Lettuce Show You How Versatile Tender Greens Can Be With These 38 Recipes

Tender and crisp greens never looked so good as in these fresh and healthy recipes.

April 3, 2017

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There is little better than a fresh, crunchy salad. From Caesar salad to grilled romaine, these are 38 of our favorite ways to eat greens.

Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca
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Classic Caesar Salad
A great Caesar salad gets its swagger from a great dressing. Squeamish about raw egg yolks and anchovies? Sorry. Yolks are what give richness to the emulsion, while anchovies provide a briny blast (and that whole umami thing). Here's our go-to recipe.
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Michael Graydon & Nikole Herriott
2/38
Little Gem Salad with Lemon Cream and Hazelnuts
Wait, whipped cream in a salad? Yep. This rich, bright lemon cream is perfectly suited for Little Gems. “The cream takes over your whole mouth,” says chef Joshua McFadden, “while the lemon juice acts as a bridge.” Learn more here.
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Alex Lau
3/38
Black Tie Crudite with Whipped Ricotta
Intentionally burning vegetables—it’s a thing! The burnt onion powder adds a smoky, slightly bitter finish to the rich dip, and is responsible for the black part of this tuxedo-inspired crudite.
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Romulo Yanes
4/38
Seared Steak Lettuce Cups
We like using tender butter lettuce for these edible cups.
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Peden & Munk
5/38
Iceberg Wedges with Grilled Bacon and Croutons
Who doesn’t love a wedge? Ask your butcher to cut slab bacon into thick slices (about ¼") to yield nice meaty pieces once they’re crisped on the grill.
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Marcus Nilsson
6/38
Steakhouse Salad with Red Chile Dressing and Peanuts
The steak can be marinated a day in advance—in fact, it gets better. Dress the salad at the last minute, so the lettuce doesn't wilt.
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Photo by Marcus Nilsson
7/38
Green Goddess Cobb Salad
To make addictively crispy chicken skin, turn it often in the skillet, until it looks like bacon.
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Alex Lau
8/38
Grilled Little Gem Salad with Pita Croutons
Yes—you can grill lettuce. And it’s worth it.
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Christopher Baker
9/38
Grilled Vegetable Salad with Raw Green Mole
This uncooked mole gets heat from jalapeño, cooling freshness from lettuce and herbs, and a touch of richness from toasted seeds. Use any extra as a dip for crudités.
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10/38
Pickled Vegetable Salad with Nori Vinaigrette
It might seem fussy to separate the vegetables when pickling, but if they’re combined, the colors will bleed and they won’t be as vibrant. Crisp lettuce is a perfect bed for the pickled veg.
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Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott
11/38
Charred Romaine with Tomatillo Dressing
Charred to a crisp: Not a statement usually associated with salads, but delicious nonetheless in this Mexican-inspired romaine number from Rose's Luxury.
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Danny Kim
12/38
Watercress Salad with Snapper and Kimchi
The tender butter lettuce beefs up the salad, while the watercress gives it extra flavor.
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13/38
Club Salad
A club salad is a great way to use grilled chicken leftovers for lunch—and look ma, no carbs!
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Photo by We Are The Rhoads
14/38
Sautéed Greens with Olives
You can sauté whatever leafy greens you like or happen to have on hand; it’s an ideal way to use up those slightly past their prime.
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15/38
Chicken Salad with Herbs and Aleppo Pepper
This chicken feels light and summery. That’s because there’s no mayo, just lots of herbs and lettuce.
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16/38
Greens with Horseradish–Crème Fraîche Dressing
Toasting grains and seeds is a simple move that adds texture and deep flavor to this green salad. The dressing will be milder if you use fresh horseradish, or sharp and a tad spicy if you use prepared.
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17/38
Spicy Pork Salad
Surprisingly simple, this is a great weeknight dish.
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18/38
Classic Salad
No need to complicate a good thing.
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Christopher Testani
19/38
Butterflied Trout with Spicy Lettuce, Celery, and Herbs
If you have any doubts about your fish-cooking skills, put an end to them by using a nonstick skillet.
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Christopher Testani
20/38
Pickled Vegetable Lettuce Cups
You can prep your vegetables ahead of time (store them in a zip-top bag in the crisper drawer), but wait to assemble these at the last minute.
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Dan Monick
21/38
Mixed Lettuces and Kohlrabi with Creamy Sumac Dressing
Kohlrabi is underappreciated and misunderstood. But we’ve decided it’s got our favorite crunch: sweet, dense, and snappy (think broccoli stem). We can thank the duo behind L.A.’s buzzy restaurants Jon & Vinny’s and Animal for this one.
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Justin Brooks
22/38
BLT Lettuce Wraps
Bibb lettuce leaves are sturdy and crispy enough to balance out the bacon, tomatoes, and avocado for these lunch-friendly wraps. This recipe is part of our lunch for a week series; ‎check out the rest for the remaining days here.
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Alex Lau
23/38
Blue Cheese and Bacon Lettuce Boats
Think of this recipe as your favorite bacony wedge salad reimagined as an additive party snack.
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Elizabeth Cecil
24/38
Little Gem Lettuce with Green Goddess Dressing
If you can’t find Little Gem, use any other small crunchy green, such as romaine hearts.
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Gentl & Hyers
25/38
Crispy Pork Lettuce Wraps With Spicy Cucumbers
Ask your butcher for a square piece of pork belly: It’ll make for even slices and a good fat-to-meat ratio.
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Michael Graydon & Nikole Herriott
26/38
Young Lettuces with Herbed Avocado
Local chefs run off with all the fancy lettuces at your farmers’ market? Not to worry. The herbed avocado base of this dish will elevate even the most basic supermarket greens.
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Christina Holmes
27/38
Chicken with Buttered Snap Peas and Tender Lettuces
Cooked lettuces? Yes—but barely. When they hit the pan, they’ll pick up flavor from the chicken drippings, gently wilting and taking on the buttery sauce.
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Christopher Testani
28/38
Grilled Lettuces with Crème Fraîche and Avocado
“Don’t try this with iceberg,” advises Roberta’s chef Carlo Mirarchi. Flavorful, robust lettuces work best, allowing you to get grill marks on one side while the rest wilts.
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Jason Lowe
29/38
B.O.L.T (Bacon, Oyster, Lettuce, Tomato)
As if an oyster po’boy and a BLT had a baby; this appropriately messy sandwich achieves the ideal texture-and-temperature contrast when the oysters are still warm from the fryer.
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30/38
Lettuce Cups with Stir-Fried Chicken
Use your greens as a wrap in these protein-packed appetizers. They're like less carb-y tacos!
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Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott
31/38
Romaine and Sugar Snap Peas With Pecan Dressing
Using pecans as a nut butter in the dressing and salt-roasted on top lends an earthy note to this bright spring salad.
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Peden & Munk
32/38
Crab with Romaine, Dill Sauce, and Sunflower Seeds
Sprouting and frying the sunflower seeds completely transforms their flavor. But just using salted, roasted sunflower seeds would also work fine. This recipe is from Staplehouse, America's Best New Restaurant 2016.
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Peden + Munk
33/38
Baby Romaine and Hot Smoked Salmon Salad
The not-so-secret formula behind Sweetgreen and other DIY salad spots? And the key to making this smoked salmon recipe? It's called mise en place. Prep the components in advance, then put it all together later.
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Christopher Testani
34/38
Ultimate BLT
Two sweet-salty finishings let guests craft their own signature sandwiches, but if you’re a purist, leave them off and let the (excellent) bacon speak for itself.
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Peden & Munk
35/38
Grilled Green Tomatoes with Burrata and Green Juice
Get true unripe green tomatoes, not green heirlooms, which are too delicate to grill. As for the green juice, there are some good store-bought ones if you’d rather not make your own.
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Alex Lau
36/38
Wok-Fried Rice Noodles with Chicken and Squid
Sure, you can make these satisfying wok-fried noodles from chef Kris Yenbamroong without a wok. Just get your skillet super hot.
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37/38
Layered Salad with Roasted Garlic Dressing
This layered salad recipe is a meal-in-one, thanks to chickpeas, tons of veggies, and a roasted garlic dressing.
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38/38
Escarole and Butter Lettuce Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Hazelnuts
Feeding a crowd? This expandable or contractible recipe can be multiplied to serve as many as you need.
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Explore Bon AppétitLettuce

Classic Caesar Salad

Little Gem Salad with Lemon Cream and Hazelnuts

Black Tie Crudite with Whipped Ricotta

Seared Steak Lettuce Cups

Iceberg Wedges with Grilled Bacon and Croutons

Steakhouse Salad with Red Chile Dressing and Peanuts

Green Goddess Cobb Salad

Grilled Little Gem Salad with Pita Croutons

Grilled Vegetable Salad with Raw Green Mole

Pickled Vegetable Salad with Nori Vinaigrette

Charred Romaine with Tomatillo Dressing

Watercress Salad with Snapper and Kimchi

Club Salad

Sautéed Greens with Olives

Chicken Salad with Herbs and Aleppo Pepper

Greens with Horseradish–Crème Fraîche Dressing

Spicy Pork Salad

Classic Salad

Butterflied Trout with Spicy Lettuce, Celery, and Herbs

Pickled Vegetable Lettuce Cups

Mixed Lettuces and Kohlrabi with Creamy Sumac Dressing

BLT Lettuce Wraps

Blue Cheese and Bacon Lettuce Boats

Little Gem Lettuce with Green Goddess Dressing

Crispy Pork Lettuce Wraps With Spicy Cucumbers

Young Lettuces with Herbed Avocado

Chicken with Buttered Snap Peas and Tender Lettuces

Grilled Lettuces with Crème Fraîche and Avocado

B.O.L.T (Bacon, Oyster, Lettuce, Tomato)

Lettuce Cups with Stir-Fried Chicken

Romaine and Sugar Snap Peas With Pecan Dressing

Crab with Romaine, Dill Sauce, and Sunflower Seeds

Baby Romaine and Hot Smoked Salmon Salad

Ultimate BLT

Grilled Green Tomatoes with Burrata and Green Juice

Wok-Fried Rice Noodles with Chicken and Squid

Layered Salad with Roasted Garlic Dressing

Escarole and Butter Lettuce Salad with Pomegranate Seeds and Hazelnuts