This roasted vegetable salad is bursting with flavor from the first bite of savory vegetables to the zesty vinaigrette dressing! I am often looking for a good way to put together a "non-traditional" salad or vegetable medley with what's in season, and this recipe has become a crowd-pleaser. It's customizable, great for meal-prep, and easy to make on a weeknight!
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💭 Why you'll love this recipe
Salads are often seen as a boring, mundane side dish. But this healthy roasted vegetable salad stands out. Here's why:
- Uses a fun variety of veggies. This hearty salad has a wide assortment of vegetables like carrots and bell peppers. Depending on the season or what's in the fridge, you can switch up your favorite veggies across the rainbow.
- Deliciously healthy. Eating healthy doesn’t have to be boring—this roasted vegetable salad proves it! Packed with vitamins and nutrients from fresh vegetables, you can feel good about giving this dish to your family (and yourself!) while still enjoying its delicious taste.
- Has a smoky flavor. By roasting vegetables, you lightly char them, adding a crunchy texture and a smoky flavor to your salad.
📋 Ingredients and notes
To make this roasted vegetable salad recipe, you'll need zucchini, carrots, patty pan (mini squashes), green bell pepper, red onion, chopped beets, and Brussels sprouts, kosher salt, and black pepper.
To make the dressing, you'll need olive oil or avocado oil, aged balsamic vinegar, grainy dijon mustard, maple syrup or agave, dried thyme, salt, black pepper, and garlic. You can also add fresh parsley and fresh basil as an optional garnish.
Notes and variations
- Switch up the vegetables. I've used the best roasted vegetables that I like, but you can easily swap them with hearty vegetables like sweet potato, butternut squash, yams, mushrooms, yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, asparagus, or cherry tomatoes.
- Add seasonings. While salt and pepper make roasted vegetable salad tasty, adding seasonings like oregano and garlic powder can further enhance the flavors.
- Try out different salad dressings. If you ask me, I would say that our balsamic vinaigrette dressing is the perfect dressing for this salad, but you can definitely try out different dressings of your choice like honey mustard, ranch, pesto, and so many more.
- Garnish with your favorite cheeses like feta cheese, goat cheese, or nut cheese.
Tip on baking sheets
You should consider using a large baking sheet to avoid crowding the vegetables and to cook them evenly on a single layer. If you want a nice char and roast, you can consider lining a cookie sheet with some aluminum foil. Or, you can use my favorite sheet pan:
- This Caraway baking sheet is non-stick, and does a fantastic job at roasting vegetables and makes clean-up a breeze.
- This NordicWare pair is an Amazon favorite, and the size is perfect for everything you might need to throw in the oven.
📖 How to make roasted vegetable salad
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Chop the vegetables into uniform pieces. I kept the zucchini, onion, and mini squash slices slightly larger as they cook faster than the rest of the vegetables.
Spread out the chopped vegetables onto two separate baking sheets lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Or you can just use a non-stick option.
Place the beets and green vegetables on one baking sheet, separate from the other vegetables so the beets won't dye the zucchini and squash red.
Make the zesty salad dressing
Whisk the oil, vinegar, sweetener of choice, dijon mustard, minced garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. I love using this simple dressing, but you can also mix it up and use your favorite dressing for roasted vegetables.
Brush the dressing onto the vegetables with a pastry brush or drizzle over with a spoon. Mix the vegetables with the dressing and place them into the oven.
Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes.
If your vegetables aren't quite crisp, turn the oven to broil at 400°F. Place the vegetables under broil, keeping a close eye on them for 2 minutes, until brown.
Serve hot and garnish with fresh herbs like parsley and basil. It is also delicious cold.
👩🏽🍳 Tips for the Best Roasted Vegetable Salad
If you want to create a sensational roasted vegetable salad, keep these five simple tips in mind for success:
- Choose hearty vegetables. For the best flavor, stick with heartier vegetables like carrots, Brussels sprouts, squash, zucchini, red bell peppers, and cauliflower. These vegetables will hold up well during the roasting process and will have a great depth of flavor when finished.
- Prep your vegetables ahead of time. Before you start roasting your veggies, cut them into uniform sizes so that they cook evenly in the oven. If some pieces are larger or smaller than others, they may not cook evenly and could end up undercooked or burnt. This vegetable chopper makes veggie prep a total breeze, you just need to throw the vegetables in and push to chop!
- Add some fat. Add a few tablespoons of olive oil or melted butter before placing in the oven to really bring out those flavors in your roasted veggies. This will also help keep your veggies from drying out as they roast in the oven.
- Stir the vegetables a few times while roasting to cook evenly. If the vegetables aren't browning, you can broil them, keeping a close eye on them so they don't burn to crisp up the edges. Nothing is better than crispy, golden brown red onions, and Brussels sprouts!
- Get creative with toppings. Once your roasted veggies are done cooking, you can get creative with toppings! Crumbled feta cheese is always delicious on top of a warm roasted vegetable salad; other options include sliced olives, chopped nuts (like almonds), diced avocados, extra virgin olive oil, sunflower seeds, pomegranate seeds, and more.
👩🏽🍳 Troubleshooting FAQs
Absolutely! Roasted vegetables are a great way to enjoy the natural flavors of your favorite veggies without adding extra calories. Roasting brings out the natural sweetness of some vegetables, so you don't have to add extra sugar or salt. It's also the easiest way to help preserve all the natural vitamins and minerals, so you get all the health benefits of whatever veggie is on your plate.
For optimal flavor and satisfaction, roasted vegetable salad is best served as a warm salad. However, you can enjoy it cold too. If eating cold, let the vegetables cool completely and refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve.
Absolutely! Roasting the vegetables in advance will save you time when it comes to putting your salad together, especially if you're preparing a big batch. Roast the vegetables up to 5 days ahead and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. When you are ready to assemble your salad, simply mix together with the desired dressing and enjoy!
While salt and pepper are enough to make your salad delicious, you can also use additional seasonings such as oregano, garlic powder, paprika, parsley, or thyme to enhance its flavors.
Setting your oven at 375°F up to 425°F is optimal for roasting vegetables, whether fresh or frozen. This will give you a crisp edge and a soft and flavorful center; lower than that, your vegetables will not get to the desired texture. Take note that the cooking time would vary depending on what vegetable you are roasting.
🍴How to Serve Roasted Vegetable Salad
Roasted vegetable salad is best served as an entree or side dish. To spice it up, sprinkle some crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese or balsamic vinaigrette. To bulk this up, you can make a roasted vegetable salad with quinoa or wild rice. You can play around with the dressing, with a squeeze of lemon juice or swap with apple cider vinegar for a tangier finish.
Not only will you be praised for your delicious cooking, but you'll also have an easy and nutritious meal ready to go anytime you're in a rush!
Storing this delicious roasted vegetable salad is easy. For best results, store the salad in an airtight container or a large bowl covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for up to 5 days.
To freeze, I recommend freezing the vegetables before you roast them and without the dressing for up to 3 months. First, place them on a flat sheet and flash freeze them, then put them into two freezer-safe bags (one with the beets). This way, you can enjoy your roasted veggie salad whenever you want without worrying about getting the freshest ingredients each time.
🍴 Other Hearty Salad Recipes
Or check out some of these other hearty vegan and vegetarian salad recipes.
Did you make this recipe?! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Please leave a comment and a star rating and let me know how it went! We love hearing from you, thank you so much
📖 Recipe
Roasted Vegetable Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups zucchini, chopped
- 5 pieces carrots, small, chopped
- 7 pieces patty pan, (mini squashes)
- 1 green bell pepper
- ½ red onion, large
- 1½ cup beets, chopped
- 1 cup Brussels sprouts
Dressing
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, grainy, if possible
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon parsley, optional, for garnish
- 1 teaspoon basil, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Chop the vegetables into uniform pieces. I kept the zucchini, onion, and mini squash slices slightly larger as they cooked faster than the rest of the vegetables.
- Spread out the chopped vegetables onto two large cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
- Place the beets and green vegetables onto a separate pan so the beets won't dye the zucchini and squash red.
To make dressing
- Whisk the oil, vinegar, sweetener of choice, dijon mustard, minced garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Pour over the salad.
- Brush the dressing onto the vegetables with a pastry brush or drizzle over with a spoon. Mix the vegetables with the dressing and place them into the oven.
- Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes.
- If your vegetables aren't quite crisp, turn the oven to broil at 400°F. Place the vegetables under broil, keeping a close eye on them for 2 minutes, until browned.
- Serve hot and garnish with fresh parsley and basil. It is also delicious cold.
Notes
- Choose a variety of veggies: To create a flavorful and visually appealing roasted vegetable salad, select a variety of colorful vegetables. The combination of different textures and flavors will make your salad more interesting.
- Cut the vegetables into uniform sizes to ensure even cooking. This is important because vegetables with different cooking times should be roasted separately or placed on the baking sheet accordingly. Smaller pieces will cook faster, while larger ones may take longer.
- Don't skimp on seasonings. Toss your chopped vegetables with a generous amount of olive oil, salt, pepper, and your choice of seasonings or herbs. Common choices include garlic powder, paprika, thyme, or rosemary. You can also experiment with different seasoning blends to customize the flavor.
- Don't overcrowd the pan. To ensure proper roasting and avoid steaming your vegetables, spread them out in a single layer on the baking sheet. Overcrowding can lead to uneven cooking and soggy results. If you have a large quantity of veggies, use multiple baking sheets or roast them in batches.
- Consider adding a protein source like quinoa, tofu, or chickpeas to turn your roasted vegetable salad into a hearty and balanced meal. Drizzle your favorite dressing or vinaigrette over the roasted vegetables and protein for extra flavor.
I absolutely loved this. Such a good recipe! Thanks for sharing, with all the beautiful photos too.