Not Just Any Salad
I remember this salad affectionately from my childhood because my mom and my grandma liked it. As I child, I gave this salad a hard pass. But as an adult, there is just something about the sturdy spinach topped with bacon, eggs, and dressing (all these salad accessories could be served warm) topped with crunchy bean sprouts. This is not just any salad.
What You’ll Need to Make Spinach Salad with Bacon and Eggs
- Spinach – So, I really feel like this is an all for one and one for all salad. A lot of times you can mix and match, substitute toppings in salad. But, for this salad, it is what it is because of the 5 key components – spinach, bacon, eggs, dressing, and (optional) bean sprouts. Don’t use lettuce.
- Eggs – Hard boiled eggs are a must. Making them is super easy, and with the boil then rest method, the yolks will be a beautiful yellow (not that dingy green eww color).
- Sprouts – These can be tricky…. only purchase these if you are ready to make the salad. Sprouts are fickle with a short shelf. This is a unique ingredient, unless you have other plans for them, hold off until ready.
- Bacon – Crispy, fatty bacon bits is part of why this salad is so amazing. Bacon bring a bit of crunch, the fat and salt. Find a good pre-made bacon crumble if you want a quick salad… or make Mess Free Oven Bacon and have warm bacon right out of the oven.
Making Spinach Salad with Bacon and Eggs
Salads are so easy, but this one takes a little more effort. If you don’t want to make bacon, by all means find a good quality precooked bacon crumble. The second element that will take a bit of time, are the eggs. I cannot recall where I learned this method, but it is nearly fail-safe. Add your eggs to a small pot and cover with water.
Bring the water to a boil. Once the water is rolling, put a lid on the pan, remove the eggs from the heat and let it rest for 15 minutes. Drain and soak in ice cubes and cold water. Then, drain the ice water. Give the eggs a shake in the pan to crack the shells and peel. The yolks should be a beautiful yellow color.
Putting Your Spinach Salad Together
Alright! Eggs are hard-boiled and peeled, and the bacon is ready. In each bowl, place a generous handful of spinach, then top with sprouts, chopped eggs, bacon crumbles, and top with your favorite dressing. I highly, highly recommend trying this Salad Dressing for Spinach Salad! I know, that’s an obvious name, but it’s not a French or Catalina, it’s just a dressing for spinach salad.
Tips, Tricks, and FAQs
- Cutting Corners. Love the homemade bacon, and it’s such an easy clean up, but as I said before, if you want to cut down the prep time, get a pre-cooked bacon crumble or bacon slices.
- Bean Sprouts. Bean sprouts have a short shelf life, so purchase them only when you are ready to make this salad. Seriously, even having them sit around for a day could lead to sad looking sprouts.
- Make Ahead. Spinach is so durable. I would not be afraid to leave spinach, bacon and, eggs premixed and then add the sprouts when needed in a pack your lunch the night before scenario.
- Shake it Up. Use a container with a lid, add the salad, then top with your favorite dressing and pop the lid on. Give it a good shake to distribute the dressing more evenly. And it usually requires less dressing.
Spinach Salad with Bacon and Eggs
Equipment
- baking sheet with sides
- foil
- small saucepan
- cutting board
- measuring cups
Ingredients
- 10 cups fresh spinach (4 ounces)
- 12 ounces raw bacon
- 4 hard boiled eggs, peeled
- 1 cup bean sprouts
- salad dressing of your choice… or Salad Dressing for Spinach Salad (find link below)
Instructions
Bacon
- Oven. Preheat the oven to 425.
- Foil. Using a baking sheet with sides, line it with foil.
- Bake. Place the slices of raw bacon on the foil. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes. This timing will depend on the thickness of the bacon and the fat content. I find the thinner sliced, the more fat, and/or more crowded, the bacon will cook faster.12 ounces raw bacon
- *** While the bacon is cooking, start the eggs. See below. ***
- Flip. After 15-20 minutes, flip the bacon. Cook for another 5-10, until the bacon is cooked to your preference in crisp.
- Drain. Carefully remove from the oven. Place the bacon on a paper towel lined plate to drain the excess oil.
- Clean up. Allow the remaining bacon fat in the baking sheet to cool before rolling up the foil to toss. Easy clean up!
- Chop. When the bacon is cool enough to handle, chop or crumble.
Hard Boiled Eggs
- Eggs. Place eggs in a small saucepan.4 hard boiled eggs, peeled
- Boil. Cover with water. Bring the water to a boil.
- Cover. Once the water comes to a rolling boil, cover with a lid and remove from the heat.
- Stand. Let the eggs stand for 15 minutes.
- Ice. After the 15 minute of resting has ended, carefully drain the hot water. Fill the pan back up with ice cubes and cold water. Allow the eggs to sit in the cold water for 5 minutes.
- Peel. At the end of the 5 minutes, drain the water. While still in the pan, give the eggs a good shake to crack the shells against each other. Peel the eggs. If needed, peel the eggs under running water. Chop and set aside.
Prepare the Salad
- Spinach. Place 2 to 2 1/2 cups of spinach in each salad bowl or plate.10 cups fresh spinach (4 ounces)
- Toppers. Top each salad with the chopped eggs and crumbled bacon.
- Sprouts. Top each salad with 1/4 to 1/3 cup sprouts. Or not at all… you either love sprouts or hate them. If you're on the fence, just try them. They will add a nice crunch that I think is needed with the soft eggs, bacon, and dressing of your choice (or see link below for Salad Dressing for Spinach Salad).1 cup bean sprouts
- Enjoy! Optional, warm the dressing slightly. Pour the warmed, or room temp, dressing over each salad. Serve immediately.salad dressing of your choice… or Salad Dressing for Spinach Salad (find link below)
