10-Minute Keto Antipasto Salad

I love pizza, pasta, and just about any Italian dish, but sometimes I seriously need a break from carbs. In my search for lighter but still satisfying options, I ended up with this 10-minute keto antipasto salad. You get all those amazing, savory flavors – the salami, the peppers, the Provolone, but without the carb coma!

This has become one of my go-to recipes when it’s too hot to cook or I’m too tired to deal with the stove. It comes together faster than you can order a pizza!

Trust me, there’s no faster way to get a restaurant-quality Italian meal at home.

And sure, this isn’t one of those boring diet salads, but it is low-carb yet very filling, and meal-prep friendly.

🥬 Ingredients

Quickly and easily throw the ingredients together in a matter of minutes. It’s great to eat for lunch, dinner, or as an appetizer to your favorite meal.

✅Romaine lettuce – The main ingredient is romaine lettuce. It’s light, refreshing, and it has lots of potassium, vitamin C, calcium, folate, and magnesium.

Use other varieties of lettuce too, but we tend to love romaine for this recipe.

✅Cheese – Use a combination of mozzarella and parmesan cheeses. It’s incredible and gives the salad tons of flavor.

✅Pepperoni and salami – Adding different varieties of cured meats to the salad makes it even more delightful.

✅Artichoke hearts

✅Black olives

✅Grape tomatoes

✅Red onions

✅Italian dressing

🍽️ Instructions

You guys! This seriously couldn’t be any easier. There are two steps, and it tastes like you ordered it in a fancy restaurant. You’ll be so glad you tried this, and it is sure to become a household favorite. 

👉Step 1: Chop the lettuce, red onion, and artichoke hearts. Slice the pepperoni and salami. Combine all of the ingredients into a large salad bowl. 

👉Step 2: Drizzle with your favorite Italian dressing to taste and dig in! 

See, I told you it was super simple to make this! This is a delicious appetizer to serve up.

📌Note: To make this vegetarian, skip the pepperoni and salami. I added a few extra artichoke hearts and black olives as they are my favorites!

🍱 Meal Prep Instructions

If you are like me, you want to meal prep so you can save yourself time and energy later. Plus, it’s a great way to save money.

Because if you have food ready to go, you aren’t tempted to hit a fast-food drive-thru when you come home from work unexpectedly tired. Here are a few steps you can take to have everything prepped and ready:

✔️Have the lettuce, artichoke hearts, red onion, salami, and pepperoni chopped and ready to go and stored in sealed containers in the fridge. 

✔️Put the lettuce in a larger container that you can also fit the other ingredients in as well. 

✔️Mix together the salami and pepperoni and place them in a small container with a lid, or put them in the bowl with the lettuce. 

✔️Put the artichoke hearts, pepperoncini, and black olives in a small covered bowl. 

✔️Mix the cheeses together.

This antipasto salad will last up to 5 days in the fridge assembled or unassembled.  Keep the dressing off of the salad until you’re ready to serve to prevent the veggies and the lettuce from getting soggy.

🥬 Fresh Or Canned Artichoke Hearts?

I prefer to use canned artichoke hearts. They are easy to work with, and it doesn’t take any extra effort on your part. If you wanted to use fresh artichokes, that’s more than fine.

You would need to cut the heart out of the center and boil it for at least 15 minutes. Add a few lemon wedges to the water when you are boiling the artichoke hearts.

It gives them a bit more zesty flavor that is perfect for this Italian salad recipe. 

🍝 Is There Pasta In Antipasto?

I know when you read the word “antipasto,” it immediately makes you think of pasta salad, but this is a traditional Italian recipe that doesn’t contain pasta.

Antipasto is served as a starter in Italian meals, and it’s known for its cured meats and tangy, flavorful ingredients.

🌶️ Fun Variations

One thing I love about this besides the flavor and how gorgeous it looks is how easy it is to customize it! Add in all your favorite veggies, and it will be perfect for your tastes! Here are a few variations and ideas for you to try:

🔸Prosciutto – If you are a fan of prosciutto, it just makes sense that you may want to add some to the dish! It’s easy to work with!

🔸Mushrooms – Using mushrooms in an Italian dish just makes sense. Canned or fresh mushrooms (you will need to sauté these first) – they both work.

🔸Tomatoes – I love adding fresh tomatoes, especially in the summer months, when they are in season. It adds a whole new element that I think you will enjoy. Tiny grape tomatoes are perfect for this dish.

🔸Pickled red pepper – My mouth is watering thinking about eating some pickled red pepper in my salad next time. Try it and see for yourself, but I think it’s delicious. 

🔸Provolone cheese – I feel like you can never have too much cheese in a salad. Adding provolone gives it an extra scrumptious flavor that is simply amazing. 

❓ FAQ

🍽️ More Salad Recipes

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