Classic Pea Salad is an easy to make summer side dish! It’s so creamy and loaded with flavor from frozen sweet green peas, crisp onions, bacon, and cheddar cheese. A seasoned mayo dressing holds it all together in the best way. It’s a picnic basket staple!
Pea Salad
Pea Salad may be an “old fashioned” side dish just like Grandma used to make but it truly withstands the test of time as a summertime favorite! It’s a cold, creamy salad that’s got a whole lot to love. The sweet peas are balanced perfectly with salty bacon and bold red onions. Cheddar cheese is also mixed throughout and it might just be my favorite ingredient! Holding it all together is mayonnaise that’s made flavorful with just a little bit of salt, pepper and sugar. There’s something so tempting about the slightly sweet and savory combination that I just can’t get enough of! Being from the Midwest, this pea salad recipe is a tried and true one that I’ve loved since childhood.
Enjoy more of the best summer salad recipes like Summer Fruit Salad, Cherry Tomato Salad and of course the classic Perfect Potato Salad.
How to Make Pea Salad
- Prepare the peas. Open your bag of frozen peas and empty them into a colander. Let them thaw slightly on the counter while you’re making the dressing and prepping your other ingredients.
- Make the dressing. Mix together the mayo, sugar, salt, and pepper until combined.
- Toss it all together. Mix the red onions, cheddar cheese and bacon together with the dressing. Gently fold in the peas.
- Chill. Chill the salad (covered) in the fridge for at least 1 hour prior to serving. This gives it just enough time to settle and chill all the way through.
What kind of peas do I use in pea salad?
Pea salad simply starts out with a 16 ounce bag of frozen peas. You can use canned peas instead if that is what you have on hand. Keep in mind that the frozen peas are much more green! They look prettier, have a slight crunch that makes this salad so good, and they hold up a little better than canned. If you use canned peas, I would recommend chilling them for a couple of hours before making this salad so that they don’t become mushy as you stir.
Ingredient Notes
- Frozen Sweet Peas – Canned peas may be used instead, but the consistency may differ. Frozen peas are definitely preferred if possible! No matter what, do NOT cook the peas.
- Bacon – I use bacon bits because they’re convenient and I enjoy the flavor. Real bacon can be used instead if preferred. Cook until crispy and fully drain of excess grease prior to chopping.
- Cheddar Cheese – A bag of shredded cheddar works just fine! With that being said, I do prefer to freshly grate my cheddar cheese right off the block if I have the time. The flavor and texture is unmatched.
- Mayonnaise – Regular mayo with the full fat content is my favorite to use. You can opt for low fat mayonnaise if preferred, but the conistency of it won’t be quite as thick.
- Red Onion – Green onion is a good option if you like a more mild onion flavor. Red onions are the best here because have the most potent flavor which greatly compliments the other ingredients in pea salad.
Enjoy!
~Nichole
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The Best Classic Pea Salad
Ingredients
- 1 16 Ounce Bag Frozen Green Peas
- 1 1/3 Cups Mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
- 1 Small Red Onion, Chopped
- 1 Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 2.8 Ounce Bag Real Bacon Bit Pieces** See Note
Instructions
- Remove the frozen peas from the freezer. Open the bag and place the peas in a colander. Allow them to thaw slightly on the counter while you mix up the salad dressing.
- In a large bowl mix together the mayonnaise, sugar, salt, and pepper with the red onion, cheese, and bacon bits.
- Add the frozen peas to the salad and stir well, but gently to combine.
- Chill the salad, covered, for at least one hour before serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Delicious! I used cubed cheese.
I made a double batch for a summer party and it was perfect!
Made this salad for the first time for My Dad’s 80th Birthday Party. It was a hit with my Guests. This is a keeper.
Made this for my husband’s bridge group and they loved it. The only change I made was to use the milder shallot instead of red onion. This one is a keeper. I plan to make it many more times.
Planning on making this for an Easter get together. Recipe says it makes 12 servings. How big is a serving? Wondering if I should double it for 12 people.
Hi, it’s always hard with potluck style dishes but this would be a good serving spoon size full per person. If in doubt, it wouldn’t hurt to double the recipe. Hope that helps 🙂
This brought back memories from my childhood. I wanted something different for my church picnic rather than the standard potato and macaroni salads and it was a hit. I have since taken it to office parties as well. DEFINITELY USE FROZEN PEAS …..canned turn mushy and make this be a totally different flavor. For ease in preparation, the day before needed, I make the dressing (adding just a splash of cider vinegar), thaw the peas in my refrigerator, chop the onions (definitely keep with the red ones), cut the cheese in small cubes rather than shredded (cubed holds up better and doesn’t liquidate as shredded does if you have leftovers). Saute the bacon and crumble (I’m not a fan of bagged bacon bits)….keep all ingredients separated in ziplock bags. In the morning, I mix everything together and put in a glass bowl and refrigerate (stays chilled better in glass that way). Just before serving, a few twists of freshly ground black pepper finishes it off. Best part…..This holds up for several days and I always hope I have leftovers so I can just scoop a bowlful for a quick snack.
Thanks for these detailed how-to-night-before tips! I’ll be using them right now!
Will try this soon…and may try substituting the mayonnaise with Italian dressing. Love these simple recipes, especially during the spring and summer months.
Well, this was just absolutely delicious! … oh man, I gotta pace myself! Thank you!!
I love Pea Sald (and mine is almost identical), but I like to add chopped hard boiled egg right before serving (last thing to mix in so they don’t break up too much).
I also put hard-boiled eggs in mine.
I was looking for something simple to make and take to my church potluck tomorrow and this is it! We have a large elderly population and I think they will especially enjoy this and so will everyone else. I haven’t seen this at a potluck in years. Thanks for sharing ?
This was so simple yet so delicious! This will definitely be a side dish I make again and again!
Thank you! It’s such a favorite of ours so I love hearing that you enjoyed it! 🙂
This was delicious. I’d never had pea salad before. I found this recipe while looking for an alternative to potato or pasta salad. It was quick and easy to make. Definitely a keeper.