Mandarin Orange Salad – The Almond Eater

September 21, 2023

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This Mandarin Orange Salad is bejeweled with the perfect produce fall and winter have to supply, like recent citrus, apples, pomegranate, and dried cranberries. Tossed in a crowd-pleasing orange poppyseed French dressing, it’s a satisfying principal dish or a vibrant vacation facet.

mandarin orange salad on a serving plate with a spoon and fork

When the leaves start to fall and the cooler climate units in, meaning it’s time to improve your seasonal salads. This oh-so-elegant, but straightforward Mandarin Orange Salad is the right place to start out.

This winter salad recipe encompasses a medley of seasonal goodies, like mandarin orange wedges, crunchy apples, pomegranate seeds, and cranberries. All of this fall/winter goodness is wearing a tasty orange poppyseed French dressing, making certain that each chunk explodes with recent and vibrant seasonal flavors.

There are limitless methods to place your personal spin on the salad, too. Combine and match the seasonal fruits and veggies, add cheeses or proteins, garnish it along with your favourite mix-ins, and extra!

Recipe options

It’s the perfect winter citrus salad! It’s straightforward to place collectively and each chunk options refreshing and vibrant seasonal produce.
Serve it as a powerful, gentle, and wholesome principal dish or as an thrilling facet dish in your vacation menu.
It’s so versatile and enjoyable to combine and match the add-ins. Scroll right down to the Variations part for concepts!

Elements

Mandarin oranges – The shining stars on this salad. Every orange wedge provides a burst of juicy sweetness, making for a pleasant distinction subsequent to the opposite tart and tangy flavors. You must be capable to discover mandarin oranges in well-stocked grocery shops from November to February whereas they’re in season. If you happen to can’t discover them, use drained and rinsed canned mandarin oranges as a substitute.

Dried cranberries and pomegranate seeds – This tart duo provides a festive flare to the salad. Cranberries are pleasantly chewy whereas pomegranate seeds add juicy bursts of sweet-tartness. You possibly can sometimes discover each of those in grocery shops all through fall and winter.

Apple – Apples give the salad a crisp, hearty crunch and a refined sweetness to enrich the opposite fruity flavors. I like to make use of pink apples for a pop of shade, like Honeycrisp, Fuji, or Pink Woman apples.

Blended greens – I used blended greens because the salad base, however be at liberty to make use of your favourite salad greens or a spinach-arugula combine for the same freshness.

Goat cheese – Ending the salad with creamy and wealthy cheese crumbles provides the dish an nearly addictive indulgent high quality. However should you’re dairy free, you may omit it.

Orange poppyseed French dressing – This zippy and citrusy salad dressing is straightforward to make with white wine vinegar, olive oil, honey, orange juice, dijon mustard, and poppy seeds.

Directions

Step 1: Make dressing. Whisk the French dressing substances collectively in a glass measuring cup or bowl, then put aside.

Step 2: Toss the salad. Add the blended greens, oranges, cranberries, almonds, pomegranate seeds, apples, and goat cheese to a big mixing bowl and gently toss.

Step 3: Add the dressing. When it’s time to serve, pour the dressing overtop and gently toss to coat. Switch the salad to a serving platter or serve it from the bowl, and revel in!

mandarin orange salad on a serving plate

Suggestions and FAQs

Wish to take pleasure in it for meal prep? Retailer the salad substances and dressing in separate hermetic containers within the fridge. Toss the whole lot collectively proper earlier than serving to maintain the fruit and veggies crisp.
Be light when tossing the salad. The substances are delicate and might be crushed very simply.

Tip

Save time by prepping forward. It can save you quite a lot of time by peeling and slicing the oranges and apples, seeding the pomegranates, making the dressing, and portioning the mix-ins the night time earlier than serving. This fashion, the one factor that’s left to do is toss the whole lot collectively earlier than serving!

Variations

You may make every kind of adjustments to make this recipe your personal, however these concepts ought to assist spark some inspiration:

Winter fruits – Substitute the mandarin oranges and/or apples for clementines, tangerines, navel oranges, blood oranges, pomelos, grapefruit, pears, or persimmons.
Recent fruits – This winter fruit salad can also be nice with recent raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, pink grapes, and nectarines.
Dried fruits – As an alternative of dried cranberries, attempt raisins, sliced dates, or dried apricots.
Cheese – If you happen to don’t like goat cheese, use feta, blue cheese, or parmesan.
Enjoyable mix-ins – Add avocado, pickled pink onions, candied pecans, crumbled crispy bacon (or tempeh bacon), and freshly chopped mint or parsley.
Dressing – Do that salad with my balsamic French dressing or honey mint French dressing as a substitute of the poppyseed French dressing.

Can I add protein to this salad?

Completely! You possibly can simply make it a filling and satisfying meal by including diced hen, salmon, shrimp, or steak bites. If you happen to’re vegan or vegetarian, attempt crispy tofu cubes, cooked quinoa, chickpeas, or further nuts, like pistachios, pecans, or walnuts.

What ought to I serve with a mandarin salad?

This salad pairs effectively with cozy soups, like pumpkin curry soup, carrot apple ginger soup, and hen sausage soup. It’s additionally nice on the facet of a cottage cheese hen salad sandwich and avocado grilled cheese.

Are the vacations developing? Ensure this salad is on the menu together with the normal roasted turkey, glazed ham, apple stuffing, mashed candy potatoes, and cranberry sauce.

Storage

Fridge: Retailer the leftover salad in an hermetic container within the fridge and eat it inside a day or two for the perfect texture and taste.

an overview of a mandarin orange salad on a serving plate

Extra seasonal salads

If you happen to made this recipe, be sure you depart a remark and star score beneath. Thanks!