If you’ve ever had a grinder sandwich, you are going to love this Grinder Salad Recipe. The combination of salty meats with tangy olives, peppers, and cheese will leave you digging for more. This Italian Grinder Salad recipe is packed with so much flavor and tastes just like a traditional “hoagie” or “sub” whichever one you call it! Growing up Italian, in New Jersey, it was a hoagie for me! In fact, I remember countless Saturdays at the corner store with my dad getting hoagies for dinner.

A traditional “hoagie” or new aged grinder sandwich is loaded with deli meats, shredded lettuce, onions, cheese, and banana peppers, all drizzled with lots of olive oil, vinegar, salt, oregano, and pepper. So what we’ve done here with this Grinder salad recipe is take all those ingredients and deconstruct them into a large salad without the bread.

I’ve put my own spin on this grinder salad recipe by adding olives and omitting onions, because well…onions just don’t always go over well in my house. I’ve also traded out the traditional provolone cheese for mozzarella balls because they are just so fun to eat!

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Why you will love this recipe
Ingredients
Instructions
Equipment
Variations
Top tips
FAQ
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Why you will love this recipe

You will love this grinder salad recipe, because not only is it the perfect duplicate of an Italian hoagie, it is packed with so much flavor and protein. You also have the ability to switch up the flavor profile by substituting romaine with other greens like spinach and kale.

Protein: this salad provides adequate amounts of protein with chopped Italian meat. Not only will pro-Tien keep you full any longer, but our body uses about 60 cal to burn 100 cal a pro-Tien. This means you are burning calories while digesting this salad!

Versatility: you can serve this grinder salad with a plethora of dishes. One that my family loves is this Chicken Parmesan. While it is great by itself, it’s also the perfect complement to a steak dinner or grilled chicken breast dinner.

Ingredients

Deli meats: fresh Italian meats add a savory flavor. For this recipe, we are adding salami, sandwich pepperoni, and prosciutto.

Pepperoncini: Pepperoncini peppers offer a delicious tang and the perfect crunch.

Tomatoes: because no Italian salad recipe was ever made without tomatoes!

Mozzarella balls: I think mozzarella balls at a fun ingredient to the grinder salad recipe, but you can also use provolone cheese.

Romaine: for this recipe, I have used romaine lettuce because it adds a bit more nutritional value than regular lettuce. However, regular lettuce will work just fine in this recipe.

Fresh basil: adds a sweet, aromatic flavor to this salad.

Kalamata olives: these are completely optional, but my family has always loved olives in their Italian salad and Italian sandwiches.

Olive oil: for this recipe, I am using quality organic olive oil by Costabile.

Red wine vinegar: I don’t necessarily recommend other vinegar for this salad. Red wine vinegar would be my main choice.

Lemon juice and herbs

Instructions

Start by combining all dressing ingredients in a salad shaker or a mason jar. Once the lid is tightly closed, shake it well and place it into the refrigerator.
Then, evenly dice all vegetables and deli meats. Place these into a large bowl, drizzle with dressing, and enjoy!

Equipment

A cutting board, knife, and a jar for dressing.

Variations

Pasta: turn this into an easy dinner by adding your choice of pasta! I just recommend doubling the dressing.
Vegetables: artichokes, mushrooms, and cucumbers, all go great in this salad.
Vegan: remove the meats and double up on vegetables to make this Grinder Salad vegan-friendly.
Prepping ahead of time: you can certainly prep this grinder salad recipe ahead of time. I recommend making the dressing up to two days ahead of time and storing it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can also certainly cut your meats and vegetables and place them into airtight containers up to 24 hours ahead of time.

Top tips

Vinegar and olive oil tend to separate after a while. Make sure to give the jar a good shake before pouring on into the salad.
If you want to save some of this salad for leftovers, make sure not to addressing to the entire salad to avoid any wilting that may occur.

FAQ

Is this salad gluten-free?

Yes, this grinder salad is naturally gluten-free. However, always take proper precautions when you are at the deli if gluten is an issue in your family. Make sure to have them clean the slicer before cutting your deli meats, or prepackaged deli meat with the gluten-free label on it.

Is this grinder salad recipe healthy?

Yes, this grinder salad recipe is far healthier than the average salad. We are using only olive oil and vinegar with herbs as the dressing, and very low sodium.

Can I make this grinder salad dairy free?

Absolutely you can make this grinder salad dairy free. Simply omit the cheese for your choice of dairy-free cheese.

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