The Easiest Fruit Salad Recipe

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The minute summer time hits, I’m ecstatic to carry this fruit salad to barbecues, potlucks, and other summer get togethers. This fresh fruit salad recipe has the perfect eye appeal and is so simple and delicious. You can always mix it up a tiny bit different each time you make it, ensuring you’re never going to get bored making or serving it.

The Basics

Typically when I share a recipe on my blog, I like to give you the recipe first and then chat about it. However, it’s going to be harder to do that here, because I don’t necessarily have a recipe I follow. IMO, the best recipes are this way.

I can give you a cliff notes version of it, though: lots of different varieties of fruit, 1/4 cup of lemon juice or lemon juice concentrate, 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, refrigerate until serving.

This recipe, straight from the heart, is “eye-balled”. What do I mean by that? I really focus on how it looks and making sure I get an even amount of every color of the color wheel.

So, bare with me, and we will outline each fruit I add to the salad, one step at a time.

There’s A Strategy To This

Truly, I start deciding what fruits to add to my salad by going to the farmer’s market. I follow that up with a trip to the grocery store. At the farmer’s markets is where I’m buying fresh fruits that are local and in season. When I’m at the grocery store, I first find the fruits that are on sale or in season. At the same time, I’m making a mental note of what colors I have in my salad so far, and look for fruits that are in the color palette I still need.

Fruit Salad Ingredients

Red Fruits:

Of course, I’m gonna choose strawberries practically every time I make this fruit salad. And before you even ask it, I love making this salad during peak strawberry season in Arkansas. After a thorough clean, I slice the berries into bite size pieces.

Raspberries and red grapes are a second go-to that usually makes an appearance. Unless raspberries are at an ungodly price (we’re talking $4/pint), we’re gonna “add to cart”. The only time I wouldn’t add red grapes to my salad is if I’ve got several other red fruits instead and don’t need the colors.

Less Popular Red Fruits

Sweet Cherries, Apples, and Peaches are sometimes added in. During peach season or when they’re on sale, I definitely add them in. Apples I add when I’m particularly keen on a crunchier salad. If you want to make sure they stay white, be sure to soak them in lemon juice beforehand, or add them immediately before serving.

And sweet cherries? I’ve added them once. Yes, they gave that deep red color and taste fantastic. Unfortunately, when you add them, you turn “easiest fruit salad recipe” into just “fruit salad recipe” because of all the pit removals you’re going to have to undergo.

What about watermelon? I did it once. Never. Again. Trust me, that great big juicy red watermelon does not pair well with a lemony-sugar syrup. Of course most people would realize this before making such a sad mistake; I, unfortunately, did not. Lesson learned!

Oranges

I personally have never added any orange colored fruits to my fruit salad. I don’t really feel like peeling a significant amount of oranges, and I don’t think they would taste that great. I’m not a fan of canned mandarin oranges, either. Since I’m the cook, I get to say ix-nay on that one. But, if you are, knock yourself out.

Yellows

Every time I make this recipe, I make sure I include either mangos or pineapples. I think that bright yellow color really helps give the fruit salad a contrast and brightens up the overall look. Pineapples taste perfect in it because of the tangy side.

I personally love mangos, so I’m bound to have a frozen bag at home already. I just put some frozen mangos in a bowl and let them thaw completely before adding them to my salad dish. This lets me control the juices and doesn’t give the salad a runny texture.

Are bananas a good idea? Yes, they definitely fit well in this fruit salad. However, if you’re planning on adding them, make sure they’re the last fruit added. We’re talking add chopped bananas minutes before serving. No one likes soggy bananas, and they don’t look particularly appetizing when they’ve browned.

Greens

I can’t think of very many green fruits besides kiwi and green grapes. I tend to add both each time I make this. With the grapes, I like to slice them in two so that the grape juices get mixed in with the rest of the fruits. I’ve seen others make it without slicing them.

Blues, Indigos, and Violets

Lastly, I make sure to have blueberries in the salad dish. I’ve started going to a u-pick blueberry farm nearby, and so I have plenty of blueberries year round to add to the salad. Every now and then, you can find fresh blueberries at the market for a decent price as well.

All of this is based on personal preference, so you don’t have to add any fruit you don’t want to. Therefore, I rarely, if ever, add blackberries to my recipe. I do want to mention them, though, because a lot of other people do like to add them.

The Secret Ingredient

After your fruit is cleaned, chopped, and all added into one bowl, I give it a good stir, squint my eyes at it several times and make sure I have the right amount of color. Every now and then I add extras of whatever I feel like it needs more of.

Now you get to the unhealthy part. Seldom does a good crowd pleaser make it to the top of the “healthiest foods to eat this summer” and this recipe is no exception. The good news is I have two versions, and the second one is “healthy-er-ish”.

Less healthy easy fruit salad is half a can of lemonade concentrate and 1/4 cup of granulated sugar. Pour it on top, give the whole thing a good mix and refrigerate for at least an hour but no longer than three. That way you know you’ve got a good time for the fruit to cool and release some juices, but your salad isn’t soggy.

Most healthy version is to add lemon juice instead of the concentrate. I only do about 1/4 cup because I don’t want there to be an overpowering lemon flavor. You can use either lemon juice from a bottle or slice open two lemons and squeeze out the contents. You’re still gonna want to add sugar to pull the juice from the fruit.

Plop that puppy into the fridge before serving, just like the other version. When you take it out, if it doesn’t seem to be juicy enough, I’ve added a tiny bit of water to it before.

There You Have It!

This fruit salad is truly one of my very favorite summer side dish recipes. I love to have it along side my veggie pizza and a charcuterie board I’ve made. It pairs well with any summer outdoor cookout (think burgers, brats, and hotdogs) or indoors with my grilled chicken bruschetta. This dish is a pure crowd pleaser!