Spinach & Bacon Salad with Waterchest Nuts, Bean Sprouts & Mushrooms
Submitted by happyzhangbo
Crispy bacon, crunchy water chestnuts, bean sprouts, and fresh mushrooms tossed with baby spinach and sweet-and-sour dressing. A hearty salad ready in under 20 minutes.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
7 minCOOK
8 minREADY
18 minThis isn’t your average side salad. Twelve cups of fresh spinach get tossed with crunchy water chestnuts, crisp bean sprouts, sliced mushrooms, and thin ribbons of red onion.
Then you hit it with crumbled bacon, chopped hard-boiled egg, and a drizzle of sweet-and-sour dressing that ties the whole thing together.
Every bite has a different texture. Crunch from the water chestnuts, snap from the sprouts, and that salty bacon punch that keeps you reaching back in.
Ready in about 18 minutes, it works as a side or a light main when you want something fresh but filling.
Kitchen Tips
- Make sure your spinach is bone-dry after washing. Wet leaves dilute the dressing and make everything limp.
- Cook the bacon until it’s genuinely crisp, not just browned. It needs to hold its crunch once it hits the salad.
- Toss the dressing in right before serving. This salad doesn’t hold well once dressed.
Ingredients
Directions
Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp, turning once a few minutes, 6 to 8 minutes.
Drain on paper towels and coarsely crumble.
Add spinach, onion, water chestnuts, sprouts and mushrooms in a large bowl, and toss until well mixed.
Drizzle dressing over the salad and divide among 6 serving plates.
Top with chopped egg and crumbled bacon.
Serve.
