This Grinder Salad recipe has been going viral on Tiktok over the past few Summers and with good reason. The salad is delicious served alone or as a grinder sub sandwich! I'm going to show you both ways and it takes less than 15 minutes to make!
This fresh salad recipe is perfect for the beach, poolside, or for a cookout. Honestly, it's good for any event in Summer. It's easy to make and is packed with crunchy lettuce and onion tossed in a tangy salad dressing and topped with deli meats and cheese.
You need this salad in your life. Plus, just like this Boursin Cheese Pasta, the recipe went viral on Tiktok, so it's a must try.
For more viral Tiktok recipes, try my Bacon Cream Cheese Crescent Rolls, French Onion Pasta, and French Toast Casserole with Brioche Bread!
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Recipe:
- It's quick and easy with no cooking required
- Made all in one large bowl
- Packed with protein and veggies
- The grinder dressing is tangy and delicious
- Perfect for Summer
Loving Easy Summer recipes? Try my Mexican Street Corn Elote Dip, Blackstone Philly Cheesesteaks, Deconstructed Burger Bowls, and Basil Lemonade!
Ingredients:
Iceberg Lettuce- For the crunchy base of the salad. The lettuce is chopped into small strips for the best texture! It's a classic sub, burger and taco topping and feels right at home in this recipe.
Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, Mayonnaise, Garlic, and Spices- Combine for the Italian Grinder Dressing. This Grinder Sauce is creamy, tangy and incredible!
Red Onion, Banana Peppers and Pepperoncini- Adds flavor, heat and crunch to the salad recipe!
Deli Meat and Cheese- The salad is finished off with deli meats of ham, salami and turkey breast. Then, it's completed with provolone cheese!
Substitutions and Variations:
Want more heat? Double the pepperoncini and add in a few dashes of hot sauce to the grinder dressing. You can also top it off with ¼ teaspoon of red pepper flakes!
Big on cheese? Sprinkle in ¼ cup of parmesan over the top and double up the provolone.
For more meat in the salad, you can double your favorite deli meats, or even triple them. For additional variety, use a few slices of prosciutto and capicola.
If you don't like iceberg lettuce, you can substitute it with romaine hearts. Make sure to get the Romaine hearts with the light green color, not leafy dark green romaine lettuce.
Looking for more Salad ideas? Try my Hawaiian Macaroni Salad, Caesar Salad without Anchovies, Chopped Greek Salad, and Watermelon Feta Salad. All are great for Summer!
How to Make a Grinder Salad:
Step 1: In a large bowl, make the Grinder Salad Dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, garlic powder, pepperoncini with juices, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Step 2: Thinly chop up the iceberg lettuce, and slice the red onion as thin as possible.
Step 3: Add the lettuce, onion and banana peppers over the grinder dressing and toss to combine.
Step 4: Chop the turkey, ham, salami and provolone into small squares.
Step 5: Toss the meats and cheese into the salad.
Step 6: Top with parmesan cheese or red pepper flakes if desired and serve! Enjoy.
The Tiktok Grinder Sandwich:
If you want to go the Grinder Sub Sandwich route, follow the instructions until the end of step three. This will give you the Grinder Salad topping. Next, Slice open a hoagie roll and layer with turkey, salami, ham and provolone cheese.
These Italian Grinder Sliders are delish too!
Viral Grinder Variations:
Hot Sub: Bake the grinder in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, then load on the Grinder Salad topping and enjoy.
Cold Sub: After assembling the meat and cheese, top with the Grinder Salad topping and serve immediately.
Love Sandwiches? You will go wild over these Hot Roast Beef Sliders and try my Turkey Pinwheels!
Expert Tips:
- This recipe is all about chopped ingredients. Make sure to take the time to slice everything!
- The inside of the pepperoncini are usually filled with juices. Pour that into the dressing for extra flavor.
- Serve immediately after making the salad for the best taste.
For another flavor packed recipe, try my Southwest Chicken Salad!
Recipe FAQs:
The grinder salad combines a tangy red wine vinegar salad dressing with iceberg lettuce, red onion and pepperoncini. Then, deli meats and provolone cheese are tossed in!
A chopped salad's ingredients can vary. Most likely, you have a crunchy lettuce base from Iceberg or Romaine hearts. Onion is often added for crisp flavor. Then, meats, cheeses, and sometimes eggs are added with everything being "chopped". This way, each bite combines all of the ingredients. It's genius really!
A grinder is just slang for a sub sandwich or hoagie. Typically, people in the Northeast use the term and it can be used for a hot or cold sub sandwich.
Storage:
The vinegar based dressing makes the salad get soggy after a while. I suggest storing in the fridge in a sealed container for a maximum of 24 hours. Fresh is best with this recipe.
More Salads You Will Love:
If you tried this Viral Grinder Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
PrintRecipe
Grinder Salad (Tiktok Viral Recipe)
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 salads 1x
Description
This Grinder Salad recipe has been going viral on Tiktok over the past few Summers and with good reason. The salad is delicious served alone or as a grinder sub sandwich! I'm going to show you both ways and it takes less than 15 minutes to make!
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup of mayonnaise, I prefer Hellmans.
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 large jarred pepperoncini, diced with juices reserved
- ¼ cup of red onion, sliced thin
- ⅛ cup of sliced jarred banana peppers
- ½ head of iceberg lettuce, washed and completely dried
- 5 slices of deli turkey
- 5 slices of deli ham
- 5 slices of deli salami
- 5 slices of provolone cheese
- Optional: ¼ cup of parmesan cheese and ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes for topping
Instructions
- In a large bowl, make the Grinder Salad Dressing by whisking together the mayonnaise, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, oregano, garlic powder, pepperoncini with juices, salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Thinly chop up the iceberg lettuce, and slice the red onion as thin as possible.
- Add the lettuce, onion and banana peppers over the grinder dressing and toss to combine.
- Chop the turkey, ham, salami and provolone into small squares.
- Toss in the meats and cheese into the salad!
- Top with parmesan cheese or red pepper flakes if desired and serve! Enjoy.
Notes
This recipe is all about chopped ingredients. Make sure to take the time to slice everything!
The inside of the pepperoncini are usually filled with juices. Pour that into the dressing for extra flavor.
Serve immediately after making it for the best taste.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: salad
- Method: chopped
- Cuisine: Italian
Alexandria Bedore
Finally made this viral salad in my New Year's meal prep & tried some tonight. I'm super excited for the week ahead now. Just subbed to your YT channel. You're doing great!
Tara Smithson
Hi! Thank you so much for the review and for subscribing..it means the world to me!
Josie
This is so good! Taking it to the pool today. Love the dressing!
Tara Smithson
Yay! Enjoy your pool day!