Old Fashioned Pea Salad is a classic side dish of peas, cheese, onion and bacon coated in a creamy dill dressing that brings back childhood memories of potlucks and warm summer evenings.
Old Fashioned Pea Salad
Do you have childhood food memories that evoke delicious flavors and good times together?
This Old Fashioned Pea Salad is one of those recipes for me. Pea salad recipes have been around for many decades and I’m sure every grandma put her own special twist on the recipe.
This basic pea salad is the one that I remember my grandma making every summer. Simple yet oh so delicious.
Peas combine with zesty red onion and flavorful cheddar cheese along with bacon and are tossed together in a creamy dressing flavored with dill.
I used dried dill in this recipe but fresh dill will be so delicious and very summery. Just substitute three times the amount of fresh dill for the dried dill. You can even add more if you love the flavor!
The red onion is thinly sliced but you can also diced the red onion if you prefer. You can also use a sweet onion, such as a Vidalia onion, in place of the red onion.
Cubes of cheddar cheese make for bursts of flavor but shredded cheddar cheese would also work well in this pea recipe.
I love the convenience of those real bacon bits that come in a jar. They’re great to have in the pantry in a pinch and that’s what I used for this side dish recipe. But whenever I have bacon in my fridge I love to cook some up until it’s crispy and then crumble it for this salad. Either way, we all know that everything’s better with bacon!
Just want to make a small amount, you can easily cut this recipe in half.
Trust me when I say that this recipe for pea salad is easy homemade and will be a big hit at your next potluck or cookout.
I make commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
Be sure to visit the Swirls of Flavor Amazon Storefront for GG's personal kitchen recommendations!
How to make a recipe for creamy pea salad
Scroll down for the full recipe instructions and ingredient amounts in the recipe card below
- In a large mixing bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, dill, salt and pepper, stirring until blended.
- Add peas, cheddar cheese, red onion and bacon bits, stirring until all the ingredients are evenly coated.
Swirls of Flavor Recipe Tips
- This salad can be made ahead and refrigerated, for up to 5 days, until you are ready to serve it.
- Fresh basil would taste delicious in this recipe too
- You can easily halve this recipe to make xxx cups of pea salad
- For a twist on this pea salad, try tossing it with my pesto mayonnaise
Substitutions
- Substitute shredded cheddar cheese for the cubed cheddar cheese
- Substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream
- Prefer to cook your own bacon? Just cook three slices of bacon until crispy then crumble and substitute for the bacon bits
- Substitute 1 Tablespoon fresh dill for the dried dill
- Replace the red onion with a sweet onion, such as Vidalia
- Make a healthy pea salad and substitute plain Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise
Storage
- You can store this vegetable salad in the refrigerator in an airtight container, covered, for up to 5 days.
- As always, I find it helpful to visit the FDA website for food storage guidelines
Summer Salad Recipes
- Tomato Cucumber Salad
- Summer Corn Salad
- Potato Salad With Bacon, Dill and Jalapeno from Honeybunch Hunts
- Southern Cornbread Salad Recipe from Restless Chipotle
Ingredients for an easy pea salad
- mayonnaise
- sour cream
- apple cider vinegar
- dried dill
- salt
- pepper
- frozen peas
- cheddar cheese
- bacon bits
- red onion
Old Fashioned Pea Salad
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 32 ounces frozen peas thawed, about 6 cups
- 8 ounces cheddar cheese cubed
- 3 ounces bacon bits about ¾ cup
- 1 medium red onion thinly sliced, about 1 cup
I earn a commission from Instacart from qualifying purchases.
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, dill, salt and pepper, stirring until blended.
- Add peas, cheddar cheese, red onion and bacon bits, stirring until all the ingredients are evenly coated.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate, covered, until ready to serve, for up to 5 days.
Notes
• This salad can be made ahead and refrigerated, for up to 5 days, until you are ready to serve it.
• Fresh basil would taste delicious in this recipe too
• You can easily halve this recipe to make xxx cups of pea salad Substitutions
• Substitute shredded cheddar cheese for the cubed cheddar cheese
• Substitute Greek yogurt for the sour cream
• Prefer to cook your own bacon? Just cook three slices of bacon until crispy then crumble and substitute for the bacon bits
• Replace the red onion with a sweet onion, such as Vidalia
• Substitute 1 Tablespoon fresh dill for the dried dill
• Make a healthy pea salad and substitute plain Greek yogurt for the mayonnaise
Nutrition
Thanks for stopping by. Leave a tip or comment...