Last Updated on December 8, 2025 by Sabrina Currie
This easy arugula spinach salad with quick pickled onions, fennel and olives is a delicious, vibrant salad with Mediterranean flavors. Peppery arugula and tender spinach pair with bright red, sweet pickled onions for so much flavor. It's finished with a classic homemade salad dressing of Dijon mustard and red wine vinegar. A fantastic green salad! (DF, GF, V)
Why I love this recipe
Spinach and arugula are so nutritious. They soften beautifully with the dressing and the shaved fennel and radishes add lots of crunchy texture. A quick 30 minute soak in red wine vinegar makes tasty, quick pickled red onions that are a great contrast and briny olives round out this delicious spinach arugula salad. Besides the marinating time for the onions, this salad only takes minutes to put together.
Love spinach and arugula? Arugula burrata salad is a great appetizer or main course salad, arugula lemon salad makes a great side dish for any meal, roasted beet salad with spinach is a warm hearty salad and spinach Greek salad is another delicious spinach salad with feta cheese and fresh lemon juice. I adore arugula in this Italian inspired fig and prosciutto salad with fennel and arugula, too.
Serve this up with tasty loaded chicken, broccoli and potato casserole, mushroom chicken stirfry, or soup like corn chowder or chicken and wild rice soup.
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Recipe Ingredients
Just a few simple ingredients make this really bold, tasty arugula spinach salad with licorice scented fennel and briny black olives.
- Arugula - Crisp and peppery, fresh arugula grows in my garden for at least 6 months of the year and I love it. It starts early in spring and thrives in cool spring weather and again in the fall as rain comes and temperatures dip. Enjoy baby arugula or more toothsome larger arugula in this salad, they both taste great.
- Spinach - Sweet, mild, fresh baby spinach is the perfect addition to this salad. Spinach is a hearty green with a ton of nutritional value. It softens under the easy vinaigrette and goes well with the arugula, olives and pickled onions.
- Fennel - Crisp and slightly sweet with a licorice flavor, fennel adds great texture and flavor to this simple salad. (See the picture below on how to cut it paper thin with a mandolin.)
- Olives - I've used brined mixed olives but Kalamata, Nicoise or Cerignola olives are all great olives to use in this recipe.
- Red Wine Vinegar - I like to use a tasty wine vinegar but it is easy to get inexpensive red wine vinegar that tastes good too. I recommend an inexpensive vinegar for pickling the onions because you'll need a ½ cup.
See recipe card for quantities.
Substitutions + Variations
Arugula spinach salad makes a great side dish but you can elevate it to main dish by adding in some extra protein or other tasty additions.
- Add Cheese - Different cheeses are always a good salad topper. Try some creamy goat cheese crumbled in or cut it in rounds and pressed into chopped walnuts. Shaved parmesan cheese or crumbled blue cheese are great choices too.
- Add Fruit - Thin apple slices, quartered figs, halved cherry tomatoes or creamy avocado slices (yes, avocado is a fruit too!) are all yummy add-ins in this easy arugula salad.
- Chicken - Cooked, sliced chicken breast makes this into a full meal.
- Nuts - Pine nuts, walnuts, pecans or sliced almonds fit well with this salad for extra crunch and a vegetarian protein option.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Just a few easy steps will have this salad of healthy greens on your table in no time!
Step 1. Thinly slice red onion and place it in a small bowl. Pour vinegar over to cover and set aside.
Step 2. Combine the Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and sugar.
Step 3. Whisk the vinaigrette until it looks emulsified or shake it well in a mason jar with lid.
Step 4. Thinly slice the fennel. You can use a knife but if you have a mandolin like this one, it is quick and easy. Wash and trim the radishes and cut in half or quarters, depending on their size.
Step 5. Add the spinach, arugula, fennel and radishes to a large bowl. Pour ⅔ of the dressing over and toss gently. Taste and season with more dressing, salt and pepper if you like.
Drain the pickled onions well. Plate the salad, arrange equal amounts of onions and olives to each plate or bowl, and serve. (You can add the olives and onions to the bowl and toss them in rather than arrange them after if you prefer.)
Serve and enjoy! I love a side of fresh bread with this perfect side salad or serve it as a tasty, light appetizer.
Expert Tips
A fresh salad is the best salad. Fresh ingredients make all the difference and storing them properly once you get them in from the garden, farmers market or grocery store in important too. Loosely covered in the crisper is the best. If you put them on a shelf in the fridge, place them on a damp paper towel in an airtight container so they don't dry out.
Radishes and fennel can be sliced into cold water and soaked to crisp up while the onions pickle, if you want. This is great for produce that may have wilted slightly. Drain well before adding to the salad.
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If you have any questions or comments, you can find me on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. I try to answer any recipe related questions quickly as I know you might be in the middle of making it.
Also check out my FREE PRINTABLE meal planner to make menu planning and grocery shopping a breeze and my shopping guide. And if you like this recipe, I would love it if you give it a star rating in the recipe card.
Cheers and happy cooking, Friends! Sabrina
📖 Recipe
Easy Arugula Spinach Salad With Quick Pickled Onions
Ingredients
Pickled Onions
- ½ c Red Wine Vinegar
- ½ c Red Onion thinly sliced
Salad Dressing
- 2 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ⅓ c Olive Oil
- ½ teaspoon Sugar
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Pepper fresh ground black pepper
Salad Ingredients
- 3 c Arugula
- 3 c Spinach
- 1 c Fennel
- ½ c Radishes
- ½ c Mixed or Kalamata Olives or more to taste
Instructions
- Thinly slice red onion and place it in a small bowl. Pour vinegar over to cover and set aside.
- Add the salad dressing ingredients all together and whisk to combine or use a mason jar with a lid and give it a good shake.
- In a large bowl, add the spinach and arugula. Thinly slice the fennel, halve or quarter the radishes and add them to the bowl. Pour ⅔ of the dressing over and toss gently. Taste and season with more dressing, salt and pepper if you like.
- Drain the pickled onions well. Plate the salad, arrange equal amounts of onions and olives to each plate or bowl, and serve.
BERNADETTE says
I love all the tangy ingredients in this salad. Thanks for sharing.
Sabrina Currie says
Thanks Bernadette, my arugula is just starting to peek up now. A fresh spring treat.