This Fruit Salad recipe is filled with loads of fresh fruit, coated in a light honey-lime dressing. It’s easy, refreshing, delicious, and pairs so well with just about anything. Perfect for summer BBQ’s and potlucks!
5 STAR REVIEW
As much as we absolutely love creamy fruit salads, it’s so nice to have a simple Fruit Salad in your back pocket – one without cream, yogurt, marshmallows, or nuts. Just gorgeous fresh fruit lightly coated in a sweet, bright dressing. This fruit salad is eye-popping beautiful with all the vibrant colors of the rainbow, and it tastes just as good as it looks, with a terrific blend of summer favorites.
Helpful Tips & Variations
- Strawberries. Choose strawberries that are a beautiful red color, without any dark spots or blemishes, no mold, and fresh green leafy tops.
- Pineapple. Good pineapple should have a bright, healthy green stem and golden exterior, with a sweet aromatic smell at the base, and a firm shell that has a little give when squeezed.
- Blueberries. We love big, plump blueberries if you can find them, but small ones are perfectly fine. They should be firm, not mushy.
- Red grapes. Gently squeeze a couple! Are they firm and tight? Are they intact at the stem? Do they have nice color? Those are all indications of good grapes.
- Kiwi. Ripe kiwis should be solid, but have a decent amount of give when pressed gently. If they’re too firm, they’ll be sour.
- Mandarin oranges. These little gems should feel heavy for their size, without blemishes or soft spots, and have skin that is somewhat loose.
- Optional fruits. This salad is extremely versatile using whatever is ripe and in season and depending on your personal tastes. Feel free to add in sliced banana, mangoes, or sweet apples like honey crisp or pink lady. NOTE: If you do use bananas, add them in right before serving so they don’t break down and get mushy.
- Avoid frozen fruit. Fresh fruit is a must for this salad. Once thawed, frozen fruit is mushy and has a less than desirable texture in this recipe.
Fresh Fruit Salad
Ingredients
For the Fruit
- 1 pound (4 cups) strawberries , washed, hulled and chopped
- 3/4 pound (3 cups) chopped fresh pineapple
- 12 ounces (1 & 1/2 cups) blueberries , washed
- 12 ounces (1 & 1/2 cups) red grapes , washed, halved crosswise
- 3 kiwis , peeled and chopped
- 3 mandarin oranges , peeled and segments separated
For the Dressing
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon pineapple juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 2 teaspoons lime zest
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Place all the fruit in a large mixing bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the ingredients for the dressing.
- Drizzle dressing over the fruit; gently toss to combine and coat.
- Serve right away or chill for later. (If not enjoying immediately, give the salad a gentle mix right before serving to redistribute the accumulated juices at the bottom of the bowl.)
Nutrition
Other Notes
Make Ahead and Storing Leftovers
You can peel and chop the fruits and prepare the dressing up to 1 day in advance, keep them separate and then a few hours before serving, mix everything together. This salad is best after chilling and soaking in the juices for a couple hours.
Acidity from the lime juice does help prevent the fruit from browning too quickly, but fresh fruit has a short lifespan, so it’s best to eat this salad soon after assembly. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and consume within 2 days.
More Summer Salad Recipes
- Creamy Cucumber Salad
- Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Melon Cucumber Salad
- Watermelon Salad
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube!
is it really awful to use canned mandarin oranges in a fruit salad?
and how about canned pineapple chucks? I’m not experienced
at making fruit salads and want t o serve one at a brunch
For this fruit salad, fresh is best and will deliver the best flavor and results, but canned is fine if that’s what you have on hand. It will still be delicious.
This was WONDERFUL! The dressing is so delish. Made it for Easter and everyone wanted the recipe.
This was PERFECT. Great balance of fruits in taste and color and the simple dressing was the perfect finishing touch. My new go to fruit salad – thank you!