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Easy Seven Layer Salad

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updated: 04/20/26

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy

Seven Layer Salad is a classic recipe that is perfect for potlucks and holidays. You will love how easy this delicious salad is to throw together.

Sometimes a recipe is a classic for a reason. That is totally the case with this delicious seven layer salad. It is a hearty and delicious salad that presents in the most beautiful way, but will be devoured by your guests.

How to Make a Seven Layer Salad

Here is a brief overview of how this recipe for seven layer salad comes together. For the full recipe including all ingredients and their measurements, scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

Make the Dressing

Whisk together the mayonnaise, Parmesan, sugar, and pepper to make the dressing.

Put the Salad Together

In a large bowl or trifle dish, spread the chopped lettuce. Top with the red onion, the diced eggs, and then the thawed frozen peas. Spread the dressing over the salad. Then top with the shredded cheddar cheese and the cooked bacon. I also added some diced green onions.

Tips and Tricks

  • Cook the bacon in the air fryer. This is my favorite way to cook bacon because there’s no grease splatter. It also works well to cook in the oven.
  • Make hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot. I love making hard boiled eggs this way because it makes for very easy to peel hard boiled eggs. But you can easily make stovetop hard boiled eggs too.
  • Serve it in a bowl or a casserole dish. If you don’t have a trifle dish, I suggest making this in a glass bowl or even a glass casserole dish so everyone can see the great layers.
  • Chop iceberg lettuce into bite sized pieces. I like to take off any rough leaves, then cut the head into fourths, from there I chop it roughly into bite sized pieces.
  • Swap out the vegetables. Diced cherry tomatoes, red bell peppers, celery, corn, and shredded carrots would all be delicious additions to this salad.
  • Avoid cucumbers. You want to leave cucumbers out of this salad as they bring a lot of moisture to the recipe.

Making Ahead and Storing

If you want to do some preparation ahead of time, I recommend preparing your ingredients but storing them separately and not putting the salad together until the day you are ready to serve it. The dressing can be made, bacon cooked and chopped, and eggs cooked up to two days in advance. The salad can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Plate of Seven Layer Salad

If you make this seven layer salad recipe, I’d love to hear how your family enjoyed it!

Trifle dish of Seven Layer Salad ingredients
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Seven Layer Salad

Author: Lisa Longley
Serves: 10 servings
(tap # to scale)
Prep: 25 minutes
Total: 25 minutes
Seven Layer Salad is a classic recipe that is perfect for potlucks and holidays. You will love how easy this delicious salad is to throw together.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound bacon cooked and diced
  • 6 large eggs hard boiled
  • 1 1/4 cups mayonnaise low fat will work great
  • 2/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1 large head of iceberg lettuce chopped
  • 1/2 red onion finely chopped
  • 10 ounces frozen green peas thawed
  • 8 ounces cheddar cheese
  • green onions diced

Instructions

  • In a large heavy-bottomed skillet, cook the bacon until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Once cooled, dice it and set aside.
    1 pound bacon
  • While the bacon is cooking, place the eggs in a large pan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Then turn off the heat and cover for 10 minutes. Transfer the eggs to a bowl filled with ice water and let sit for 5 minutes. Peel and dice.
    6 large eggs
  • Whisk together the mayonnaise, Parmesan, sugar, and pepper to make the dressing.
    1 1/4 cups mayonnaise, 2/3 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
  • In a large glass bowl or trifle dish, spread the lettuce. Top with the red onion, the diced eggs, and then the peas.
    1 large head of iceberg lettuce, 1/2 red onion, 10 ounces frozen green peas
  • Spread the dressing over the salad. Then top with the shredded cheese and the cooked bacon. Sprinkle with diced green onions for a garnish if desired.
    green onions, 8 ounces cheddar cheese
Serving: 1.5cups Calories: 477kcal (24%) Carbohydrates: 13g (4%) Protein: 29g (58%) Fat: 34g (52%) Saturated Fat: 13g (81%) Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g Monounsaturated Fat: 12g Trans Fat: 0.1g Cholesterol: 175mg (58%) Sodium: 1293mg (56%) Potassium: 449mg (13%) Fiber: 2g (8%) Sugar: 7g (8%) Vitamin A: 946IU (19%) Vitamin C: 13mg (16%) Calcium: 279mg (28%) Iron: 2mg (11%)
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Trifle dish of Seven Layer Salad ingredients

did you make this

Seven Layer Salad

I’d love to see what you made! Tag me @lisasimplejoy and hashtag it #simplejoyrecipes!

Lisa is the founder of Simple Joy. Lisa, is a self taught cook and avid lover of all things food, based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For the last 10 years Lisa has been reading cookbooks, experimenting in the kitchen, and learning everything she possibly can about cooking. The result has been the ability to create recipes, both classics and new twists, that readers fall in love with and make with ease. Lisa loves not only providing delicious and easy recipes, but also giving the why behind what we are doing in the kitchen. She gets such great joy in sharing my love for food.

Lisa has been featured in many media outlets. These outlets include Country Living, Real Simple, Today, Parade, Good Housekeeping, Buzzfeed, Delish, Elle, and many others.

Prior to becoming a food creator, Lisa was a social worker. She received her master’s in social work from the University of Milwaukee and worked in child welfare.

Lisa is the mom to four amazing kids: Gavin, Elliot, Quinn, and Piper. Gavin, Quinn, and Piper are happy, amazing kids she loves spending time with.

Her husband, Nathan, is her partner in life and in business. He is her rock in more ways than one and supports all of her crazy dreams.

Lisa and Nathan lost their second child, Elliot, when he was 8 days old. If you want to know more about Elliot, you can read it here. If you want to read more of Lisa’s experience of grief, you can read this post.

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