Healthy Rainbow Salad Jar at the Table

This Healthy Rainbow Salad Jar recipe is bursting with the vibrant colors of spring, featuring a medley of fresh fruits and veggies, shelled edamame, and a refreshing olive oil dressing. Packed with nutrients and satisfying textures, it’s a crave-worthy salad that’s reliable for meal prep!

Lately, we’ve been on a big meal prep kick, crafting salad jar recipes like this Mediterranean Quinoa Salad in a Jar and our Meal Prep Mason Jar Salad. So, we figured why not make another — you can never have too many healthy options, right? And this Rainbow Salad recipe takes full advantage of all the fresh produce coming into season.

It’s vibrant, flavorful, and loaded with texture and nutrients for a healthy recipe you’ll look forward to sinking your fork into. Even better, it’s super speedy to prepare and stores well in the fridge. You really can’t go wrong! One bite, and you’ll understand why we’ve been making it on repeat.

Why You’ll Love This Rainbow Salad

It comes together in a matter of minutes.
One batch makes three servings and can easily be doubled or even tripled.
It’s naturally gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, and vegan to fit a variety of dietary needs.
You can whip up enough salads to get you through the week and store them in the fridge for speedy grab-and-go meals.

Tomatoes, shredded carrots, chopped orange and yellow peppers, cucumber slices, edamame, blueberries, and red cabbage spread out in layers. — Prepare all the ingredients before you begin to assemble the jars.

What You’ll Need

When we say eat the rainbow, we aren’t talking about Skittles! This simple rainbow salad packs as many ingredients as we can fit into a single jar for a colorful recipe that’s full of flavor. Here’s what you’ll need:

Rainbow Salad

Purple Cabbage – Not only is it super pretty, but purple cabbage also offers a ton of health benefits like vitamin K, vitamin B6, and vitamin A.
Blueberries – A powerful superfood, these berries offer a hint of sweetness and a pop of texture.
Shelled Edamame – Edamame are whole, immature soybeans that are full of fiber and plant-based protein and offer a variety of health benefits.
Cucumber – Our go-to way to add extra crunch! We like English cucumber, but whatever variety you can find will taste great.
Bell Peppers – Loaded with fiber and vitamin C, yellow and orange peppers contribute a satisfying crunch and a hint of sweetness.
Carrots – Opt for pre-shredded carrots. Or, buy whole carrots, and shred them yourself.
Grape Tomatoes – Sweeter than other varieties, grape tomatoes have a meaty consistency that provides a great contrast with the crisp veggies.
Spinach – High in iron and loaded with nutrients, spinach forms the base of the rainbow salad recipe.

Dressing

Olive Oil – An excellent source of healthy fats, the punchy flavor of olive oil makes a great base for any from-scratch dressing.
Lemon Juice – Use a lemon squeezer to add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for the reliable amount of acidity to balance out and lighten the heaviness of the fats.
Seasonings – Sea salt, black pepper, and a dash of dried oregano add extra savoriness that pairs amazingly with the fresh salad ingredients.

Three jars full of healthy rainbow salad. — Always add the dressing to the bottom of the jar to prevent the ingredients from becoming soggy.

How to Make an Simple Rainbow Salad Jar

The formula for making the reliable rainbow salad is the same as any other jarred salad recipe. We’ll start by adding the liquids to the bottom to prevent the rest of the items from becoming soggy. Then, we layer starting with the heaviest ingredients and ending with the lightest.

Create the Dressing. Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and oregano to the bottom of three jars. Gently whisk to combine.
Layer. Add the salad ingredients, ending with the spinach.
Store. Cover each jar tightly, and store them in the fridge. When you’re ready to eat, flip the ingredients onto a plate, and enjoy!

Add-Ins and Variations

When it comes to a from-scratch rainbow salad recipe, there’s really no right or wrong. If you have any extras on hand, feel free to incorporate even more veggies. Or, bulk up your salads with additions like:

Protein such as ground beef, turkey, chicken, or beef kofta.
Cheese including crumbled feta, goat cheese, mozzarella, or parmesan.
Toppings such as chopped almonds, walnuts, pecans, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, or pepitas.
Grains like quinoa, bulgur pilaf, or rice

Overhead image of a bowl full of rainbow salad tossed with an olive oil dressing with a fork on the side. — Invert your salad jar onto a plate to eat!

How Long Does This Recipe Last?

When stored in an airtight container or jar in the fridge, this Rainbow Salad will stay fresh for up to 5 days, depending on the freshness of your veggies.

Common Questions about Health Rainbow Salad Jar

Can kids enjoy rainbow salad jars?

Totally! The bright colors make it fun for kids to explore different veggies, and you can mix in some fruit or cheese to match their taste.

Do the layers matter beyond the look?

Definitely. Layering smartly keeps everything fresh—sturdier veggies go near the bottom, while delicate ingredients go toward the top.

What’s a good protein to add to rainbow salad jars?

Think grilled chicken, tofu, beans, quinoa, or boiled eggs. Any of these will level it up from side dish to main event.

Do I need fancy jars for this to work?

Nope—any sealable container will do. Mason jars just happen to be cute, stackable, and reliable for layering.

More Healthy Salad Recipes

Searching for more scrumptious salads? Don’t miss out on a few more of our favorites!

Balela Salad (Middle Eastern Chickpea Salad)
Summer Berry Salad with Poppyseed Dressing
Mediterranean Quinoa Salad
Speedy Couscous Salad with Chicken
Mason Jar Greek Salad with Tahini Dressing

the Ayyem kitchenServings: 3 servings

Prep: 10 mins
Total: 10 mins

Treat yourself to a variety of flavors and textures with this healthy rainbow salad jar for an simple meal prep recipe you’ll look forward to eating! Email

Ingredients

For the Dressing:

3 Tablespoons olive oil divied
3 Tablespoons lemon juice divided
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt divided
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper divided
1 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

For the Rainbow Salad:

3 cups purple cabbage divided
1 cup blueberries divided
1 1/2 cup shelled edamame divided
1 cup cucumbers chopped and divided
1 cup yellow bell pepper chopped and divided
1 cup orange bell pepper chopped and divided
1 cup shredded carrots divided
1 cup grape tomatoes halved and divided
3 cups fresh spinach divided

Instructions

In 3 separate jars, add 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper, and ½ teaspoon oregano. Whisk to combine.
Layer ⅓ of each ingredient into the jars starting with the heaviest items and ending with the spinach.
Cover, and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.
To serve, invert the ingredients onto a plate, and enjoy!