This Easy Pea Salad recipe only calls for 5 ingredients and is ready in about 15 minutes! Made with frozen peas, mayo, ranch dressing, red onion, and diced ham, it’s the perfect side for nearly any occasion.
As a kid, I wasn’t a big fan of green peas. In fact, I pretty much hated them. I had a great aunt that would sometimes keep me and I remember her trying to force feed me peas. And it seems like we had peas every time I was there.
Fortunately, as I’ve gotten older, my disdain for the veggie has shifted from hatred to quite a bit of fondness. Apparently, the 10,000 taste buds we have are replaced every few weeks and as we age the number of taste buds on our tongues decreases. So things that we disliked as kids, taste different as adults.
Now, I’m still not a big fan of canned peas, but I’ll eat them. The ones I love the most are fresh or frozen peas that are just barely cooked or even raw. I think that’s why I love pea salad so much.
Frozen peas are combined with a creamy mayo-based dressing and, in my recipe, are combined with finely diced smoked ham and red onion. This simple combination is my absolute favorite.
To add some extra flavor, I add a packet of ranch mix to my dressing – a trick I learned from a restaurant a few years back. I find the flavor perfect, but you can always use less of the ranch mix if you like.
And even though there are only 5 ingredients, and all you have to do is stir those ingredients together, you can make it even easier by using the finely diced ham that comes in a little pack in the cold cuts/sliced meats section of the grocery store.
And while I love using frozen peas to make this classic side dish super easy (and tasty), you can use fresh peas as well. Simply blanch them in some boiling water, rinse in cold water to stop the cooking, and drain them before adding them to the salad. You’ll need about 1 pound of fresh peas, just as with the frozen ones.
Recipe Card
Easy Pea Salad
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) bag frozen peas (or fresh*)
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 (0.4 to 1.0 -ounce) packet buttermilk ranch dressing mix
- 1 cup finely diced ham
- 1/2 cup finely diced red onion
Instructions
- Allow peas to thaw and rinse under cold water in colander. Drain well and spread out on a rimmed sheet pan lined with paper towels to absorb excess moisture.
- In a medium bowl, stir together the mayonnaise and ranch dressing mix. Add the peas, ham, and onion and fold together to coat. Refrigerate until serving.
Notes
Please note:
If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
just the best to get out of a rut with other salads
Thanks, Susan!
Easy to prepare! Piquant flavor makes it perfect for summer suppers!
Thanks, Mary!
Please tell me I can make this for Thanksgiving not just summer. This is totally what my mom use to make.
Absolutely! You do you! 🙂
Add 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese cubed at 1/2 inch.
Oops! I meant, 1/2 cup 1/4 inch cubed sharp cheddar!
This sounds like a great addition too!
I think we grew up in the same neighborhood by the looks of the recipes! I love this, but my mom always added chopped boiled eggs.
Forgot the rating!!
I LOVE this recipe with eggs as well!
I just made this pea salad for the second time. It came together even faster this time since I put the peas out to thaw and drain while I went for a hike. It makes enough to serve for at least two meals for the four of us and gets better and better with time. Thanks for another favorite recipe, Stacey!
So glad to hear you’ve enjoyed this one!
Made this for a church luncheon. Everyone enjoyed it. Came home with a clean dish.
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it!
This salad is one of my favorite salads, but I never thought about using the ranch dressing package with the mayo . I will be using your recipe from now on, however not boing to crazy about ham I cut up small chunk’s of cheddar cheese. Thanks for posting this recipe. I will be making this right away.
That’s a great idea! Thanks for sharing!
This recipe is really making my mouth water. Thanks, making out my grocery list!
Hope you enjoy it!
Readers…..you must try this recipe. It is a delightful salad!
Thank you!
This Easy Pea Salad sounds wonderful. I like quick & easy!! Have a blessed day.😊
Quick and easy is my favorite too!
I’m really looking forward to making this, so simple and I love a good pea salad!
So easy!