Creamy Pea Salad is a great potluck and bbq side for pea lovers. With just a few ingredients and a few minutes of time, a bag of frozen peas gets turned into a super flavorful vegetable side.
It’s creamy and flavored with lots of crispy, crumbled bacon, shredded cheddar cheese, and chopped red onion.
Make In Advance
Creamy Pea Salad can be made a day or even two in advance. The flavor only gets better. Plus it tastes great when it is super chilled, especially on a hot summer day.
Reader Comment
“Family Favorite! Make several times a week in summer and some in winter also! A must try!!” ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Ingredients Needed
A combination of mayonnaise and sour cream forms a super creamy base. A little apple cider vinegar perks up the flavor and a spoonful of sugar adds some sweetness.
But the best part is definitely all that salty bacon!
- Mayonnaise– use a good quality mayo like Duke’s or Hellmann’s.
- Sour Cream– can use Greek yogurt instead. Either one will add just a little tang.
- Apple Cider Vinegar– just a touch of acidity perks up the flavor so much.
- Sugar– just a little sugar adds a hint of sweetness.
- Black Pepper– I love to use a good amount of black pepper.
- 4 Cups Of Peas– I use frozen peas, but some people like this recipe with canned Leseur Peas. It is a matter or preference.
- Red Onion– very finely chop it.
- Cheddar Cheese– I use sharp cheddar but medium cheddar is fine. I like to shred it but some people cut it into cubes.
- Bacon– I only add 4 slices of cooked and crumbled bacon. Feel free to add a little more bacon if you wish. To simplify things, you can use bacon bits.
How To Make Creamy Pea Salad
(More detailed instructions in recipe card below.)
- In large bowl stir together mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, sugar, and black pepper.
- Add peas, onion, and cheddar cheese.
- Mix well and season to taste with salt.
- Sprinkle bacon on top. Refrigerate before serving.
- Serve.
Recipe Tips
- Add some chopped hard-boiled eggs for another flavor component.
- Fresh dill also makes a great addition.
- You can add cubed ham in addition to the bacon or in place of the bacon.
- To spice it up a little, use Pepper Jack cheese.
How To Store
Leftovers of this classic pea salad will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 days. After that it will get a little watery.
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Creamy Pea Salad
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 4 cups peas
- 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion
- 4 ounces cheddar cheese,, shredded
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Instructions
- In a large bowl, stir together mayonnaise, sour cream, vinegar, sugar, and black pepper.
- Add peas, onion, and cheddar cheese and mix well.
- Season to taste with salt.
- Sprinkle bacon on top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Originally posted June 20, 2017.
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Family Favorite! Make several times a week in summer and some in winter also! A must try!!
Easy, and delicious side!! A family favorite!! A must try! Only improvement is to double amount of mayonnaise!
looks amazing
This is such a good pea salad recipe. I sometimes add a pinch of celery seed. I also use Greek yogurt (do not use nonfat) a lot for part of the mayo and sour cream, but prefer the mayo/sour cream combo listed here because it is more decadent. As suggested, adding hard boiled eggs is yummy too when in the mood. This recipe has perfect proportions as is!