Catalan Salad Recipe: Traditional Spanish Sausage Salad 2026

Catalan salad is a traditional dish that was eaten by payeses, the farm workers of Catalonia, who built it from fresh garden vegetables and the cured sausages typical of the region. It is a simple, bright starter that comes together in about ten minutes and needs no cooking at all.

The heart of the dish is lettuce, onion and ripe tomato, dressed with extra virgin olive oil, salt and vinegar. What makes it Catalan is the sausage: bull blanc, bull negre, catalana and a piece of fuet are sliced and scattered over the top, turning a plain green salad into something hearty and full of character.

There is plenty of room to make it your own. Hard-boiled egg, radishes, grated carrot or cucumber slices all fit right in, and the sausages can be swapped depending on what you have on hand, including white or egg butifarra and even cooked ham.

Ingredients for Catalan Salad

This makes 2 servings as a starter.

• Half a head of green lettuce (trocadero, romaine or escarole)
• Half an onion (white, spring onion or shallot)
• 1 red tomato
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• Salt
• 50 g bull blanc
• 50 g bull negre
• 50 g catalana
• A piece of Catalan fuet (espetec, secallona or longaniza)
• 1 tablespoon olives, to taste (green or black)

How to Make Catalan Salad Step by Step

1. Wash and arrange the lettuce

First, wash half a head of green lettuce well and separate the leaves. Shake them well, spin them or drain them so they are completely dry, then spread them over a large plate or serving platter.

2. Slice the onion

Peel half an onion and cut it into thin slices, then arrange them over the lettuce.

3. Add the tomato and dress the salad

Wash and cut 1 red tomato into thick slices and distribute them on the plate. Make the dressing by mixing or emulsifying 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil with 1 teaspoon of vinegar and salt in a jar with a lid. Pour this dressing over the salad.

4. Add the sausages and olives

Next, distribute the chosen sausages over the salad. Here that means 50 g of bull blanc, 50 g of bull negre, 50 g of catalana, a piece of finely sliced fuet and 1 tablespoon of olives to taste.

5. Serve right away

Serve the Catalan salad immediately so you can enjoy it freshly made.

Tips for the Best Catalan Salad

Keep the lettuce crisp

Dry the leaves thoroughly after washing and dress the salad only at the last moment. If the dressing sits on the lettuce too long, it wilts and loses the fresh crunch that makes this starter so appealing.

Choose and vary the sausages

Traditional Catalan sausages are what give this salad its identity: bull blanc is similar to a thick butifarra, bull negre resembles morcilla because it also contains pork blood, catalana is made from lean pork, tripe and spices, and fuet adds a firmer, drier bite. Feel free to swap in white or egg butifarra, or even cooked ham, depending on what you have.

Add extra vegetables

The base of lettuce, onion and tomato welcomes additions like hard-boiled egg, radishes, grated carrot or cucumber slices. Add them along with the other fresh ingredients so everything is coated evenly with the oil, salt and vinegar dressing.

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Even More Tasty Recipes to Cook for the Family

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