Credit: Liv Averett / Instacart / Target / Trader Joe's
What are the best salad kits? They’re a lifesaver when it comes to scrounging up an easy side dish, that’s for sure. And they also come in handy when you’re looking for a healthy desk lunch. (You know you can make the salad in the bag, right?) But you can’t just pick up any old bag salad. You don’t want brown lettuce and flavorless carrot strips and watery dressing. You want something fresh and crisp and, yes, fun! Salad kits can be fun!
We’ve tasted a lot of bagged salads for multiple bagged salad rankings. And while we recommend you browse through each and every one of those articles to really get the full picture of the bevvy of delicious bagged salads out there, we’ve made it easy for you here with the highlights. Here are the five all-time best salad kits we’ve tasted. (Oh and if you’re really into bagged salad, we have a hat for that.)
The following article contains affiliate links that may generate a small commission to us when you make a purchase through the link. Learn more about how we work with affiliates here.
Best Chopped Salad
Trader Joe’s Elote Chopped Salad Kit
Trader Joe’s sells some pretty darn good salad kits—particularly when it comes to chopped salad kits. These bags of chopped ingredients make for good side salads, as well as good slaws for topping sandwiches. And this is the best chopped salads kit you can get from TJ’s. Made with a blend of chopped vegetables, cornbread crouton crumbles, cotija cheese, and creamy elote dressing, the real stars of the show are the puffed corn kernels. If you get all the components in one bite, it really tastes like sweet-and-savory street corn. Read the full ranking of the best Trader Joe’s salad kits
Target’s no slouch when it comes to the best bagged salads, either. And their bagged caesar salad came so close to taking the top spot in our bagged caesar salad ranking. It’s definitely the best chopped caesar salad and it’s for sure the best salad kit at Target. The lettuce is bite-sized. The caesar dressing is creamy and tangy. The little crouton crumbles perfectly coat each bite. It’s a great bagged salad to pair with pizza.
In our search for the best “Asian” salad kit, we looked for salad kits that channeled flavors from specific regions in Asia. And this chopped salad kit really took inspiration from Thailand—in its flavors, at least. The ingredients are decidedly global. You’ll find dried mango, sunflower seeds, crispy quinoa, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, broccoli, and radicchio. The sweet Thai chili vinaigrette, though, is really where the Thai flavors come into play. It’s sweet and salty and even has a little kick. Add some shrimp or chicken, or serve it on its own alongside some crispy spring rolls for an easy dinner.
Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of this salad kit. It’s the best bagged salad at Trader Joe’s, for sure. There’s crunchy almond slivers and carrot ribbons, peppery arugula, savory parmesan cheese, and a zippy lemon-basil vinaigrette. It’s perfectly satisfying on its own as a refreshing lunchtime salad, but it’s also a great base for other toppings like grilled chicken or steak. It’s awesome on a sandwich, too. Seriously, I keep buying this salad kit to eat at home. It’s really, really good.
If you’re looking for the best chopped caesar salad kit, go to Target. But if you’re looking for the best classic caesar salad kit, Earthbound Farm can’t be beat. The lettuce is crisp and every piece we got was vibrantly green. The croutons are crunchy and garlicky. And the parmesan shreds add so much flavor. But the real draw? It’s gotta be the dressing. It’s creamy and tangy and peppery and it has so much umami flavor—but none of the telltale anchovy fishiness. If you’re looking for a restaurant quality caesar salad that’s ready in seconds, this is the best salad kit for you.
Justine Sterling is the editor-in-chief of Sporked. She has been writing about food and beverages for well over a decade and is an avid at-home cook and snacker. Don’t worry, she’s not a food snob. Sure, she loves a fresh-shucked oyster. But she also will leap at whatever new product Reese’s releases and loves a Tostitos Hint of Lime, even if there is no actual lime in the ingredients.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!