The viral La Scala Chopped Salad is a healthy and filling Italian-inspired salad. It was originally made famous by the Beverly Hills restaurant, La Scala. This is supposedly Kim Kardashian’s favorite salad and if so – then the girl knows how to eat! It is so satisfying with lots of crisp textures, refreshing veggies like romaine lettuce and cucumber, plus crunchy chickpeas for protein (22g per serve). I’ve given it a plant-based makeover with chewy sun-dried tomatoes instead of salami and pumpkin seed parmesan for a cheesy richness, minus the dairy.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Frankly, it’s fun to make these viral celebrity salads – I feel like it gives us a little glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous right?! Like, I ate what Kim Kardashian eats for lunch. That’s kind of cool!
- Super satisfying crunchy, crisp and chewy textures from sun-dried tomatoes, fresh vegetables and crispy roasted chickpeas
- Healthy, fresh but also filling and satisfying with chickpeas and pumpkin seeds for protein
Ingredients You’ll Need
Okay so there is a reasonably long ingredients list for this salad but don’t let that put you off! It is very straightforward and comes together quickly. You just need to prep the components separately. That is: crunchy chickpeas, pumpkin seed parmesan, the salad and finally, the dressing.
Most ingredients should be easily found at your local supermarket. Nutritional yeast might need to be sourced from the health food aisle or a specialty store, depending on where you live. This is an essential ingredient as it is what gives the pumpkin seed parmesan its cheesy flavor. If you can’t find it locally, you can buy it online as well.
Here’s your shopping list for this recipe:
- Chickpeas
- Olive oil
- Smoked paprika
- Pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
- Nutritional yeast
- Salt
- Balsamic vinegar
- Dijon mustard
- Maple syrup
- Vegetable stock powder (bouillon)
- Dried oregano
- Cracked black pepper
- Baby romaine lettuce
- Sun-dried tomatoes
- Red onion
- Persian cucumber
Instructions
My version of the La Scala salad is very easy to make and doesn’t require any special skills, but there are a few components to be prepared separately:
- Air-fried crunchy chickpeas
- Chopped vegetables
- Dressing
- Pumpkin seed parmesan
Here’s a step-by-step guide with photos, but be sure to check out the recipe card at the end of this post for detailed quantities and timings.
Step One: Prepare the crunchy chickpeas by coating them with olive oil, salt, and smoked paprika.
Step Two: Air fry the chickpeas until golden and crispy.
Step Three: Wash and chop the baby romaine lettuce.
Step Four: Chop the red onion and Persian cucumber.
Step Five: Whisk together olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, maple syrup, vegetable stock powder, oregano, and black pepper to make the dressing.
Step Six: Combine pumpkin seed parmesan ingredients in a blender and pulse for 3-4 seconds until it forms a rough crumb.
Step Seven: Combine all prepared ingredients and salad dressing.
Step Eight: Toss in a large bowl and serve immediately.
Substitutions & Variations
The great thing about salads is that they’re really just a combination of ingredients, so you can mix and match without needing to change the method really. Here are a few substitutions I can vouch for:
- Substitute grape tomatoes for sun-dried tomatoes.
- Use cashews instead of pumpkin seeds to make the parmesan.
- Replace balsamic vinegar with white wine vinegar in the dressing.
- Iceberg lettuce instead of baby romaine.
- Swap red onion for shallots.
- Try white beans instead of chickpeas for added protein.
Equipment
There are a couple of appliances you’ll need to make this salad:
- Air-fryer (for chickpeas – can be done in the oven but they won’t get as crispy)
- Blender (for pumpkin seed parmesan)
Storage
The best feature of this salad is it’s delicious crunchy textures. Serve it immediately to enjoy it at its best.
If you are making this salad for meal prep, store the chickpeas and dressing separately to minimize it going soggy. Keep all components in the refrigerator for up to 3 days in advance.
Obviously, do not freeze – salads and freezers do not mix, it will be soggy and inedible.
Expert Tips
For perfect pumpkin seed parmesan, pulse in the blender for just a couple of seconds—no longer, or it’ll become too thick, like a nut butter. A slightly gritty texture is better than a gluggy one (speaking from experience here). So if you spot a few little chunks of pumpkin seeds, don’t worry.
FAQ
Some of the most famous salads include the Caesar salad, Cobb salad, Greek salad, Waldorf salad, and Nicoise salad.
The Kardashian’s love their salads. One that is frequently featured on the show is the Chinese Chicken Salad from The Health Nut cafe in California. Another favorite of Kim’s is this La Scala chopped salad, made famous by the Beverly Hills restaurant La Scala.
The La Scala chopped salad was first created in the 1950s by Chef Jean Leon at La Scala in Beverly Hills. It originally consisted of iceberg lettuce, salami, marinated chickpeas, and cheese, and has since gained popularity, being praised by celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor and JFK.
Serving Suggestions and More Recipes
Looking for more fresh and filling salad recipes? Some of my other favorites which are great for a healthy lunch or light dinner include: Brown Rice Salad, Curried Cauliflower Salad , Roasted Cauliflower Salad, The Jennifer Aniston Salad and Avocado Pasta Salad with Tempeh Bacon.
I hope you are as obsessed with this La Scala salad as I am. It makes me feel like I’m living my best healthy and celebrity undercover life haha. It’s a great light lunch option or a substantial side salad for dinner.
Remember, you can prepare the ingredients in advance for meal prep, but just store them separately so they don’t go soggy. The key to a delicious salad is lots of crisp texture – as soon as they start to taste wet or soggy it’s a no from me!
If you agree with Kim K and LOVE this salad, then I’d really appreciate if you could leave a star rating and review in the comments section below. It really helps the blog grow 🙂 oh and don’t forget if you do make this recipe to take a pic and share it over on Instagram. You can tag me @glowdiaries___ and I’ll be sure to give your post some love!
La Scala Salad (Vegan)
Equipment
- Air fryer optional
- High powered blender
Ingredients
Crunchy Chickpeas
- 15 oz chickpeas canned, (400g) drained and rinsed
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin, 7g
- 1/2 teaspoon salt 3g
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 2g
Pumpkin Seed Parmesan
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds aka pepitas, 70g
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast 40g
- 1/2 teaspoon salt 3g
Dressing
- 3 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin, 42g
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 15g
- 1.5 tablespoon dijon mustard 23g
- 1 tablespoon water 15g
- 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup 3g
- 1/4 teaspoon vegetable stock powder (bouillon) or sub salt, 1.5g
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 0.5g
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper cracked, 0.5g
Salad
- 3 heads baby romaine lettuce washed, chopped, 450g
- 1/3 cup sun-dried tomatoes roughly chopped, 50g
- 1/2 red onion diced, 70g
- 1 persian cucumber quartered lengthways, diced, 100g
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425°F (or air fryer to 390°F).
- Air fryer method: Cook chickpeas at 390°F for 12 minutes, shaking halfway through.
- Oven method: Spread chickpeas on a lined baking sheet and roast for 25–30 minutes, shaking the tray halfway. Set aside to cool and crisp up.
- In a high-powered blender, pulse the pumpkin seeds, nutritional yeast, and salt just 3–4 seconds until a coarse crumb forms.
- Shake to loosen and repeat if needed. Avoid over-blending—it should resemble grated parmesan, not nut butter.
- In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, water, maple syrup, bouillon powder, oregano, and black pepper. If desired, add a splash of water to thin it slightly.
- In a large salad bowl, combine the chopped romaine, sun-dried tomatoes, diced red onion, and cucumber.
- Add the cooled crispy chickpeas and a few spoonfuls of pumpkin seed parmesan. Drizzle over the dressing and toss well to coat. Serve immediately.
Sandra says
Super salad that’s so satisfying!
Cristina says
This was delicious and so easy to make!!
Gosia says
Really good salad, i added some roasted pumpkin seeds as well and it was great!
Liz Douglas says
hey Gosia so glad you enjoyed it!! pumpkin seeds are a super tasty touch 🙂
Tine says
so obsessed with this salad! so fresh and filling 😍 and that dressing is just too good.