This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Crisp and refreshing, this classic wedge salad features iceberg lettuce topped with homemade creamy blue cheese dressing, juicy tomatoes, salty bacon and extra blue cheese crumbles. This is the perfect salad side dish to pair with any of your favorite meals!
Restaurant-Style Wedge Salad at Home
There’s something undeniably satisfying about a classic wedge salad, the crunch of crispy chilled lettuce, the creamy homemade blue cheese dressing, and those perfectly bite-sized toppings. It’s simple yet indulgent, the kind of side dish that feels a little fancy but takes almost no effort.
Pair this with a pan seared steak for a steakhouse worthy meal at home, or serve it alongside some smoky pulled pork for a fresh contrast. However you plate it up, this wedge salad is proof that sometimes the simplest dishes are the most satisfying.
Ingredients Needed
- Iceberg Lettuce- the classic choice for a wedge salad, the leaves are tightly packed and hold a lot of crispness to them.
- Blue Cheese Dressing– we love using our homemade blue cheese dressing with this salad, but sub with a store bought version of your choice if you want.
- Bacon– crispy, salted bacon adds a savoriness. Crumble it up nice and small to stick to the salad.
- Tomatoes– grape, cherry, or roma tomatoes are great options for this salad. More tips on treating the tomatoes are included below.
- Chives– a fresh, herby taste.
How to cut the lettuce For a Wedge Salad
- Start with a full head of iceberg lettuce. Remove the outside leaves, typically those leaves are somewhat thin and slightly wilted, or excessively dirty. Rinse the remaining lettuce to clean.
- Once the outside leaves are removed, cut the head of lettuce in half.
- Cut each half in the middle again, creating wedges of 1/4 of a lettuce head.
- A small chop to the bottom of the wedge will remove the remainder of the stem. At this point, if needed you can rinse the lettuce again to clean between the layers of leaves. Just be sure to allow time for the lettuce to dry before serving.
Assembling the Salad
- Prepare the toppings, including cooking the bacon and chopping, be sure to blot and remove all excess grease.
- Assemble the salad by spooning the dressing over the top and sprinkling the toppings on.
About the Tomatoes
The tomatoes can be thinly sliced or diced up. If you are using juicy tomatoes (such as beefsteak or other heirloom varieties) I recommend dicing, placing in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and sprinkling with salt while you prepare the other ingredients. This helps remove excess juices which can cause a soggy salad.
More Topping Ideas
One of the features of a traditional wedge salad is the simplicity.
If you want to get a little more creative with it, some additional toppings could include diced avocado, diced cucumber (again I would treat like the tomatoes and sprinkle with salt to get rid of excess liquid) and toasted bread crumbs.
Croutons would be too large and awkward, but toasted bread crumbs would be a wonderful bite of crunch!
FAQs:
Traditionally a wedge salad is made with a blue cheese dressing. Although, you can always switch to a different dressing if you’re not a fan of blue cheese. Some other options include: Ranch, or Caesar.
A wedge salad is a just as the name implies, a wedge of lettuce with toppings. Since it’s not individual leaves of lettuce it’s a bit trickier to eat. The easiest way is with a knife and fork. To cut the wedge apart while eating.
Expert Tips
Keep the toppings minimal. Dice them small. This helps to ensure that they attach themselves to the wedge of lettuce instead of falling off.
Clean the lettuce after cutting into wedges if needed. This allows you to clean between all the layers of leaves. Be sure to do this step early to allow time for drying if needed.
More Salad Recipes
Classic Wedge Salad
Ingredients
- 1 head iceberg lettuce
- 4 slices bacon cooked & crumbled
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes diced
- 1 tbsp chives diced
- 1 cup blue cheese dressing
- ¼ cup blue cheese crumbles
Instructions
- Prepare the lettuce by removing the outer leaves, chop the head of lettuce in half and then half again, making 4 wedges. Cut the end to remove the stem.
- Plate the wedges and top with the blue cheese dressing, bacon crumbles, tomato, chives, and additional blue cheese crumbles.
- Serve cold and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Start with a full head of ice berg lettuce. Remove the outside leaves, typically those leaves are somewhat thin and slightly wilted, or excessively dirty.
- Once the outside leaves are removed then we can cut the head of lettuce in half. Then each half will be cut into half again, leaving us with 1/4 of a lettuce head.
- A small chop to the bottom of the wedge will remove the remainder of the stem. (Step by Step Photos included in post)
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Recipe first published May 9, 2018. Updated July 30, 2021 with new images and information.
I love this Blue Cheese Dressing recipe of yours. Delicious!
I had forgotten how good lettuce is on its own! Typical cut salads just lose the sweetness and crispness of the lettuce
This is the perfect example of where lessons word less is more. The simplicity is what it’s about it’s about.. I’m not a big fan of of iceberg lettuce but this certainly puts an appeal to the plate
This recipe is excellent and easy.
Ummmm, amazing! Today was my husbands 40th birthday, and I made prime rib in addition to this amazing salad! I am not a blue cheese fan, although he is, and I have never made dressing outside of an instant ranch package. This recipe was simple, the homemade dressing tasted amazing, and the moat important part is that my husband loved it.
OMG! I made this last night for a friend because he is so in love with wedge salads (from restaurants). As he ate, all he kept saying was how good it tasted! He even went back for seconds! Throughout the evening he would bring up how delicious the salad was and wanted to know if I was going to make it again! ?
Due to the fact that we don’t eat pork, I used beef bacon and opt to go with Roma tomatoes.
I can’t rave enough about this salad, and the buttermilk dressing is to die for!!! Simply heavenly! Thank you so much for sharing!!! ?
-Allie
This recipe was spot on! Made it for a BBQ, they were alll foodies and loved loved this! The presentation is beautiful and blue cheese dressing with the recipe was perfect! I’m making for another BBQ this weekend! I like that the instructions give option to double or triple recipe-just makes shopping list easier. Your wedge salad will be a huge hit!
what other cheese can u use dont like blue cheese
You can always make this with a ranch dressing and sprinkle any kind of cheese you like. A mild cheddar, or some feta would be great on this!
If you’re not a fan of blue cheese, you can always try it with Thousands Island dressing.
I’m not a fan of blue cheese either so I substituted with feta.
Great pics! One of my favorite light dinner recipes. Excited to try your blue cheese dressing.