Delectable Tri Color Salad with Winter Greens

Our Tri Color Salad is a winter version of the famous Italian ‘Insalata Tricolore’. We have partnered wonderful leafy veggies with our simply to die for tarragon vinaigrette for an easy dinner party worthy salad you and your guests will love!

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Tri Color Salad in a dark grey bowl with tarragon springs on top right corner.

Tri Color salad means three colours, what colours you ask? Well the colours of the Italian flag of course 🇮🇹 - green, white and red.

In the summer these colours are usually taken from basil for green, mozzarella for white and tomatoes for red. In the winter we turn to classic winter greens for inspiration, which we have partnered with crumbly pecorino and gorgeous sicilian (or Castelvetrano) olives then tossed them in a flavoursome tarragon vinaigrette.

Oh, have you tried our Tricolore Salad yet it's another 3-colour salad but with summer favourites! Another one of my Italian favourites is our Italian Artichoke Salad full of tangy flavour and a lip-smacking parmesan dressing.

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Ingredients and Substitutions

Rocket/arugula - with its slight pepperiness is the green. Feel free to swap with any leafy greens that take your fancy such as baby spinach, Swiss chard, kale or silverbeet.
Fennel - with its gorgeous licquoricey flavour is the white. You can substitute with some Napa or white cabbage but just add a teaspoon or two of fennel seeds to boost the flavour.
Radicchio - with its slightly bitter flavour and deep magenta colour provides the red. If you are not a fan this can easily be replaced with some red cabbage instead.

Jump to our common questions section for other winter leaf veggies to try!

Pecorino Cheese - is another sharp Italian cheese, you can replace it with Parmesan cheese.
Sicilian (or Castelvetrano) olives - for their mild sweet flavour and meatiness. You can use any firm green olives that you have on hand, but make sure you rinse them well to remove some of their briney taste.
Tarragon vinaigrette - for me this is what really makes this salad such a huge hit. But, you can use some dry tarragon (see FAQs) or replace the tarragon with other woody herbs such as rosemary or thyme. You can also use a simple lemon vinaigrette if you a absolutely have to.

Labelled ingredients needed to make a tri color salad.

How to Make It

Step 1 - Prepare Your Ingredients

Wash your rocket/arugula remove any damaged or wilted leaves, then either pat or spin dry using a salad spinner.

Arugula or rocket being dried in a salad spinner.

Wash and trim your radicchio, remove the core and then thinly shred.

Wash the fennel, cut off the base, hard fennel core and any damaged parts. Shred finely, either using a mandoline/v-slicer or a sharp knife.

Don’t forget to chop up the fennel fronds to add to your salad!

Then use a peeler to shave half a cup from your pecorino cheese.

CHOPPING DILL ON A WOODEN CHOPPING BOARD WITH KNIFE

Step 2 - Shake Up Your Vinaigrette

Place all dressing ingredients in a glass jar or sealed container and season.

Shake well to combine, taste and adjust seasonings according to your liking.

SHAKEN TARRAGON DRESSING IN JAR WITH INGREDIENTS AROUND

Step 3 - Assemble Your Salad

Place all the ingredients (except the olives) in a large mixing bowl and season.

CUT TRI COLOUR SALAD INGREDIENTS IN WHITE BOWL WITH DRESSING IN JAR ON THE SIDE

Pour over the vinaigrette and mix well to combine, making sure that all the leaves are well coated.

Taste and adjust seasonings according to your liking.

💡TOP TIP
Toss the salad well in a mixing bowl making sure all of the leaves are covered in the yummy dressing. 
Then transfer the salad leaves to your serving bowl/platter and leave the excess dressing behind, this prevents your salad from sitting in the vinaigrette and going soggy.

TONGS TOSSING TRI COLOUR SALAD TO COMBINE

Arrange in a salad bowl, scatter the olives on top to garnish and serve.

Serving Suggestions

Great with any Italian style measl such as pasta, eggplant parmigiana or veal saltimbocca. Also great with pork, poultry or seafood.

I made it for a dinner party alongside a rolled pork roast and crunchy smashed potatoes.

And you simply must try it with a whole roasted fish such as a snapper it is an exquisite flavour combination! The sweet slightly anise flavoured tarragon partners beautifully with soft white flesh of the fish.

Tips and Questions

What Are Winter Greens?

They are green leafed vegetable that are abundant and at their peak during the winter months.
For the most part dark coloured plants are higher in phytonutrients and act as potent antioxidants in our bodies (great for winter colds and flus 😉).
They include Asian greens, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage varieties, chard, celery, fennel, kale, leeks, okra, radicchio, silvery and spinach.

Can I Use Dry Tarragon?

I think dried tarragon is one of the few dried herbs that truly mimics its fresh counterpart very well.
It is best purchased from a speciality spice shop rather than at the supermarket as it will be fresher and make sure that tarragon leaf is green and not washed out.
You’ll just want to scale back to two teaspoons and add about 3 teaspoons of finely chopped parsley for some fresh green flavour and colour.

Why the Sicialian (or Castelvetrano) Olives

As you know most olives have a briny taste to them, well not these beauties they are mild, sweet and buttery with a meaty texture.
Even olive haters have been known to fall in love with them!

Can I Make This Salad Ahead?

You can prepare the leafy veggies such as the rocket/arugula, several hours in advance and keep in a sealed container in the fridge.
For the fennel, I would place it in a bowl and fill it with cold water as it discolours easily.
The dressing can be made several days in advance and kept in an air tight container in the fridge.
Assemble the salad just before serving no more than 20-30 minutes at the absolute most.

What About the Leftovers?

This is one of those ‘make it and eat it’ style salads and should really be eaten soon after making as the leftover salad tends to go a bit soggy the following day.