Description
This Southern Pea Salad is a creamy, crunchy, and savory side dish filled with classic Southern charm. Made with crisp green peas, smoky bacon, cheddar cheese, red onions, and hard-boiled eggs, it’s tossed in a tangy mayo-sour cream dressing. Perfect for potlucks, barbecues, or Sunday suppers, this chilled salad is ready in 20 minutes and brings serious flavor with minimal effort.
Ingredients
4 cups frozen green peas, thawed and patted dry
4 hard-boiled eggs, chopped or quartered
6 slices bacon, cooked crispy and crumbled
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
1. Thaw peas under cold water and drain well. Pat dry with paper towels.
2. Chop hard-boiled eggs, shred the cheese if using a block, and finely chop red onion.
3. Cook bacon until crispy and crumble it once cooled.
4. In a large bowl, mix together mayonnaise, sour cream, salt, and black pepper until smooth.
5. Add the peas, eggs, bacon, cheese, and onion into the dressing.
6. Gently fold ingredients together using a spatula to keep peas intact.
7. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.
8. Stir gently before serving and garnish with extra bacon or egg slices if desired.
Notes
Be sure to pat the peas dry completely to avoid a watery dressing.
For extra texture, stir in diced celery or shredded carrots.
You can prepare this salad a day in advance—it gets even better after chilling overnight.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: No-Cook / Chill
- Cuisine: Southern
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 285
- Sugar: 4g
- Sodium: 460mg
- Fat: 23g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 10g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 11g
- Cholesterol: 160mg
Keywords: southern pea salad, pea salad with bacon, cold summer salad