Two mason jars sit side-by-side, layered with components of strawberry spinach salads.
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When I first started learning about eating nourishing foods, this colorful and bright Strawberry Spinach Salad was one of the first dishes I leaned into.

Before this, I thought “eating healthy” meant living on boring boiled chicken and steamed broccoli—this salad showed me how exciting, flavorful, and just plain FUN eating whole foods could be. This Strawberry Spinach Salad has been in regular rotation in my world for well over a decade now because it has a wonderful combination of flavors, textures, and colors. This salad topped with some grilled chicken is one of my favorite light dinners for warm spring or summer evenings!

Ingredients for a strawberry spinach salad laid out in individual containers - strawberries, feta, green onions, spinach, lime slices, vinaigrette, and grains.

What is a salad in a jar?

Salads in a jar have all the components of a fresh salad layered in, you guessed it, a jar. Just pour into a bowl at lunchtime, and enjoy a big dose of veggies! Meal prep some mason jar salads, and you’ll have easy access to perfectly fresh veggies for lunch all week long. We have a comprehensive post with all the information you need to build a perfect mason jar salad if you want to know more.

Isn’t the salad going to get all soggy and limp?

Not if you pack it in the proper order! The key to this Strawberry Spinach Salad in a Jar staying fresh and crisp is to keep the liquid ingredients (like the dressing and strawberries!) away from the greens. The sunflower seeds and feta will form a buffer of sorts to keep the spinach dry. As long as you keep the jar upright until you are ready to eat, you should be good to go!

Strawberry feta salad layered in a glass mason jar.

Can I leave out the feta to make this a vegan mason jar salad?

You sure can! While the feta adds a nice tangy flavor and creamy texture, this salad is also super delicious made plant-based! Just drop the feta, and you’ve got a vegan salad ready for lunch.

Can I leave the grains out of this salad to make it paleo and Whole30-friendly?

Absolutely! Skip the cooked grains (and the feta), and you have a wonderful grain-free salad that is perfect for paleo and Whole30 diets.

A hand holds a closed mason jar layered with the components of a strawberry spinach salad.

How far in advance can I make this strawberry spinach salad?

While most of our salad in a jar recipes will easily last 5-7 days in the fridge, the strawberries in this salad tend to go off after 2-3 days—I wouldn’t make it any further in advance than that.

What dressing goes on Strawberry Spinach Salad?

A balsamic vinaigrette is really wonderful on a Strawberry Spinach salad, but here, we double up on the strawberries by making a homemade Strawberry-Lime Vinaigrette. This beautifully pink dressing is so good, it’s hard not to eat it by the spoonful!

Strawberry vinaigrette in a glass measuring cup, surrounded by salad ingredients.

What should I serve this with?

I love adding grilled chicken to this salad to make it an entire meal! This salad is also wonderful as a side dish for fish, grilled chicken, or pork. Enjoy!

 
Two mason jars sit side-by-side, layered with components of strawberry spinach salads.

Strawberry Spinach Salad in a Jar

Yield: 1 24-ounce jar
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

This Strawberry Spinach Mason Jar Salad is like springtime in a jar! Add grilled chicken to make it a full meal.

Ingredients

For the Strawberry-Lime Vinaigrette

  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons strawberry preserves
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon mustard
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the Salad

  • 1 wide-mouth pint and a half jar
  • 3 tablespoons Strawberry-Lime Vinaigrette
  • 1/2 cup cooked quinoa
  • 1/3 cup sliced strawberries
  • 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
  • 1 sliced green onion
  • 1/4 cup crumbled feta
  • 1-2 cups baby spinach

Instructions

  1. To make the dressing, combine all the dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Close the lid, and then shake to combine.
  2. To make the salad, layer the salad ingredients in the order listed into the jar, packing in as much spinach as you need to create a tight pack. Cover the jar, and place it in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.
  3. To eat, dump the entire contents of the jar into a bowl, toss, and enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 1 Serving Size: 1 jar
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 440Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 18gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 1800mgCarbohydrates: 37gFiber: 7gSugar: 11gProtein: 15g

At Wholefully, we believe that good nutrition is about much more than just the numbers on the nutrition facts panel. Please use the above information as only a small part of what helps you decide what foods are nourishing for you.

© Cassie Johnston
Cuisine: American / Category: Salads

Cassie is a holistic nutritionist, cookbook author, and all-around food lover. She grew up cooking dinner with her parents every evening, and her passion for home cooking has been strong ever since. Cassie is the author of two published cookbooks (Cooking with Greek Yogurt and Chia, Quinoa, Kale, Oh My!) and dozens of recipes published in major magazines and newspapers. Cassie has been sharing her award-winning recipes on Wholefully since 2010. She loves dark chocolate, homegrown tomatoes, motorsports, and anything that sparkles. She lives in Indiana with her family on a small homestead.

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2 Comments

    1. Great catch, Delaney! The nutritional info is automatically calculated in our system, and sometimes it doesn’t read the recipe ingredients properly. It should be fixed now! But if the most accurate nutritional information is important to you, we always recommend using a free online nutrition calculator with the actual ingredients and amounts you use in your kitchen to get the best estimate.

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