicken and Arugula Salad

Healthy Chicken and Arugula Salad
© Todd Porter & Diane Cu

Here, peppery arugula is studded with roasted pecans and juicy chunks of poached chicken, then drizzled in a tart lemon vinaigrette.

15 of 18

Pan-Fried Scamorza with Arugula Salad and Two Pestos

Pan-Fried Scamorza with Arugula Salad and Two Pestos
© Kana Okada

Artist Rosita Missoni loves pan-frying scamorza, a firm Italian cow's milk cheese, to give it an irresistible crust. Provolone would also work.

16 of 18

Arugula-Endive Salad with Honeyed Pine Nuts

Argula-Endive Salad with Honeyed Pine Nuts
© Quentin Bacon

This salad reinvents the classic combination of blue cheese and honey with crumbled Maytag blue and a crunchy, brittle-like garnish made from honey and pine nuts. Pine nuts have a subtle flavor that goes especially well with milder honeys, and other nuts, like pecans and walnuts, work nicely, too.

17 of 18

Asian Pear and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese

Asian Pear and Arugula Salad with Goat Cheese
© Rinne Allen

This simple salad has a perfect mix of bitter (arugula), sweet (Asian pear), tangy (lemon dressing), and crunchy (pumpkin seeds). Try it with green apples or Bosc pears if Asian pears are hard to find.

18 of 18

Watermelon and Arugula Salad with Walnuts

Watermelon and Arugula Salad with Walnuts
© Simon Watson

"In my hometown of Orosei, bitter greens like arugula and dandelion grow alongside watermelons, so this salad is a natural combination for me," says chef Efisio Farris. The recipe is a fabulous blend of juicy (watermelon) and crunchy (red onions and walnuts). For anyone who thinks raspberry vinegar went out with the '90s, this fruity vinaigrette will be a revelation.

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