Italian Chopped Salad (CPK Copycat)

Colorful and vibrant italian chopped salad with wooden serving spoons in the bowl.

4.88 from 32 votes

This Italian Chopped Salad is a homemade twist on the California Pizza Kitchen favorite, packed with ham, chickpeas, tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, and lettuce, all tossed in zesty lemon dressing!

Prep Time30

Total Time30

Course: Salad

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Italian Chopped Salad

Servings: as a side

Author: Chelsea Lords

Cost: $8.12

Equipment

Wide-mouth jar or other sealable container

Ingredients

Salad

1 to 2 heads (4 cups) romaine lettuce see note 1
15 ounces chickpeas drained and rinsed
1 pint (2 cups) cherry tomatoes cut into quarters
1/2 cup red onion very thinly sliced
1 cup (4 ounces) chopped salami
1/2 cup chopped ham
1 cup (5 ounces) fresh mozzarella pearls halved
1/3 cup thinly sliced pepperoncini
10 to 12 large fresh basil leaves thinly sliced

Dressing (see note 2)

2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/3 cup olive oil
Salt and pepper

US - Metric

Instructions

Combine all dressing ingredients in a wide-mouth mason jar. Season to taste (I add 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper). Shake well and store in the fridge until ready to use.
Wash lettuce. Ensure lettuce is completely dry using a salad spinner. Cut into ribbons (roll up pieces into cigars and very thinly slice), then halve the ribbons.
Combine lettuce, chickpeas, tomatoes, red onion, salami, ham, mozzarella, pepperoncini, and chiffonade basil (see note 2). Toss to combine.
Shake dressing again before using. Only add dressing to the portion you’ll eat immediately (see note 3). Enjoy promptly—this salad doesn’t sit well once dressed.

Video

Notes

Note 1: Or use a mix of romaine and iceberg for variety and more crunch. Use 1/2 head of each.

Note 2: To chiffonade, stack basil leaves, roll into a cigar shape, and slice thinly to create ribbons. For shorter ribbons, cut each slice in half before unrolling.

Note 3: You likely won’t need all the dressing for this salad, but it’s better to have more than not enough. Once dressed, the salad should be eaten immediately. If meal prepping, keep the salad and dressing separate.

Storage: Store leftover dressing in the fridge for up to a week. Let it return to room temperature and shake to remix before using.

Nutrition