In this warm spinach salad, the combination of cooked mushrooms, red onion and garlic mixed with the spinach creates satisfying and delicious flavor. Add crumbled bacon and a touch of balsamic vinegar and you have an awesome and pretty salad.
There is so much to love about this spinach salad. First off – bacon. Second off – sautéed onion and mushrooms warm the spinach, which makes the spinach nutrients more readily available. Here’s a great article explaining it.
Top with a little balsamic vinegar and you have a whole lot of yum going on.
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Helpful tips
- I use purple onion but if you prefer, you can use either a yellow or Vidalia onion
- I recommend nitrate free and uncured bacon because I feel it is better for you than typical bacon. But use what you like.
- To save time, cook the bacon and veggies at the same time in separate pans. I use a sauté pan for the bacon and a wok for the vegetables.
- I like to serve the finished salad in a serving bowl that’s different from the bowl I’ve used to mix the veggies with the spinach.
- I only crumble as much bacon onto the salad as we can eat because it will soften if it sits in the refrigerator in the leftover salad. Save the rest of the bacon for the next time you heat up the salad.
How to make warm spinach salad
Pre-step
Get a sauté pan or wok and a large mixing bowl.
Step one
Gather the ingredients – spinach, mushrooms, purple onion, bacon and garlic paste.
Step two
Heat a sauté pan on medium heat. Place the bacon in the pan and sauté 4 minutes on each side or until the bacon has finished cooking. I find it takes around 8 minutes.
Step three
Lay the bacon on some paper towels and blot the grease off of the slices.
Step four
While the bacon is frying, heat another sauté pan or wok on medium and when it comes to temperature, add olive oil.
Step five
Add onions and salt and sauté for 10 minutes or until translucent.
Step six
Add mushrooms and garlic and sauté for an additional 3 minutes. (A)
Step seven
Place spinach in a big mixing bowl, add ⅛ cup balsamic vinegar and as soon as the veggies are done cooking, transfer them onto the spinach.
Use a spatula to gently mix the vegetables with the spinach for a minute or two. This will cause the spinach to wilt. (B)
Step eight
Transfer the spinach and veggies to a serving bowl and crumble as much bacon as you like on it.
Time to serve it up.
I really hope you enjoyed this warm spinach salad recipe! It’s super delicious and a fun addition to your salad rotation.
Other popular salads
And as always, may all your dishes be delish!
If you’ve tried this recipe, I’d love the know what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!
Warm Spinach Salad
Ingredients
- 8 ounces uncured bacon (fried and cut into bite sized pieces)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium purple onion (sliced into rings)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces sliced portobello mushrooms
- 2 teaspoons garlic paste (or 2 cloves of garlic, minced)
- 8 ounces baby spinach (I use pre-packaged)
- ⅛ cup balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Fry the bacon on medium heat until crispy. Transfer to a plate lined with some paper towels and blot the grease off with another paper towel and set aside. Once the bacon has cooled, cut in bit sized pieces
- Heat a wok or sauté pan on medium and once that has heated up, add olive oil and once that has heated up, add the onion and salt and sauté for 10 minutes
- Add mushrooms and garlic and continue sautéing for 3 minutes
- Put the spinach in a large mixing bowl
- Add the hot onion mixture and balsamic vinegar to the spinach and mix with a spatula until combined
- Transfer the spinach to a serving bowl and top with bacon
- Serve
- Eat
- Smile
- Enjoy
Notes
- I use purple onion but if you prefer, you can use either a yellow or Vidalia onion
- I recommend nitrate free and uncured bacon because I feel it is better for you than typical bacon. But use what you like.
- To save time, cook the bacon and veggies at the same time in separate pans. I use a sauté pan for the bacon and a wok for the vegetables.
- I like to serve the finished salad in serving bowl, different from the bowl I’ve used to mix the veggies with the spinach.
- I only crumble as much bacon onto the salad as we can eat because it will soften if it sits in the refrigerator in the leftover salad. Save the rest of the bacon for the next time you heat up the salad.
Nutrition
Originally published August 2016.
Chris
This salad is a lovely alternative to lettuce salads and a wonderful way to enjoy fresh spinach!
Elaine
Thanks so much, Chris!
Pamela
Going to make this. We eat spinach salads every day. Enjoy finding different ways to make it. Looks delicious!
Elaine
Thanks so much Pamela! I love this salad and we eat it often. I hope you enjoy it!
Nart at Cooking with Nart
Love the idea of a warm spinach salad. Mushrooms, red onion and garlic should make this salad very flavorful. I think I’ll go with red onion like you 🙂
Elaine
Thanks Nart! I love a good spinach salad and the flavor combos are great!
Shashi
I love warm salads like this (I mean, it’s flavored with BACON) and I love that salads like this don’t even need dressing!
Elaine
Thanks Shashi! I love this salad and another great thing is it’s awesome left over and you don’t have the heat it if you don’t want.
rika
I love spinach salad and mushroom! I have everything I need to make this recipe! So excited!
Elaine
I’m so glad to hear you’re going to make it Rika. I hope you enjoy it.
Alexandra
Such a flavoursome salad! Love the addition of the bacon – adds great flavour, of course! (Love bacon!)
Elaine
I’m all about the bacon and it goes so well with this salad (and of course everything) 🙂 Thank you for your comment Alexandra!
Emmeline Kemperyd
Bacon should be a required ingredient in all salads!! And the rest sound amazing as well so yep this is going on my table tonight. Thanks Elaine!
Elaine
Hehe. Thanks Emmeline! And I totally agree. Bacon lovers unite!