Fresh Arugula Pear Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

Looking for a crisp and fresh salad to accompany any meal? This Arugula Pear Salad is equally easy, delicious, and vibrant!

With just 8 dynamic ingredients that hit all the right tasting notes, this simple yet flavorful homemade arugula salad recipe will quickly become your go-to during pear season!

Plus, as a busy mom with a preference for super-flavorful food, I love a recipe that doesn’t skimp on taste, even though it comes together in just ten minutes without even turning on my oven.

In this recipe, you will learn the easiest way to prep pears, shallots, and basil for a salad, how to mellow out the flavor of raw shallots, and how to make a quick oil and vinegar emulsion.

Arugula Pear Salad Ingredient Highlights

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In contrast to the peppery arugula, basil is subtly sweet. The combination of the two brings a great balance to make a delicious base to this salad.

Bosch and Bartlett pears are preferred here, but any will work. I used pecans in the salad pictured, but walnuts, almonds, macadamia nuts, or really any other nuts will do.

Testing if pears are ripe is very similar to testing if avocados are ripe! Apply gentle pressure to the pear right next to the stem. Ripe pears will give in a little bit to the pressure.

If apply pressure to the pear yields absolutely no give, the pear is not quite ripe. If you apply gentle pressure and the pear quickly and dramatically squishes, your pear is likely over-ripe.

Pears are best stored in the refrigerator in your crisper drawer until ready for use and will last up to a week depending on how ripe they are when you bring them home.

Additional add-in ideas:

• Candied nuts
• Red onion
• Snow peas
• Raisins or craisins
• Avocado
• Apple slices
• Berries
• Grapes
• Hemp seeds or Chia Seeds
• Chickpeas
• Cucumbers

Arugula Pear Salad Tips and Tricks

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How to Make a Salad with Arugula and Pear

The pear is the star of this salad! You can leave it in long thin slices as pictured or chop it up into bite-sized pieces. You can also opt to peel the pear or keep the peel on.

I like to keep the peel on but, the peel of the pear can be slightly tough, so you can always peel it if you prefer.

The easiest way to slice a pear is in three simple steps. First, stand the pear upright and use a sharp knife to slice the pear in half lengthwise.

Next, use a spoon to scoop out the seeds and discard them. From there, the two halves of the pear will lay flat on your cutting board, making it easy to slice.

At this point you can leave the slices as they are, or you can opt to dice the pear into bite-sized pieces.

Just like other onions, shallots have many layers, making them easy to dice (except for all the eye tearing, of course 😆). Start by chopping off both ends of your shallot. Then, slice it in half lengthwise.

Now you should be able to easily peel off and discard the outermost, paper-thin layer of the shallot.

Once you’ve peeled the outer layer off, you can easily lay both halves flat and dice them. Once diced, used clean hands to peel the layers apart until your left with small, individual pieces.

Shallots have a pungent, earthy, savory flavor and add tons of taste and texture to this salad. If you find raw shallots overpowering, you can easily mellow them out by soaking them in water.

This step is completely optional, depending on your preference. If you do want to mellow it, add the diced shallot to a small bowl and pour enough water on top to cover and completely submerge the pieces.

Set the soaking shallots aside for at least 5 minutes before straining out the water and patting them dry with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel.

If need be, rinse your basil and set it aside or pat it dry.

Layer your basil leaves on top of one another and roll the basil into a long cylinder. This will just bunch the basil up and make it easier to chop all at once.

Use a sharp knife to slice into the rolled-up basil, chopping into the layers for an efficient method for chopping the fresh herb.

Mix in All Your Salad Ingredients

Start by tossing your arugula and basil together. Once your basil and arugula are mixed together, add the prepped pear and shallots.

I like to chop my nuts into smaller bite-sized pieces, but that’s up to you! Whether you chop them or leave them whole, add them to the salad now, too.

Use clean hands to crumble the goat cheese on top.

Once all of your ingredients (minus the dressing) are added to the bowl, toss to distribute evenly.

Oil and vinegar are notoriously tough to combine, but when they do it’s magic! When the water content from the vinegar mixes with the fat content of the oil it makes something called an emulsion, which has an almost creamy texture.

I find the easiest way to emulsify olive oil and balsamic vinegar is by adding it to a glass jar with a lid. Secure the lid tightly on the jar and then shake vigorously to combine.

I highly recommend serving the oil and vinegar emulsion on the side and allowing everyone to dress their own individual salad. this is for three compelling reasons.

For one, some people may like more dressing than others. Secondly, the longer the salad sits with the dressing on it, the more likely it is to get soggy.

And thirdly, leftover salad without the dressing will last longer in the refrigerator than leftover salad that is already dressed.

Storing Leftover Pear and Arugula Salad

Arugula salad without any dressing will last on the counter at room temperature for about four hours. If you plan to make the salad ahead of time, you can squeeze some fresh lemon juice on the sliced pear to keep it from browning.

In an airtight container in the refrigerator leftover un-dressed salad, will last up to three days in the refrigerator.

If your salad has the oil and vinegar on it, it’s best to enjoy it within a couple of hours before it gets too soggy.