14 Healthy Greens Salad
Rated From Best to Worst
You know that eating salad is good for your health — but not all salad greens are created equal. When selecting the base for your salad, go for the shadiest greens you can find for the most nutritional bang in your bowl.
Here, we rank greens from the absolute best for your health to the nutritionally blah.
1 Kale | Contains Vitamins, Phytonutrients, and Calcium
Portion: 1 cup cooked
 |
Carbs: 6 gram (g)
Protein: 3.5g
Fiber: 5g
Calories: 42
It also holds 23 percent of your daily requirement for vitamin-C, which is important for the growth and repair of all tissues in the body, and helps maintain a healthy immune system; and 412 percent of your daily requirement for vitamin K, which generates proteins essential for normal blood clotting, build stronger bones and keeps against osteoporosis.
While slightly higher in calories than other greens, cooked kale provides about 14 percent of your daily requirement for calcium, which is essential for building and maintaining strong bones.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Kale is enjoyable raw or cooked, It's simple to prepare sautéed with some onions and garlic, wonderful baked into ‘chips,’ and makes a great base for a salad.
For the salad, if you chop the kale into small pieces or allow it to sit in the dressing for a little bit before eating (or both), it becomes tenderer. Kale also pairs well with roasted squash, nuts, seeds, and beans. “However you serve kale, just be sure to remove the tough ribbing first.
2 Spinach | Has Vitamins, Iron, and Folate
Portion: 1 cup raw
 |
Carbs: 1g
Protein: 0.9g
Fiber: 0.7g
Calories: 7
Why it’s Healthy; Modest in flavor, Spinach is anything but when it comes to nutrition? The most nutritious salad greens are usually the darkest in color, and the dark, lively color of spinach hints at its nutritional profile:
1 cup has 16% of your daily requirement of vitamin A, and all of your daily vitamin K, When spinach is cooked, it’s an excellent source of iron more than one-third of your daily requirement, vitamin C, 20 percent of your daily requirement, and fiber, which is essential for digestive health.Spinach also contains more folate than most salad greens, which helps convert the food you eat into energy and produces healthy white and red blood cells. Pair spinach with balsamic, strawberries, and a sprinkle of feta cheese for a flavor-packed salad.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Spinach also makes a great salad base, about having spinach on hand is that it can easily be combined into so many dishes without ‘taking over’ flavor-wise. It’s excellent stirred into an omelet, on top of a sandwich, and sautéed in olive oil.
3 Beet Greens | Give You Vitamin K
Portion: 1 cup raw
 |
Carbs: 1.7g
Protein: 0.8g
Fiber: 1.4g
Calories: 8
Why they’re Healthy; While most people throw the beet greens away or buy beets with the greens already detached, they’re really very nutritious, beet greens contain 13 percent of your daily requirement of vitamin A and all of your daily requirement for vitamin K.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Beet Greens can be eaten raw or prepared in the same way as spinach or kale, by sautéing them with olive oil, onions, and garlic.4 Swiss Chard | Has Plenty of Vitamins A, C,
and K
Portion: 1 cup raw
 |
Carbs: 1.4g
Protein: 0.7g
Fiber: 0.6g
Calories: 7
Why it’s Healthy; Swiss Chard may be the strongest green you're not yet eating. A comparative of the beet family, Chard tastes similar to spinach, and it’s rising in popularity.
While it does have a higher sodium count than other salad greens with 77g per cup, it also has more than double your daily requirement for vitamin K, 12% of your daily requirement of vitamin A, and 12% of your daily requirement of vitamin-C, Reflect combining chard with a few other greens to make your own mix.Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Swiss Chard has a distinct flavor that not everybody appreciates, it tastes great sautéed with onions and garlic, and mixes into a quiche or frittata well. If you've tried it one way and didn't like it, try cooking it a different way — you may be surprised!
5 Dandelion Greens | Contain Vitamins,
Calcium, and Iron
Portion: 1 cup
 |
Carbs: 5.1g
Fiber: 1.9g
Calories: 25
Why they’re Healthy; Dandelion Greens are so much more than not only do they contain about 20% of your daily requirement for vitamin C, vitamin B6 which helps the body convert food into fuel, absorb fats and proteins, maintain proper working of nerves, and produce red blood cells, calcium, and iron, they’re also high in prebiotic fiber, which helps to feed the good bacteria in the microbiome.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Dandelion greens are outstanding in a salad, and can also, be sautéed and enjoyed warm.6 Mustard Greens | Provide Vitamin C and
Folate
Protein: 1.6g
Fiber: 1.8g
Carbs: 2.6g
Calories: 15
Why they’re Healthy; One cup of Mustard Greens gives you almost one-half of your daily requirement of vitamin C, all of your daily vitamin K, as well as folate.
7 Collard Greens | Good Source of Vitamin C
Portion: 1 cup raw
 |
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 2g
Fiber: 1.4g
Calories: 12
Why they’re Healthy; Collard Greens give you almost your daily needs of vitamin K. They’re also a good source of vitamin C 14 percent of your daily requirement, and have a small amount of vitamin-E an antioxidant.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: If you’re not used to preparing collard greens. You’ll be surprised by how easy they are to cook.Just sauté them in extra virgin olive oil and allow them to simmer for about 45 minutes. Collard greens take longer to cook than other greens, but are worth the wait! They taste great raw, too.
8 Watercress | Has Vitamin C and Vitamin K
Portion 1 cup raw
 |
Protein: 0.8g
Fiber: 0.2g
Carbs: 0.4g
Calories: 4
Why it’s Healthy; Popular in Europe, but don't undervalue the power of watercress in your diet. It's more nutrient-rich than romaine and leaf lettuce, just 1 cup achieves almost three-quarters of your daily requirement of vitamin K, and is a good source of vitamin C 16 percent of your daily requirement.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Watercress makes a delicious addition to a salad, and if you love its spicy flavor, can even be enjoyed alone with just a touch of oil and vinegar. Watercress can also be crushed into a soup for an extra dose of flavor and nutrition.Portion 2 cups raw
 |
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 3g
Fiber: 2g
Calories: 16
Why it’s Healthy; Romaine Lettuce's gloomy green color, long leaves, and crunchy touch make it a very popular salad base. Two cups of romaine fulfill about one-third of your daily needs for folate, almost one-half of your daily vitamin A, and almost all of your vitamin K, to increase the nutritional value of your salad, romaine mix with some kale or spinach.
Prepackaged salad green mixtures offer a wide variety of nutrients without you having to buy large amounts of each type of green. Tossing your salad greens with a small amount of healthy oil is also a great idea, as the oil adds a dose of healthy fat and flavor. It can also recover your body’s preoccupation with fat-soluble vitamins from the salad.Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Romaine lettuce has a great crunch and is delicious served in a salad or on top of a sandwich. Romaine can even be lightly grilled for a unique, slightly charred flavor.
10 Lettuce | Gives You Almost All Your
Daily Vitamin A
Portion 2 cups
 |
Protein: 1.3g
Fiber: 1.4g
Carbs: 2.7g
Calories: 20
Why it’s Healthy; Leaf lettuce, whether red or green, looks lively and cheery on your plate and has a slight taste, making it a great choice for children and picky eaters. Just 2 cups of green leaf lettuce give you about 80% of your daily vitamin A.
However, like many salad greens, it’s a little low in fiber, so bulk up your salad by adding other high-fiber veggies such as broccoli, carrots, and legumes.Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Most people know that red and green lettuce can be served in a salad or on top of a sandwich, but it’s also delicious sautéed, steamed, or grilled.
11 Butter Lettuce |Good Source of
Vitamin A
Portion 2 cups
 |
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 2g
Fiber: 1g
Calories: 10
Why it’s Healthy; Butter lettuce — including both Bibb and Boston varieties — has a lenient, buttery touch and a slightly sweet taste. It has a strongly folded head that is bright green on the outside, yellow on the inside and is often sold with the roots attached to preserve freshness. The butter lettuce is low in sodium, a good source of vitamin A 70% of your daily needs, and has small amounts of calcium and iron.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Also great as a salad or on top of a sandwich, the size of these lettuce leaves makes them a great bread spare for anyone looking to go low-carb. You can make an old-style sandwich and serve it on butter lettuce, or even roll the ingredients inside the leaves to create a sort of ‘wrap’ in place of a tortilla.12 Endive Leaves |Good Source of Folate
Portion 1 cup raw
 |
Protein: 0.6g
Carbs: 1.7g
Fiber: 1.6g
Calories: 8
Why it’s Healthy; Endive leaves are an additional good source of folate, with 1 cup fulfilling about 18% of your daily requirement.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Endive is brilliantly chopped and served in a salad. Because of its firm touch, endive can be served in separate leaves with dip, or as a small roll-up.13 Arugula Tastes Great | but Lacks
Nutrients
Portion 2 cups raw
 |
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 1.5g
Fiber: 0.6g
Calories: 10
Why it’s Healthy; if you’re observing for a peppery flavor to spice up your salad, arugula is the perfect base element. However, it ranks near the bottom nutrition-wise.
Arugula is a tasty choice with some vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron, but it just doesn't measure up to other greens for any of these nutrients. Arugula mix with more nutrient-dense choices to push up the flavor and the antioxidant power of your salad.Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Arugula has a strong, spicy flavor that some people can't get enough of, it makes for a great salad all by itself. If the flavor is a bit strong for you, adding a small amount to a salad or a few leaves on top of a sandwich.
14 Iceberg Lettuce | Low in Calories and
Nutrients
Portion 2 cups raw
 |
Protein: 1g
Carbs: 3g
Fiber: 1.4g
Calories: 16
Why it’s Healthy; Iceberg Lettuce may be the greatest popular of all the salad greens, but it's definitely not the healthiest base you can choose. While the low-calorie count is similar with other greens, the nutrient totals are not,
Still, the crispy and low-cost green doesn't have to be removed from the menu completely. If it’s the only way that you enjoy a salad or it’s what’s being obtainable at a dinner you’re attending, then go for it and enjoy it as a nice contributor to your daily fluid needs.However, if you like other, more nutrient-rich salad greens and they’re accessible, you’d be better off nutritionally choosing one of those.
Meal Prep Inspiration Ideas: Iceberg Lettuce can be used just like butter lettuce as a salad, on top of a sandwich, or as a bread replacement
Usually not recommend iceberg lettuce because there's not much nutritional value to it — to just have a glass of water instead.
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