Lettuce Radish Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Easy Lettuce Radish Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette is as simple as it gets! It has a crisp and crunchy texture and is lemony good. It’s so fresh, versatile, quick and easy to make and can make a wonderful meal, combined with an entree of your choice.
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Lettuce Radish Salad Recipe:
The Lettuce Radish Salad goes well with any chicken entrée – Chicken Tenderloins and Chicken Drumsticks are our favorites. Oven Roasted Salmon is another light and delicious combo that is superb for quick meals.
This easy recipe is healthy all around and each vegetable is packed with vitamins. Ukrainian salads are usually dressed into mayo, but with this lemony vinaigrette it’s a nice twist and a healthier variation to our eating habits.
Lettuce Radish Salad Ingredients:
The ingredients are pretty simple and this salad requires very little effort. You’ll need:
- Lettuce – 1 large or 2 small heads of romaine lettuce
- Cucumbers – thinly sliced; I like to use smaller cucumbers, but they can be replaced for 1 English cucumber
- Radishes – thinly sliced; these little round vegetables are often ignored, but they always create a nice crunchy texture in a salad
- Chives – finely chopped and can be replaced for green onions
- Lemon Vinaigrette – extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and freshly squeezed lemon juice. We sometimes like to top with lemon zest, but it will be extra tangy (if you’re into that sort of thing).
How to Make Lemon Vinaigrette:
The lemon vinaigrette comes together so fast and all you need is a small bowl or measuring cup and a spoon. This vinaigrette is healthy, light and adds a nice tangy flavor to this salad.
- Combine extra virgin olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- Stir and set aside for ingredients to really blend together, while you make the salad.
How to Make Lettuce Radish Salad:
- Rinse and paper towel pat dry all vegetables.
- In a medium salad bowl, combine 4 small thinly sliced cucumbers, 1 bunch thinly sliced radishes and 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh chives. (Using Benriner Mandoline makes it extra easy).
- Chop 1 large romaine lettuce into bite-sized pieces and add it to the salad.
- Drizzle with lemon vinaigrette and toss gently until salad is evenly coated. You can also drizzle without tossing the salad and serve.
Can I Make Lettuce Radish Salad in Advance?
You can make the salad and the vinaigrette 3-4 hours in advance. Cover with plastic food wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. Keep the salad and the vinaigrette separate until ready to serve. Here are some make-ahead tips:
- Vinaigrette – make this in a small mason jar. Shake it well before drizzling over salad when serving in case it separates.
- Salad – prepare the salad in full, place cucumbers on the bottom of a bowl, top with radish and lettuce on top. Placing lettuce on top will ensure it stays crunchy and definitely not flat.
Benefits and Uses of Romaine Lettuce?
Romaine lettuce is a hearty, naturally low in sodium greens, known for its nutritional benefits and savory yet neutral taste. Crunchy, sturdy and packed with nutrition.
These greens are low in fiber, but high in minerals such as calcium, magnesium and potassium. Romaine lettuce is packed with Vitamin C, Vitamin K, folate and so much more. Therefore, we can agree that eating romaine lettuce is healthy and we should all have it once in a while for a quick dinner meal or mid-day snack.
Romaine lettuce is best known for its use in Caesar salad, but it’s so versatile and you can make so many wonderful easy meals with it. Some examples would be simple lettuce wraps, a fancy Cobb salad or simply brushed with olive oil and grilled.
Just like all produce, fresh is always best! When you purchase romaine lettuce, make sure to always wash it thoroughly to remove dirt and debris. Pat dry with paper towels before chopping and mixing with other ingredients.
More Crisp and Crunchy Salad Recipes:
We love quick and easy homemade salads any time of the week. Fresh salads pair with just about any main course and some Mashed Potatoes. These salads are on regular routine at our house:
- Crisp Cucumber Salad – the name speaks for itself “crisp”
- All-Veggie Salad – vibrant, beautiful and packed with nutrients
- Broccoli Cauliflower Cucumber Salad – so crunchy and loved by readers for its freshness
- Cucumber Radish Salad – all-time family favorite and very popular

Lettuce Radish Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Lettuce Radish Salad Ingredients:
- 1 large romaine lettuce (or 2 small head romaine)
- 4 small cucumbers (or 1 English cucumber) - thinly sliced
- 10-11 radishes (1 bunch) - trimmed and thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup fresh chives (1 bunch) - finely chopped
Lemon Vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1/2 large lemon)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper, or to taste
- zest from 1/2 lemon - optional
Instructions
How to Make Lemon Vinaigrette:
- In a small bowl, combine and stir together 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/8 tsp ground black pepper. Set aside.
How to Make Lettuce Radish Salad:
- Rinse and paper towel pat dry all vegetables.
- In a medium salad bowl, combine 4 small thinly sliced cucumbers, 1 bunch thinly sliced radishes and 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh chives. (Using Benriner Mandoline makes it extra easy).
- Chop 1 large romaine lettuce into bite-sized pieces and add it to the salad.
- Drizzle with lemon vinaigrette and toss gently until salad is evenly coated. You can also drizzle without tossing the salad and serve.
Notes
- To make the salad in advance - cover with plastic food wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve. Keep the salad and the vinaigrette separate until ready to serve. Here are some make-ahead tips:
-
- Vinaigrette – make this in a small mason jar. Shake it well before drizzling over salad when serving in case it separates.
- Salad – prepare the salad in full, place cucumbers on the bottom of a bowl, top with radish and lettuce on top. Placing lettuce on top will ensure it stays crunchy and definitely not flat.
We first published this recipe in February 2017 and updated it in January 2020 with new photos, substitutions and more tips.
Judith Santilla says:
This was so good! My whole family enjoyed it. It’s a great healthy recipe. My teenage son was sure to ask if there would be leftovers for later. I’ll be making it often now.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
That is the best when kids love what we moms make. That’s so great!
Stacey says:
This is such a healthy and quick salad. It works great with your chicken tenders recipe. I was never a fan of radish, but this salad made me change my mind.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this salad recipe!
Natasha says:
Loves this salad! Made it twice over past couple days. I added the lemon zest as well as I love lemony things so much. It was the perfect amount of lemony flavor. Thank you so much!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
That’s wonderful, Natasha! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed this salad :).
Karim says:
I love this easy salad! I started eating healthier few months ago and your lettuce salas became part of my diet. It never gets old and I love how you can really taste the tang from lemon in it. Occasionally, I like to increase the lemon flavor. Thanks Olga for your amazing recipes and the hard work you put into them!
Olga in the Kitchen says:
You’re very welcome, Karim! I’m so happy to hear you’re enjoying this salad recipe 🙂
Karla says:
This is one yummy salad. It’s so different from the ones I usually do and has lots of flavor.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Totally agree! 🙂
Sarah Snell says:
This really an awesome site. Great recipes, i just loved it. Thanks for sharing really great ones.
Olga in the Kitchen says:
Thanks Sarah, It’s always nice to hear that. I’ve been working on lots of new recipes for a while now, but with a 2 week old baby it’s not easy to find lots of time to edit and post more often these days. Hopefully I’ll get back to posting more of delicious goodness very soon! 🙂