Spring Pea, Mint and Wheat Berry Salad
A vibrant spring pea salad. With thinly sliced fresh peas, mint, dill, wheat berries and a lemon dijon dressing. Healthy and delicious as a side dish or as a light main.
Fresh spring pea salad with wheat berries, mint, and lemon– this salad just screams peak Spring! It’s a must as a side dish for anything coming off the grill and is so colorful and vibrant. A unique way to enjoy fresh peas!
Why I love this recipe
I’m a big fan of fresh spring vegetables, especially when they are eaten raw! I love the crunch of thinly sliced peas alongside chewy wheat berries, dill, and mint.
This spring pea salad was inspired by my shaved asparagus salad with mint, couscous and radishes. It’s similar to this spring pea salad, yet complementary enough that they could be served together for any spring dinner.
Wheat berries provide a nice texture alongside the fresh herbs, and I love their chewy texture. I’ve used them in my winter wheat berry salad and knew they would be great in this spring version.
Ingredient Notes
- Fresh Spring Peas: For this recipe, you’ll need fresh spring peas, not frozen. For the best texture, thinly slice the peas on a diagonal. Raw peas are very crunchy, and if they are sliced too thick, this salad won’t have the right texture.
- Herbs: A combination of both dill and mint help to enhance the fresh taste of this pea salad and add a nice earthy flavor (use any leftover dill in my dill dip!)
- Wheat Berries: Hearty wheat berries help to balance the fresh snap of the peas and the bite of the fresh herbs and lemon dijon dressing. Other whole grains, like farro, would work as a substitute.
- Almonds: I love thinly sliced, toasted almonds in many of my grain salads as they add a rich fattiness without the use of dairy. Toasted walnuts or chopped whole almonds would also work.
How to Make
Step 1: Cook the Wheat Berries
Place the wheat berries and 6-7 cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 60-90 minutes, adding more water, if necessary, until tender. Drain and rinse, then set aside.
Step 2: Make the Dressing
Whisk together the ingredients for the lemon dijon dressing. Before adding the olive oil, whisk together the lemon juice, zest, garlic, shallot, mustard, maple syrup and salt and pepper until well combined. The garlic should almost melt into the mixture. Then, keep whisking as you add in the olive oil.
Step 3: Thinly slice the Peas
Using a sharp knife, thinly slice the fresh peas on the diagonal. This makes for a better texture for the salad. They should be as thin as you can get them! The thinner the peas are, the better the texture will be for this salad.
Step 4: Prep the Rest of the Vegetables
Finely chop the fresh mint and dill and toast the almonds.
Step 5: Combine
Add the peas, herbs and almonds to a large bowl and toss with a little of the dressing to well coat, then add the wheat berries and the remaining dressing. Toss to coat, taste and season– adding more salt/pepper as desired.
Tips for Success
The key to this spring pea salad is to ensure that your fresh peas are very thinly sliced. If you want them a bit more tender, you can also lightly blanch them first.
I decided to keep this spring pea salad vegan, but if you want additional creaminess, feta or goat cheese would taste great in it.
Storage Notes
This spring pea salad tastes best right when you make it. However, I tested serving it a day and two days later and the flavor does hold up well, though the peas don’t stay quite as crunchy as they did when first making it.
I did eat it for lunch for a few days after making it, so it can be made for meal prep if you want! To store, place in an airtight container in the fridge.
If you want to make this salad ahead of time, cook the wheat berries, make the dressing, prep the vegetables, and combine right before serving.
More Spring Salad Recipes
- Spring Panzanella Salad with Asparagus
- Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad
- Spring Roll Salad with Crispy Tofu
- Mediterranean Farro Salad
- Roasted Beet Salad
- Mexican Avocado Salad
If you try this spring pea salad, make sure to come back to leave a comment and a rating. Your feedback helps other readers and seeing you make my recipes makes my day!
Spring Pea Salad with Dill, Wheat Berries and Radish
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup wheat berries, rinsed
- 3 cups thinly sliced snap peas, cut on the diaganol
- 1/8 cup chopped fresh dill
- 1/8 cup chopped fresh mint
- 1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds
Lemon Dijon Dressing
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup or honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Place the wheat berries and 6-7 cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 60-90 minutes, adding more water, if necessary, until tender. Drain, then rinse and set aside.
Make the Dressing
- Whisk together the lemon juice, zest, garlic, shallot, mustard, maple syrup and salt and pepper until well combined. The garlic should almost melt into the mixture.
- Keep whisking, slowly drizzling in the olive oil to create a dressing. Taste, season with more salt/pepper/lemon as desired. Set aside.
Make the Salad
- In a large bowl, combine the thinly sliced snap peas, dill, mint, almonds and wheat berries.
- Add the dressing, then toss together. I like to garnish with more dill/mint on top, but that's up to you.