One surefire way I can always get even the most discerning meat lovers in my family to eat kale is to drizzle bacon all over it. This BLT Avocado Brunch Salad is the perfect addition to Sunday brunch at home (or your lunchbox for work!), thanks to those perfectly cooked soft-boiled eggs! It’s hearty, colorful, and checks every box: salty, creamy, tangy, and fresh. I promise, no one’s picking around the greens when this hits the table.
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Easy BLT Avocado Salad Recipe
I have to tell you, when I first tested this recipe, the cost of eggs was not this insane—so you can totally leave them off if eggs are not in your budget right now. The real star of the show is “bacon two ways” when it comes to this BLT kale salad!
You’ve got crispy bacon pieces and a warm, tangy vinaigrette made with bacon drippings, which makes the kale taste rich and almost decadent. The combo of salty bacon, creamy avocado, juicy tomatoes, and that punchy vinegar dressing makes it nearly impossible to stop at one bowl. It’s like your favorite diner BLT (or BLAT…aka bacon, lettuce, avocado, and tomato—yes, that’s a thing some restaurants say!) turned into a hearty, feel-good salad.
BLT Avocado Brunch Salad Recipe
Servings 4 entrée size salads / 2 heaping cups salad per personIngredients
- 4 eggs, soft-boiled* ($1.64)
- 1 bunch kale (about 5 cups) ($1.24)
- 6 pieces of bacon, cooked until crispy** ($2.12)
- 1 avocado ($1.00)
- 1 cup grape tomatoes ($2.00)
Warm Bacon Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup red onion, finely diced*** ($0.53)
- ¼ cup bacon fat + olive oil if necessary**** ($0.39)
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar ($0.14)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar ($0.06)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.01)
- ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper ($0.10)
Instructions
- Gather your ingredients. Soft-boil 4 eggs (using our handy dandy guide!) and carefully peel them.
- Remove the kale from its stems, tearing it into bite size pieces. Wash thoroughly and pat dry or use a salad spinner.
- Cook the bacon until crispy using our fool proof oven baked bacon recipe, reserving up to ¼ cup of the bacon fat for the vinaigrette.
- Roughly chop crispy bacon, dice avocado, halve tomatoes, and finely dice onion.
- Make the dressing: Pour the rendered bacon fat into a measuring cup. Pour off all but ¼ cup (or add olive oil to reach ¼ cup). To a small bowl, combine apple cider vinegar, finely diced red onion, brown sugar, salt, and black pepper. Briskly whisk together, slowly streaming in the bacon fat/oil mixture while continuing to whisk.
- Massage kale with vinaigrette in a large bowl until the leaves turn more tender and vibrant green.
- Divide kale between 4 bowls and top with chopped bacon, avocado, grape tomatoes, and soft-boiled eggs. If you have any additional red onion, you can also add that. Add another crank or two of additional salt and pepper to serve.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Gather all of your ingredients. Soft-boil 4 eggs if you haven’t already, then carefully peel them to remove the shells.
Prep the kale: Remove the kale leaves from the tough stems. I like to pull the leaves away by hand—just grab the base of the stem with one hand and run your fingers up the stem with the other. Now, tear the kale into bite-sized pieces and wash them well (you need about 5 cups total). Pat them dry, or use a salad spinner to remove the excess water.
Cook the bacon: Use our oven method to cook 6 slices of bacon until perfectly crispy. Reserve up to ¼ cup of the bacon fat for the vinaigrette by pouring it into a small bowl.
Prep the salad toppings: Roughly chop the crispy cooked bacon, dice 1 avocado, slice 1 cup grape tomatoes in half, and very finely dice the red onion (you need ¼ cup of finely diced red onion, which was roughly ¼ of a whole red onion for me during testing).
Make the bacon vinaigrette: Pour the rendered bacon fat into a measuring cup (you need ¼ cup total, but if your bacon didn’t produce enough fat, you can top it up with olive oil to reach ¼ cup). Add ¼ cup apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup finely diced red onion, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 1 tsp salt, and ½ tsp black pepper to a small bowl. Whisk together and slowly stream in the bacon fat/oil mixture while continuously whisking to create a temporary emulsion.
Dress the salad: Add the washed and dried kale leaves to a large bowl. Pour the bacon vinaigrette over the top and use your hands to massage the dressing into the kale. Do this until the leaves become more tender and turn a vibrant green.
Make the salad bowls: Equally divide the dressed kale into 4 bowls. Top each bed of kale with the chopped bacon, diced avocado, halved plum tomatoes, and, if you have any extra, diced red onion. Finish with a crank or two of salt and pepper, and serve!
Recipe Tips & Suggestions
- Massage that kale! Don’t skip this step—trust me. Massaging the kale with the warm bacon vinaigrette softens the leaves, makes them easier to digest, and reduces the bitterness that might just change how you feel about raw kale forever. It’s one of those little tricks that makes a big difference.
- Not a fan of soft-boiled eggs? Totally get it. You can swap in hard-boiled eggs instead. I like to use my air fryer to make hard-boiled eggs; it’s really easy, and they peel like a dream.
- Make it a meal. This BLT salad is already pretty hearty, but if you want to stretch it for lunch or dinner, stir in some cooked and cooled pasta to make a BLT pasta salad. I love using short shapes like rotini, penne, or orzo because they catch the vinaigrette so well. For extra protein, toss in leftover baked chicken breast, crispy tofu, or crispy air-fried chickpeas.
How to Store
Store each part of the salad in its own container in the fridge to keep everything tasting fresh. I like to wait and chop the avocado until right before serving, as it browns quickly once it’s cut. Soft-boiled eggs are best used within 2 days. The rest of the salad, including the massaged kale (which might soften a little more over time), will keep well for 3 to 4 days. If you’re storing the bacon vinaigrette on its own, just give it a quick zap in the microwave (about 10 to 15 seconds) to melt the bacon fat and make it easy to whisk back together.
