This Sugar Snap Pea Salad is the best warm-weather side dish. Crunchy and sweet snap peas, fresh basil, and almonds are tossed in a tangy lemon and Dijon dressing, giving you a simple meal that’s incredibly refreshing and flavorful!
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Sure, you could sauté your snap peas, but hear me out: snap peas truly shine when they’re served raw! Super crunchy with a sweet pop of flavor, they’re delightful as a standalone snack or, better yet, showcased in this Snap Pea Salad.
Making a salad with sugar snap peas is as easy as it sounds. There’s no lettuce to be chopped or too many extra vegetables to throw in. Rather, the raw sugar snap peas pair beautifully with the tangy and subtly savory dressing, while fresh herbs add a burst of brightness and almonds add a second layer of crunch.
Ingredients needed
- Sugar snap peas – Who needs lettuce when you can make a salad with snap peas? They’re satisfyingly crunchy with delicate sweet flavors, making this salad as unique as it is refreshing! Look for bright green sugar snap peas at the farmer’s market when they’re in season during spring or pick up a bag at the grocery store (they’re usually available year-round).
- Honey Dijon dressing – With its sweet, tangy, and savory flavors, the easy honey Dijon dressing perfectly complements the crisp snap peas. All you need is lemon juice, olive oil, Dijon mustard, honey, and shallots to make it.
- Salad toppings – I bulked up this light and crisp salad with fresh basil leaves and toasted and chopped almonds. To customize the flavors, swap the basil for another soft herb you like (parsley, tarragon, mint, or any of these substitutes for basil all work well), or replace the almonds with any other nut or seed you have on hand.
How to make a snap pea salad
- Make the dressing by whisking the olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, honey, and minced shallots together in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add your trimmed and sliced snap peas to a large bowl. Pour the dressing over top and toss gently to combine. Next, toss in the fresh basil and almonds.
- Taste the salad and adjust the flavors, adding a little more salt and pepper as needed. Serve your salad and enjoy!
Tips and tricks
- To trim snap peas, use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to remove both ends of each pea. You’ll notice a little string along the side—just pull it off and discard it.
- After trimming, slice the snap peas lengthwise at a diagonal into bite-sized pieces. This helps the dressing coat each piece evenly and ensures that you get a little bit of everything in each bite.
- If the salad tastes too tangy, add a little more honey. If it’s too sweet, add more lemon juice or mustard to balance it out.
Variations
This snap pea salad is as flexible as it is fresh and flavorful! There are so many ways to make it your own:
- Play with the dressing – Swap the lemon juice for white vinegar, rice vinegar, champagne vinegar, orange juice, or lime juice.
- Use another salad dressing – My Lemon Pesto Dressing or Zesty Italian Dressing would give the salad a different flavor profile but still complement the sweet peas.
- Add more vegetables – Give this salad a boost of color and flavor by adding chopped cucumbers, shredded carrots, green beans, sliced radishes, or blanched asparagus.
- Instead of almonds – Try toasted cashews, walnuts, pecans, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or sesame seeds to enhance the crunch.
Serving suggestions
This versatile salad stands out alongside simple seafood dishes. Think shrimp, flaky white fish like cod or halibut, and even octopus!
It also pairs well with umami-forward Asian-inspired dishes like hamachi crudo, Vietnamese chicken wings, ground lamb stir fry, Thai beef stir fry, miso chicken, or miso glazed salmon. Serve with a bowl of rice on the side to round out the meal.
And because it’s so refreshing, this salad is perfect for any backyard barbecue or summertime meal. Pair it with all of your BBQ favorites, like:
Make ahead and storing
If you want to get a head start on this recipe, store the dressing, trimmed and sliced snap peas, and toasted almonds separately in the fridge. Gently toss everything together immediately before serving to keep everything nice and crunchy.
You can refrigerate the leftover snap pea salad in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Keep in mind that the dressing will soften the snap peas over time, so it’s best to enjoy the salad sooner rather than later.
Did you try this salad with snow peas?
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Full Recipe
Snap Pea Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 ½ Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 Tablespoon shallots (minced )
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- ½ pound sugar snap peas (thinly sliced, ends trimmed, sliced lengthwise at a diagonal)
- 2 Tablespoons fresh basil (julienned (or parsley, tarragon or mint leaves, or a combination))
- 2 Tablespoons almonds (chopped, or pumpkin seeds, cashews, pine nuts, etc.)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, honey and shallots. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Add the sliced snap peas to a large bowl. Pour on the dressing and toss gently to combine. Add the fresh basil and almonds, and toss again to combine. Season again with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- To trim snap peas, use a sharp knife or kitchen shears to remove both ends of each pea. You’ll notice a little string along the side—just pull it off and discard it.
- After trimming, slice the snap peas lengthwise at a diagonal into bite-sized pieces. This helps the dressing coat each piece evenly and ensures that you get a little bit of everything in each bite.
- If the salad tastes too tangy, add a little more honey. If it’s too sweet, add more lemon juice or mustard to balance it out.
- Play with the dressing – Swap the lemon juice for white vinegar, rice vinegar, champagne vinegar, orange juice, or lime juice.
- Use another salad dressing – My Lemon Pesto Dressing or Zesty Italian Dressing would give the salad a different flavor profile but still complement the sweet peas.
- Add more vegetables – Give this salad a boost of color and flavor by adding chopped cucumbers, shredded carrots, green beans, sliced radishes, or blanched asparagus.
- Instead of almonds – Try toasted cashews, walnuts, pecans, pine nuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, or sesame seeds to enhance the crunch.
- Toss with grains or pasta – To turn this simple salad into a light meal, mix it with cooked and cooled grains, like quinoa, farro, or barley. You can even transform it into a snap pea pasta salad by adding boiled and cooled pasta, like orzo, macaroni, ditalini, or rotini.
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