There's just something about salads that (there's no other way to say it) many kids don't particularly enjoy. I found that combining small amounts of raw vegetables with starchy comfort foods like pasta, bread, or potatoes, or adding fresh or dried fruit, helped to entice my kids and their friends to give salads a try. As for tossed green salads, the best way I found to win them over was to offer a very simple homemade Thousand Island dressing with it.
Unfortunately, lots of kids and teens who want to be vegetarian or vegan claim that they don't like vegetables. It's our job to gently and persistently help them overcome that aversion. If your kids aren't receptive to salads at any given time, let it go and revisit from time to time. In the meantime, keep serving platters of raw veggies and dip (something lots of kids like) and plenty of fresh fruit.
From creamy macaroni and potato salads to taco salad, watermelon salad, and a build-your-own salad bar, here are 16 vegan salads your kids just might eat. A few of the classics, like the macaroni salad and the cabbage-apple slaw, are adapted from Nava Atlas's The Vegetarian Family Cookbook.
16 Kid-Friendly Salads
A mild, deli-style macaroni salad dotted with tiny bits of red pepper, peas, corn, and carrot. Chopping the veggies small is the trick: they blend right into the creamy pasta, so even cautious eaters go back for seconds. It's a great change of pace from sandwiches in the lunch box, too.
Crunchy tortilla strips, beans, avocado, and vegan cheddar make this salad feel more like taco night than a bowl of greens. Set out the toppings separately and let everyone build their own. The quick tomato-lime dressing is mild enough for young taste buds.
Juicy watermelon and strawberries do the heavy lifting in this sweet-meets-savory summer salad with cucumber, avocado, mint, and vegan feta. Kids who say they don't like salad rarely turn down watermelon. Skip the capers and red onion for picky eaters if you like.
Tender potatoes in a creamy vegan mayo dressing, flecked with red pepper, green peas, and olives. Potatoes are a comfort food most kids already love, which makes this a gentle first step toward eating raw veggies. It's a picnic and cookout favorite.
A bagged coleslaw mix makes this crunchy slaw a 10-minute job. Shredded cabbage, carrots, and red pepper get a sweet-tangy sesame-lime dressing, and slivered almonds add extra crunch. Serve it on veggie burgers or tucked into tacos.
The best way to get kids to eat salad is to let them make it themselves. This guide shows how to set up a simple salad bar with greens, crunchy toppings, beans, and a couple of dressings. Everyone picks what goes in their own bowl, so there are no complaints at the table.
Crisp apple and plump raisins make this creamy cabbage slaw a hit with kids. Everything gets tossed in a simple vegan mayo and lemon dressing, with sunflower or pumpkin seeds on top for crunch. It's a nice sweet contrast to spicy main dishes, so the grown-ups will like it too.
Small pasta shapes, broccoli florets, corn, carrots, and olives in whatever dressing your child likes best. The veggies cook right along with the pasta, so it's easy to make ahead. Make it for dinner and pack the leftovers for school lunches all week.
Chunks of crusty bread soak up juicy ripe tomatoes and a simple lemony vinaigrette in this classic Italian bread salad. Kids who love bread will happily eat their tomatoes this way. It's best in late summer when tomatoes are at their sweetest.
Bow-tie pasta tossed with crunchy veggies in a silky tofu-based ranch-style dressing. It tastes rich and creamy but is packed with protein. Let kids pick which vegetables go in, and keep the arugula on the side if greens are a hard sell.
Finely chopped broccoli, summer squash, and red pepper get a sweet-tangy boost from pickle relish and sesame-ginger dressing. Chopping the veggies small makes raw broccoli much easier for kids to love. It's a great way to use up a garden full of zucchini.
A fresh, lighter potato salad with a tangy herb dressing instead of heavy mayo. Older kids who already love potato salad will enjoy this grown-up version. It keeps well, so make a big batch for picnics and potlucks.
Layers of creamy avocado hummus, quinoa, shredded veggies, and greens stacked in a jar look like a rainbow. Kids love shaking it all together at lunchtime. Let them choose the colors and build their own jars the night before.
Everything is chopped small in this hearty salad of chickpeas, crisp veggies, and olives, so every bite is the same and nothing looks scary. It's filling enough for a light meal. Stuff leftovers into a wrap or pita for an easy lunch.
Sweet oranges or mango make this black bean and avocado salad a hit with kids. It's colorful, filling, and comes together in minutes with no cooking. Serve it as a side, a dip with tortilla chips, or a light main dish.
Just crunchy baby cucumbers and sweet cherry tomatoes in a simple balsamic dressing. With so few ingredients, it's an easy one for little hands to help make. It goes with almost any meal, from pasta night to backyard cookouts.
Helpful Tips for Getting Picky Eaters to Try Salad
Getting a salad-skeptic to take that first bite is mostly about giving them some control and taking the pressure off. These are the tricks that worked best in our house:
- Let them build their own. Kids are far more likely to eat something they put together themselves. Set out bowls of greens, shredded carrots, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, croutons, and seeds, and let everyone make their own plate. Our salad bar at home guide shows how easy it is.
- Serve the dressing on the side. Many kids don't like foods touching, let alone swimming in dressing. A small cup of dressing for dipping lets them control how much they use. Creamy dressings like Thousand Island or ranch tend to be the biggest hits; you'll find plenty of options in our creamy vegan salad dressings and vegan salad dressing recipes round-ups.
- Make it fun with shapes. Use small cookie cutters to cut cucumber, bell pepper, or melon slices into stars and hearts, run carrots and zucchini through a spiralizer, or thread cherry tomatoes and cucumber chunks onto skewers for "salad on a stick." A little novelty goes a long way.
- Add something they already love. Pasta, potatoes, bread, beans, and fruit are the easiest bridges to raw veggies. That's why so many salads in this collection start there. A simple carrot-raisin salad is often the very first salad kids enjoy.
- Chop everything small. Tiny, evenly chopped veggies blend into a salad instead of standing out, and there are no big leafy bites to wrestle with.
- Put them to work. Kids love washing and spinning greens. A small, easy-to-turn salad spinner like the OXO Good Grips Small Salad & Herb Spinner is the right size for little hands, and they're much more likely to taste a salad they helped make.
- Pack it bento-style. For school lunches, a compartment lunch box keeps each ingredient separate so nothing gets soggy and picky eaters can see exactly what's there. We like the leakproof Bentgo Kids bento box; one small compartment is just right for dressing or dip.
- Keep offering, without pressure. It can take many tries before a child accepts a new food. Put a small portion on the plate, eat your own salad with enthusiasm, and let it go if they're not interested today.
More Kid-Friendly Recipes
And if your family loves these salads, be sure to check out these other kid-approved ideas:
Jessica Smith says
I just wanted to thank you for such great recipes and resources. We,my family and I, ate new to vegetarian cooking and your book The Vegetarian Family Cookbook has been great, with things my kids will eat! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
A grateful and happy mom!
Krista says
I have been doing my best to get my kids love veggies and fruits again. I have to try this one and I hope they'll love this. Thanks for sharing!
Hilary says
These are fun and exciting recipes. I can't even decide yet which to do first and prepare it for my kids.
Suzette says
I love the idea of making kids the inspiration for these recipes. I hope my kids would love this. I will do my best to keep my kids healthy. Thanks for sharing!