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This irresistible 7 layer cauliflower salad checks off all of the YUM boxes! Serve this vibrant salad along side all of the proteins at your next vegan potluck and there will be nothing left. Layered with crunchy textures, smokey and tangy flavors, this salad is sure to impress!
This cauliflower salad is quite possibly my number one favorite, which is difficult to say considering my mac salad is also high on my list of "I would eat this every day if I could".
Try not to groan much over this, but I'm gonna do it, I'm going to talk about my grandmother... she made a version of this salad back when I was young and we still had family holidays. It was my favorite, but as I said, it was a version of it. The original had Iceburg lettuce, bacon, cauliflower, parmesan cheese, sugar, onion (yellow), and mayonnaise. We also call it Farmer's Salad and I'm not sure why. I haven't been able to find anything about it.
However, since we live where we live and the produce isn't always the greatest, I wanted to come up with something similar, but with ingredients I knew I could get a hold of, as well as have in the first place because the original recipe is very not vegan.
I love serving this cauliflower salad with my favorite comfort food, tator tot hot dish.
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🥘Ingredients
I am using tempeh bacon crumbles for this recipe, you can certainly use your favorite vegan bacon of choice as a replacement. You could even use vegan bacon bits if you wanted, but I'd stick with something with bigger pieces if you really want the true experience.
Onion can be substituted for the red bell pepper if you are someone who can have or enjoys onions.
You can substitute the edamame with peas.
Please see recipe card below for exact measurements.
🔪Instructions
Step One - Dice the cauliflower into bite size pieces and place them into the salad bowl.
Step Two - Layer in the bacon alternative, in this case, tempeh crumbles. Be sure to heat up any vegan bacon option you go with, and get some of the flavors really coming out.
Step Three - Sprinkle in the sugar and parmesan cheese on top of the bacon crumbles.
Step Four - Layer on the edamame. This is frozen edamame that I rinsed under cold water until they were no longer frozen. Make sure you drain them of water well before placing into the salad.
Step Three - Add in the bell peppers.
Step Four - Spread the mayonnaise carefully and evenly. Do not mix until ready to serve!
👩🏻🍳Chef's Note
Make sure none of the vegetables have excess water in them or on them. Once mixed, and sitting in the refrigerator, this salad can become watery, so you want to make sure you get rid of any excess liquid as much as possible.
Because this is an "24 hour" salad, it's best served the next day once everything has had a chance to cool and mixed just before serving.
I like to heat up the tempeh bacon right before adding to salad mostly for nostalgia, but I like to think it adds a little extra flavor.
📖Substitutions or Variations
Originally, this salad contained lettuce and onions among some other things that I can no longer consume. So you can switch this salad up all you want my friend.
- Add onions! Seriously, if you can have onions, and you love them, do your tastebuds a favor and totally add some to this salad.
- Swap the edamame for peas, or add peas in addition to? There's no rules.
- Add that lettuce! I'd go for romaine or something with a little more nutrients than iceburg, but it's your salad, your call.
- Add some vegan shredded cheeses.
Check out some of my other yummy salads!
🍱Storage
Store this salad in the refrigerator, covered, without mixing, for up to 3 days. If already mixed up, keep in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Do not freeze.
❓Frequently Asked Questions
Because there are 7 different ingredients, and they're layered strategically so that they can be placed in the refrigerator overnight without getting soggy, but still being able to keep the dressing with the salad. It's pretty genius, honestly.
If you've tried this recipe and enjoyed it, I would love it if you could rate it 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a comment! It's a great, and free way to support me!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan 7 Layer Overnight Cauliflower Salad
Equipment
- 1 bowl large enough for the salad
- 1 Knife
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower; cleaned and chopped into bite sized pieces
- 1 recipe tempeh bacon crumbled
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ cup vegan parmesan cheese I use follow your heart
- ½ cup edamame shelled
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper can use any color, honestly
- ½ cup vegan mayo I use hellmans
Instructions
- Start by cleaning your cauliflower and cutting up the florets into bite sized pieces and place into a bowl.1 head cauliflower; cleaned and chopped into bite sized pieces
- Next, crumble the tempeh bacon into a layer on top of the cauliflower. It can be cold, or you can heat it up and add it warm. It's up to you.1 recipe tempeh bacon
- After that, add in the sugar and parmesan cheese layers.¼ cup sugar, ½ cup vegan parmesan cheese
- Then, layer edamame, and bell peppers.½ cup edamame, 1 cup diced red bell pepper
- Finally, spread mayonnaise across the top. Cover, and place into the refrigerator overnight.½ cup vegan mayo
- Before serving, mix the salad up well.
Notes
- Make sure you get any excess water from any vegetables off so your salad won't be too watery.
- You can substitute bell peppers for onions.
- Make sure you get any excess water from any vegetables off so your salad won't be too watery.
- You do not have to use tempeh bacon, you can use any vegan bacon.
- Storage - Keep in the refrigerator, covered, overnight without stirring or up to 3 days. Once mixed, keep covered in refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
What's up! My name is Bree, and I run this kitchen! I love sharing my recipes with you and I hope you enjoy them. You can follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, or Tumblr. Get to know more about me and this site if you'd like. Thanks, bud!
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