English Pea Salad

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This English Pea Salad is an easy, creamy pea salad that’s fresh, flavorful, and the perfect spring side. Made with sweet peas, crisp veggies, and a rich dressing (plus bacon and blue cheese), it’s simple to throw together but full of classic flavor. Serve alongside my Baked Ham for Easter, or any time you feel like a delicious fresh vegetable dish.

Table of Contents

Why You’ll Love This English Pea Salad Recipe

To be honest, I had never made a pea salad before. I always thought it would be weird and taste funky. But then I got the brilliant idea to add bacon and blue cheese which made it taste like bacon and blue cheese and suddenly pea salads were worth thinking about. If you’ve never thought about turning peas into a salad, today would be a great day to give it a whirl. It’s like bacon-y springtime in a bowl. If you like pea salad, consider adding it to your Easter menu!

Ingredient Notes

You only need a few classic ingredients to make this creamy pea salad!

• English Peas – I used fresh English peas from Trader Joe’s. They were lovely and had a great texture to them. See my notes below about using frozen peas.
• Red Onion – adds incredible flavor. If you’re not a fan, feel free to leave onions out.
• Blue Cheese – I love blue cheese, but I know it’s a controversial ingredient. So feel free to substitute with sharp cheddar cheese, provolone or even feta cheese.
• Bacon Crumbles – I always keep a bag of bacon crumbles on hand. It’s such a time saver! But if you want to do this by hand, and make your own crispy bacon. I suggest you cook bacon in the oven and then crumble it.
• Mayonnaise, Sour Cream, Dill and Salt & Pepper- these ingredients make up the dressing. Use real mayonnaise for best results.

Fresh Peas vs Frozen Peas

While there is nothing like fresh peas, I understand that these are not always readily available to everyone. Feel free to substitute frozen peas if that’s all you can find. It will be FINE!! Simply defrost them quickly in a colander with warm water. Once they are defrosted, run some cold water over them to chill and then dry on a clean kitchen towel. You can also defrost in the fridge overnight. Just be sure to rinse and dry them before using. While technically you can use canned peas for this salad, I would stick to fresh or frozen peas.

How to Make English Pea Salad

This cold pea salad is a great side dish for any occasion- a baby shower, a summer bbq, even a random Wednesday. For full details on how to make this English Pea Salad, including ingredient measurements, see the recipe card down below. Here are step-by-step instructions for making this recipe:

Step 1: Blanch Peas

Start by blanching your fresh peas. Bring large pot of water to boil, salt the water and cook peas for 90 seconds or so. Drain and submerge into ice water. This step is actually optional as fresh peas can be eaten completely raw.

Drain again and pour onto clean dish towels to dry. As you dry the peas, go through them to pick out any bad peas. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.

*If using frozen peas that have already been defrosted, you can skip this step.

Step 2: Add Red Onion, Bacon + Blue Cheese

Dice the red onion, then add it to the peas along with bacon crumbles and blue cheese. I usually prep everything in small prep bowls first (it keeps things organized and makes assembly faster).

Step 3: Make the Dressing

Stir mayonnaise and sour cream together with a little salt, pepper and dill. Once combined together, pour the creamy dressing over your ingredients. Give it a good stir and that’s it, your pea salad is finito!

Tools You’ll Need

You don’t need anything fancy here, but having the right tools makes this faster and more consistent:

• Large mixing bowls – I like using a large mixing bowl so there’s plenty of room to toss the peas, bacon, and dressing without spilling
• Prep bowls – small prep bowls help keep chopped ingredients organized and ready to go, which makes assembly quicker
• Colander – perfect for quickly draining the peas and removing excess water so the salad stays crisp, not watery.
• Measuring cups – measuring cups make it easy to get the dressing ratios just right for a balanced, creamy pea salad

Tips for Success

• Use frozen or fresh peas, but make sure they’re fully thawed and well-dried so the salad doesn’t turn watery or lose its creamy texture.
• If you’re using fresh peas, blanch them briefly and shock them in ice water to keep their bright color and tender bite.
• Cook the bacon until extra crispy so it holds its crunch after being mixed into the creamy dressing.
• Let the salad chill for at least 1–2 hours before serving so the flavors can blend and the dressing thickens slightly.
• Stir everything gently when combining so the peas stay whole and don’t get mashed in the dressing.

What to Serve with English Pea Salad

This is delightfully fresh and light veggie salad that would be a perfect spring or summer side dish. The possibilities are endless for what to serve this salad with. It easily goes with almost anything you’re serving. Here are a few ideas that I love to eat this with.

• Garlic Pork Loin Roast – hearty and savory alongside the sweet peas
• Crockpot Ham – a classic, especially for holidays or potlucks
• Chicken Kabobs – easy grilled option that keeps things light
• Grilled Flank Steak – adds bold flavor next to the creamy salad
• Juicy Turkey Burger – simple and satisfying for a quick meal

Storing Leftover English Pea Salad

You can eat it right away, or refrigerate it for a couple of hours and let the fresh flavors marry. I really love to eat this salad very cold, so I prefer to eat it the next day. When serving this salad, make sure it gets back into the fridge within 2 hours. You want to avoid letting any salad with mayonnaise become room temperature.

This Pea Salad will last in the fridge, in an airtight container or covered with plastic wrap for up to 4 days. Be sure to cover well! I don’t recommend freezing this salad since the dressing contains mayo. Once mayo is frozen and thawed, the texture becomes grainy and separated.

FAQ

Variations

• Make it Your Own – make this salad your own by adding more fresh veggies to it like green onions, snow peas, or dill pickles.
• Hard-boiled Eggs – add more protein to it with chopped hard boiled eggs.
• Plain Greek Yogurt – If you aren’t a fan of sour cream, substitute with greek yogurt.
• Add a little tangy flavor – as written, my recipe doesn’t have vinegar in the dressing. If you want to add a little bit of tang to it, add a splash of apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar or lemon juice.

More Salad Recipes to Try!

• Chicken Salad
• Egg Salad
• Cucumber Salad
• Broccoli Salad
• Creamy Potato Salad (no eggs!)
• Bow Tie Pasta Salad
• Seafood Pasta Salad

So there you have it! A fun and different kind of salad that is popular for even picky eaters. If you like bacon and cheese, this pea salad is especially for you! The printable recipe card is down below. Have a great day, friends!

English Pea Salad Recipe

Katie Cooksey

This English pea salad is an easy, creamy pea salad that’s fresh, flavorful, and the perfect spring side. Made with sweet peas, crisp veggies, and a rich dressing (plus bacon and blue cheese), it’s simple to throw together but full of classic flavor.

5 from 6 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Salad

Cuisine American

Servings 6 servings

Calories 282 kcal

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 20 oz english peas fresh, shelled
• 2 oz blue cheese crumbled
• 1/2 cup bacon crumbled
• 1/4 cup red onion diced
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• salt & black pepper to taste
• 1 tsp dried dill

Instructions

 

• Bring pot of water to boil. Salt water and add in peas. Cook 90 seconds to 2 minutes. Drain and submerge into ice water. Drain again and pour onto clean dish towels to dry. As you dry peas, sort through them to remove any brown peas or random debris, like stalks and leaves. Pour peas into large bowl. Add in cheese and bacon.
  
• For the dressing, stir mayonnaise, sour cream, red onion, salt, pepper and dill together until smooth. Pour over peas and stir to coat. Either serve immediately or chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
  

Video

Notes

If you can’t find the fresh peas, get some frozen ones and defrost them quickly in a colander with warm water. Once they are defrosted, run some cold water over them to chill and then dry on a clean kitchen towel. You can also defrost in the fridge overnight, just be sure to rinse and dry them before using. No need to blanch them like you would using the fresh peas.

Nutrition

Calories: 282kcalCarbohydrates: 14gProtein: 11gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 417mgPotassium: 302mgFiber: 5gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 817IUVitamin C: 38mgCalcium: 76mgIron: 2mg

Keyword pea salad

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