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Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

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Spinach Salad with Bacon

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This spinach salad combines crispy thick-cut bacon, mushrooms, and soft-boiled eggs with a warm bacon vinaigrette. Pair with a rotisserie chicken and dinner is done!

spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

If there’s one thing that gets everyone in my family circling the kitchen like sharks at dinnertime, asking “Whatcha makin’?” it’s the smell of bacon sizzling on the stovetop. This spinach salad with crispy thick-cut bacon, boiled eggs, mushrooms, and warm bacon vinaigrette pairs well with a store-bought rotisserie chicken or pan-seared salmon. It’s also wonderful with potato leek soup. To save time, use pre-washed baby spinach, pre-sliced mushrooms, and even pre-cooked boiled eggs, if you like — and pick up a fresh baguette to round out the meal.

What you’ll need to Make Spinach Salad with warm Bacon dressing

Salad ingredients including eggs, honey, and apple cider vinegar.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Before making the salad, you’ll need to boil the eggs. I especially love runny soft-boiled eggs for this salad, but hard-boiled eggs are also delicious.

how to make spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

Begin by frying the bacon in a nonstick skillet, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. While the bacon cooks, start the dressing: in a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, mustard, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

Whisk in a bowl with a vinegar and honey mixture.

When the bacon is done, use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel–lined plate.

how to make spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

Pour the bacon fat into a heatproof bowl, then return 4 tablespoons of the bacon fat to the skillet. Add the shallots to the skillet and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Do not brown.

Shallots cooking in bacon fat.

Add the bacon fat and shallots from the skillet to the vinegar mixture and whisk to combine.

how to make spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

Add the spinach and mushrooms.

Bowl of spinach and mushrooms.

Toss to coat evenly, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, if necessary.

Spinach and mushrooms being tossed with a warm bacon dressing.

Divide the salad between 4 plates or bowls; evenly divide the egg and cooked bacon among them. Serve immediately.

spinach salad with warm bacon dressing

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Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing

This spinach salad combines crispy thick-cut bacon, mushrooms, and soft-boiled eggs with a warm bacon vinaigrette. Pair with a rotisserie chicken and dinner is done!

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 10 Minutes
Total Time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 slices bacon, cut into ½-inch pieces
  • ¼ cup finely chopped shallots, from 1 to 2 shallots
  • 2½ tablespoons cider vinegar
  • 1½ tablespoons honey
  • 1½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
  • Heaping ¼ teaspoon salt
  • Several grinds fresh black pepper
  • 6 oz (about 8 cups) baby spinach
  • 8 oz white button or baby bella mushrooms, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
  • 3 hard or soft boiled eggs, thinly sliced or cut into wedges

Instructions

  1. Place the bacon in a medium nonstick skillet and fry over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes.
  2. While the bacon cooks, start the dressing: in a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, mustard, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
  3. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked bacon to a paper towel–lined plate.
  4. Pour the bacon fat into a heatproof bowl, then return 4 tablespoons of the bacon fat to the skillet. (You can discard the remaining bacon fat or save it if you'd like it for cooking.) Add the shallots to the skillet and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until softened, 1 to 2 minutes. Do not brown.
  5. Add the bacon fat and shallots from the skillet to the vinegar mixture and whisk to combine. Add the spinach and mushrooms and toss to coat evenly. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, if necessary. Divide the salad between 4 plates or bowls; evenly divide the egg and cooked bacon among them. Serve immediately.

Nutrition Information

Powered by Edamam

  • Per serving (4 servings)
  • Calories: 338
  • Fat: 26 g
  • Saturated fat: 9 g
  • Carbohydrates: 13 g
  • Sugar: 9 g
  • Fiber: 2 g
  • Protein: 14 g
  • Sodium: 505 mg
  • Cholesterol: 157 mg

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

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Comments

  • Yet another amazing recipe from your site! It was easy enough to make for a workweek lunch, and what a nice treat it was. Also, my salad-averse fiancé ate it without complaining AND took seconds! Thank you, Jenn.

    • — Julia on November 1, 2023
    • Reply
  • This dressing recipe is awesome. Made ahead and rewarmed in the micro. Thank you so much!!!!

    • — Kim on October 12, 2023
    • Reply
  • Thanks for so many good recipes. I look forward to your e-mails and have found multiple recipes of things I have never tried before. Today I printed out your Spinach Salad recipe and the Stuffed Peppers recipe as well. Am going to Amazon to order any cook books you might have. Thanks again.

    • — Faith Reynolds on April 16, 2023
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    • Thanks so much for support! 🙂

      • — Jenn on April 17, 2023
      • Reply
  • I’m sick and holed up in my room and sent this to my non-kitchen-savvy husband to make for dinner. It was so good I almost cried. Not only is this going to be a go-to recipe, but my husband now has the confidence to make something really enjoyable! Thank you!

    • — Kristin in Renton on December 18, 2022
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  • delicious! I like it tangy so I upped it to 3 T vinegar.

    • — Carol on December 7, 2022
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  • Loved it

    • — Rebecca J Johnson on December 5, 2022
    • Reply
  • Recipe is great. Dressing is very tasty and I will make it again. I would suggest one change though. Many, many years ago when I was a waiter and I made these salads tableside, I remember what was important was the dressing needed to be as hot as possible when you added it to the spinach. The idea is to wilt the spinach slightly with the hot fat and serve it immediately.
    Here…we are adding the fat to the vinegar mixture which is at best room temperature which has a cooling effect. Rather, I suggest we microwave the vinegar mix for about a minute while the shallots are cooking to keep the temperature of the dressing up when it is added to the salad. Other than that, I wouldn’t change a thing.

    • — Gary on October 23, 2022
    • Reply
    • I like the spinach slightly wilted too. To achieve that, I cooked everything in a wok and tossed the spinach with the dressing in the wok with the fire on low. The heat was enough to tenderize and slightly wilt the spinach as it absorbed the dressing. I added leftover grilled chicken cut up in chunks and split it with my Mom. She raved over it. It was excellent and light and the right amount of salad for 2 ppl looking to make this a meal.

      • — Amber Y Lizarraga on August 12, 2023
      • Reply
  • I made my own version of a spinach salad, but this dressing was the best ever. Even the men asked their wives to get the recipe from me.
    Jen, you have another winner! Thanks again.

    • — Fran on September 4, 2022
    • Reply
  • This Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing…..was outstanding. I’ve avoided making it for years because my husband claims his mother’s was the best. Well, again yours wins with flying colors. Thanks Again for a great Recipe!

    • — Liz on August 22, 2022
    • Reply
  • Delicious! I turned this into a main course meal by adding leftover chicken breast and left out the eggs. I found that my bacon was rather meaty and didn’t produce as much fat as required for the dressing so I used a light olive oil to make up the difference. Definitely going to make this again!

    • — Glen on June 16, 2022
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  • Made last night and was really good. It’s the first time I could get my husband to eat spinach salad, I lured him in with the warm bacon dressing. Didn’t have mushrooms, but didn’t miss them. I did add a sprinkle of bleu cheese to the top to serve and entice him to eat it lol. He actually said.. “good salad!” This morning he said he felt good today, I told him it’s all that healthy spinach!

    • — CC on June 7, 2022
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  • Love this salad! My husband can’t have mushrooms so I used avocado instead. Thanks Jenn! Love your new cookbook!

  • Fantastic Salad! Combining the Excellent Recipe, the freshest and finest ingredients and using proper technique (video and the recipe) was essential

    FYI, I used Wright’s Brand Thick Slice Hickory Smoked Bacon. Bacon is a critical ingredient and Wright’s has been my favorite bacon favorite for 30+ years.

  • Love this. It was awesome. I have tried a few other spinach salad recipes and some use way too much bacon grease. Yours is the perfect combination and my husband loved it too. Your recipes always take it to perfection. Hugs, Belinda

  • soo good and relatively easy:)

    • — Kathleen Pancini
    • Reply
  • Do you think the dressing could be made in advance, then warmed prior to serving? Thanks!

    • Sure, I think that would work. Hope you enjoy!

    • Hi! I love your website but your pop-ups are nonstop and obnoxious. I wanted you to know in case you were unaware of how frequently they come up. I canceled trying to read a spinach salad recipe.

      It doesn’t make me want to sign up it makes me want to leave this comment and find another recipe elsewhere that I can actually follow along without being patronized. I hope you can get it fixed. Let me know as I think you’re awesome and would like to come back.

      • Hi C, I’m sorry you’re seeing too many ads! I know how frustrating it is. Couple questions:

        -What type of device are you using? If it’s an iPad, the ads can move around depending on how you’re holding it.

        -If you’re using a computer, do you have it in full-screen mode? If not, depending upon how narrow the page is displayed, if the ads don’t have room to be alongside the content, they will display on top of it. This will resolve itself with the full-screen view.

        I do use an outside company to run the ads, and I have to constantly monitor to make sure that the site doesn’t get too ad-heavy. I wish I didn’t have to have any ads at all…it’s a balance between user experience and the high cost of running a site. Thank you for the feedback.

        • Delicious! Whipped this salad together to serve along side some leftovers (honey lemon pork cutlets) that were a little “sparse” for a whole lunch for my family. This elevated the entire meal and made for a delightful and filling lunch.

          • — Kathy on March 27, 2024
          • Reply
  • Absolutely super easy and so YUMMY!

    • — Kelly A Saraceno
    • Reply
  • I made this salad for lunch yesterday and my husband and I both thought it was scrumptious! Please know that you are now my go to chef for recipes. Each recipe made from your site, and cookbook, are delicious! Can’t wait to try the Pumpkin Scones later today.
    Thank you for all you share on your website, it is easy to use and the information presented clearly.

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