I’ve heard it said that everything tastes better grilled. Does that include salad? Why, yes, it does! The vegetables in this summery salad are grilled, then tossed with a creamy Mediterranean lemon-basil dressing. This healthy salad has an addicting flavor. It’s a recipe that has converted people who “can’t stand salad” into full on herbivores. Grilled Vegetable Salad for the win!
To catch my interest, a salad must be unique and enticing. I like Israeli salad, which has a cold crunch that makes it interesting. I love potato salad and pasta salad— those don’t really count, though. Beet salads and fruit salads are tasty, but they’re usually lacking in the greens department.
But a grilled salad – now that is different! I’ve officially fallen in love with salad, thanks to The Ivy restaurant in Los Angeles. I first tried their version of grilled salad at a birthday dinner several years ago. I was hooked after the first bite. The greens were tossed with grilled zucchini, asparagus, and corn. So much flavor! I was hooked. As with all restaurant dishes I enjoy, I took note of the basic ingredients for future reference.
The following week, I created a salad in my own kitchen that captured everything I loved about The Ivy’s salad. I grilled up some of my favorite summer veggies and tossed them with fresh lettuce, basil, and tomatoes. Then I dressed the whole thing in a light, creamy, lemony basil dressing.
The result was magnificent, a perfect blend of summer flavors. Grilled Vegetable Salad, where have you been all my life?
This salad is gluten free and vegetarian. It works as a healthy side dish or a meatless main course. You can make it vegan with two simple substitutions below. Top it with grilled chicken for added protein, feta cheese for a Mediterranean vibe, or avocado for a rich, creamy touch.
To be honest, I love this salad all on its own… it has so much flavor that you don’t really need to add anything at all.
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Beauty Shot Food Photography and Styling by Kelly Jaggers
Grilled Vegetable Salad
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- 1 pound zucchini (2 medium), halved lengthwise, ends removed
- 1 pound yellow squash (2 medium), halved lengthwise, ends removed
- 1 pound large asparagus spears
- 2 ears sweet yellow corn, shucked and cleaned
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 2 cups green lettuce, shredded
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
Dressing Ingredients
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Chopped ripe avocado, sliced grilled chicken breast, or crumbled feta cheese (optional toppings)
Instructions
- Preheat your grill over a medium flame. Score the fleshy cut side of the zucchini and squash halves with a few small shallow slits. This will help them cook faster and more evenly. Brush the cut sides of the squash lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
- Coat the asparagus and corn lightly on all sides with olive oil. Sprinkle lightly with salt.
- Put the zucchini, squash, asparagus, and corn on the hot grill and let them cook until they're tender and lightly charred. Flip the squash, zucchini and asparagus spears halfway through cooking; give the corn quarter turns every 4-5 minutes. The amount of time needed to cook each vegetable will be different-- the asparagus will be done first (don't let it burn), followed by the zucchini and squash, followed by the corn.
- Remove the vegetables from the grill as they become tender. They should all be done cooking after about 20 minutes.
- Once the vegetables are grilled, let them cool to room temperature. Cut the zucchini and squash into large chunks and place in a large salad or mixing bowl.
- Cut the asparagus spears into 1-inch pieces. Discard the tough ends. Add them to the bowl.
- Cut the corn off of the cob using a sharp knife. Add the grilled corn kernels to the bowl.
- Add the halved cherry or grape tomatoes, shredded green lettuce, and chopped basil leaves to the bowl.
- Toss the salad until well combined.
- Make your dressing. In a blender or food processor, combine the chopped basil leaves, lemon juice, mayonnaise, honey, and salt. Cover the blender.
- Pulse a few times until the ingredients are combined.
- Scrape the sides of the blender with a spatula. Put the lid on the blender and open the pouring spout. Turn the blender on low. Drizzle the olive oil very slowly into the open pour spout. As the dressing emulsifies, it will splatter-- use your hand over the pour spout to keep the splatters contained.
- When the olive oil is added, scrape the sides again and cover the pour spout. Blend for 60 more seconds until the basil is well blended and the dressing is creamy.
- Add the dressing to the salad.Toss until all the vegetables are well coated with dressing. Top salad with grilled chicken, ripe avocado, or feta cheese, if desired. Serve salad at room temperature for best flavor.
- Vegan Substitution: To make this recipe vegan, substitute 1 tsp of Dijon mustard for the mayonnaise in the dressing and 1 tsp agave nectar for the honey.
Nutrition
Hi I want to make this salad but am able to get yellow squash (its not readily available in England). What can I use as a substitute?
Hi Danielle, you can substitute all zucchini (courgette), or any other mild squash with a similar texture to zucchini.
Ohhh great question! I was thinking the same, here in Australia we don’t come by yellow squash easily. Making this with grilled fish for friends tomorrow night for dinner! Wish me luck 🙂
Good luck Laura! 🙂
That looks lovely:) lately I’ve taken to using grilled veggies in salads, it really adds flavor and texture
Roasted the veggies instead of grilling them this time (its raining), and it turned out great. Also used bok choy as the green, and yum!
I think a little dill and mint in the dressing adds nice flavor, particularly if using feta (which we love).
Its definitely a family favorite. 🙂
Valierran, I really appreciate you taking the time to give your feedback on the recipe. Dill and mint sound like tasty additions to the dressing! We also love feta, especially sheep and goat’s milk feta.
We just returned from vacation in Santa Monica where I had a yummy Roasted Vegetable Salad at CPK. Yours looks so much like it I can hardly wait to make it. So many of your recipes have inspired me to be a more adventurous cook! My kids love your broccoli salad!! Thanks for all the YUM!!
I’m glad I happened on this site, looking for vegetable salads. I’m a struggling vegetarian – I don’t like all vegetables, and I need to lay off the noodles! I’ve already printed out 3 salads, none of which are in my cookbooks at home. PS. I hate tofu!!
Hey Brenda, I hear you… you kind of have to grow to love vegetables. This grilled salad is a great place to start. You might also check out my tutorial on How to Roast Cauliflower, it will totally change the way you look at veggies. 😉
This looks so fantastic!
This was fantastic! We loved it, garnished with the feta and some fresh black pepper. Really great. Thanks so much!
Now this is a salad I can get behind. Looks wicked good and filling.
Mini-me eats bowls full of just lettuce. She loves the stuff. The lighter in colour the better. And it has to be super cold. She’s a weird child.
Looks amazinginly good.
We made this last night and served it with Rissoto. it was so flavorfuul, the vegetables were purchased at a farmer’s market earlier in the day. The dressing is perfectly balanced.
What a delicious salad!! Yummy choice!
I just made it and it’s SO good!
Saw the link on FB and went right to the recipe. I love to grill and love grilled veggies. We have family over on Monday and this is on the menu. Not sure they wil get any as I might eat it all myself. Asparagus looked terrible at the markets this week but I learned from a Dinosaur BBQ recipe that a good substitute is green beans. Bought those and will use unless I find nice asparagus by Monday. Will let you know how well it was liked.
Forgot to mention that the tender upper third of asparagus is also good raw in the salad I described, and so is very fresh corn. Also sliced mushrooms, a few raw green green chickpeas, very small bits of raw cauliflower (just a few as garnish).
Your recipe looks scrumptious.
For something simpler for everyday meals you might enjoy salad greens the way we eat them. We toss greens with the elements of Israeli salad–tomatoes, cucumber, a bit of onion, plus add other veggies we might have like sweet peppers and jicama. Today there was also a tiny tart apple from our tree. Toss with lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil. Top with nuts–we alternate different kinds, or olives or a bit of feta or other cheese.
Guess I know what I’ll be cooking on my new grill this weekend! This salad looks so delicious! Tori, I love your blog, and my family loves that I love your blog! Thank you, and Chag Sameach!
For those who dont want to grill, they can use a George Foreman grill. i dont know how to use a grill, and this is what i use when something needs to be grilled. unless you tell anyone, no one knows but you that you didnt use the big grill.
VTW, that recipes looks lovely, and i cant wait to try it!!
Wish I had this for lunch right now. Looks so good!
Lots of flavor and lots of work unless you’re already grilling and this would be great.
Hi Pat, it’s actually not as much work as it might seem. The veggies only take 20 minutes to grill. You can grill the veggies ahead of time if you want and keep them in the fridge, then assemble the salad when you’re ready to eat. The dressing only takes 3 minutes to whip up. And it’s true, if you’re already grilling it’s even easier. 🙂
I love most salads, but you’re right, grilling really adds a lot of flavour!