A delicious and fresh salad for citrus season, this Orange and Beet Salad recipe features plump clementine orange segments, juicy roasted beets, toasted pecans and tangy goat cheese. Bursting with flavors of sunshine, optionally add pomegranate arils, for a winter jeweled salad. This sunny salad is finished with a quick citrusy balsamic vinaigrette dressing. Make it a side salad or, it’s filling and hearty on its own to enjoy for lunch. This recipe is vegetarian and easily gluten free.
Colorful and Juicy Roasted Beet and Orange Salad
One of the best things about winter and spring is citrus! Fresh, sunny and juicy there’s nothing like the sweet flavor they bring to cold, grey days here in the Pacific Northwest. Paired with roasted beets, the flavor and texture profile is a delightful balance of sweetness, juicy texture and color. It’s a salad feast for the eyes!
Plan Ahead: roasting or boiling beets takes about an hour, depending on the size of the beets you have. You can cook the beets a few days ahead if needed and assemble the salad when ready.
This Recipe Is
- versatile – enjoy with favorite greens, cheese or nuts
- tangy, creamy, crunchy, juicy
- a hearty side dish or lunch main
If you love homemade side salad recipes, you’ll enjoy the flavors of this salad with beets and oranges.
About the Key Ingredients
- Roasted Beets: sweet and tender, roasted beets add bulk, texture and so much flavor to this salad. You’ll need to plan ahead, as roasting or boiling beets can take about an hour. Use my no waste How to Roast Beets method for perfectly cooked and tender beets. You can optionally cook the beets stovetop (see recipe notes).
- Pecans: add crunch and flavor. You can use just about any nut you prefer from walnuts to unsalted pistachios! If you’re using pistachios, there’s no need to toast them. For added sweet and crunch, try my Candied Maple Pecans or Candied Maple Walnuts.
- Orange: add sweetness and juicy texture. Enjoy with your favorite, in season citrus from blood oranges, mandarins, to Cara Cara. I love clementines and Murcott or Satsuma mandarins because they’re easy to peel and the wedges are small (no slicing!).
- Goat Cheese: tangy, creamy and soft, you can adjust this to taste. For a substitute, you can try salty feta cheese or crumbled blue cheese.
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How to Make Orange and Beet Salad
step by step
To keep it simple, make this salad with clementines or Mandarins. They peel easy and the little orange segments are bite size, ideal for this salad.
How to Dry Lettuce Without a Salad Spinner
Crisp lettuce greens are the star of this salad. After washing them thoroughly, it’s important to dry them well. You can use a salad spinner for the quickest method, but if you don’t have one, no worries! Here’s how to keep your greens tender and avoid bruising without a salad spinner.
The easiest way is employing the rollup method. After giving the lettuce a wash in a bowl, drain the greens in a colander, then lay a clean kitchen towel on the counter. Transfer the lettuce to the towel in one layer and gently roll it up. Be careful not to squeeze or twist the leaves, as that can cause bruising. Repeat as needed being careful to work in small batches to prevent bruising the lettuce.
Traci’s Tips
- Get Ahead: roast/cook, peel and slice the beets up to two days in advance. You can toast the nuts and make the dressing a few days in advance. Assemble the salad just before serving so the greens and oranges stay fresh.
- Beet Size and Slicing: slice the beets to preferred shape, but always bite size in a salad. Small beets make beautiful sliced disks – and make for a lovely presentation. Larger beetroot is better sliced into large bite size cubes (shown in this post).
- Beets Last: add the beets to the salad last since everything they touch will turn red!
- Mix it Up: choose a variety of salad greens for best texture and flavor.
Juicy Orange and Roasted Beet Salad
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 14 ounces (400 grams) Roasted Beets peeled and sliced into bite size pieces, about 3 medium beets *see note
- 1/2 cup (65 grams) Pecan Halves **see note
- 8 cups (170 grams) Lettuce Mix salad greens like spring mix, Frisée, butter lettuce and/or arugula, about 5-6 ounces
- 1 2/3 cups (325 grams) Small Oranges 3 Clementine or 4 Mandarins, peeled, wedges separated
- 4 ounces (114 grams) Goat Cheese or substitute feta, about 1/2 cup crumbled
- 2 tablespoons Pomegranate Arils optional
For the Dressing:
- 2 tablespoons Fresh Orange Juice from about 1 large orange or 2 clementines
- 1 1/2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3/4 teaspoon Shallot minced
- 1/2 teaspoon Whole Grain Mustard or stone ground
- Pinch of Salt
Instructions
Toast the Pecans:
- Preheat oven to 350 Fahrenheit (180 Celsius). Place the pecans in a baking pan and toast for about 7 – 8 minutes (keep an eye on the pecans. Nuts go from toasted to burnt quickly!). Set aside to cool, then chop, about 1/2 fine and the other, rough chop.
For the Lettuce:
- Add the greens to the basket and bowl of a salad spinner and fill with cold water to just above the lettuce. Allow the greens to soak for a few minutes, swishing a few times to rid the leaves of any dirt. Drain and spin the greens to dry.
For the Dressing:
- In a small bowl whisk the orange juice, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, shallot, mustard and salt together until an emulsion is formed. Taste and adjust ingredients as needed.
To Assemble:
- For a composed salad, use a shallow serving bowl or platter. Spread the greens in the serving dish. Drizzle the salad dressing, a few tablespoons at a time to taste, over the entire salad just before serving. Toss well. Evenly distribute the beets, arils (if using), and orange pieces over the salad. Sprinkle the chopped pecans and goat cheese over the top. Serve right away.
Absolutely delicious! I traded the cheese for almond ‘cheese’ however.
Love it! Thank you for your note, Rozanne!
Thank Thanks for this great recipe, made it for a woman’s group and they just love it, should have tripe it, it was gone in a Bink, before the other 5 salads. But I did candied the pecan with salt and sugar.
Hi Berti! Thank you for your note! I’m so happy you and the ladies enjoyed it. Candied pecans is genius! :D