Pear and Radicchio Salad With Blue Cheese

By David Tanis

Updated Dec. 9, 2025

Pear and Radicchio Salad With Blue Cheese
David Malosh for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich.
Total Time
15 minutes
Prep Time
5 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Rating
5(121)
Comments
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This is the quintessential salad for autumn and winter, stunningly colorful. For the best-tasting result, look for pears that are ripe but still firm. But if soft pears are all you have on hand — or can find, substitute crisp apples. The crunch here is key.

Featured in: A Winter Dinner Menu That Brings the Sunshine

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings
  • 1shallot, finely diced
  • 2tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper
  • 3tablespoons walnut oil or extra-virgin olive oil 
  • 1small head radicchio, leaves separated and torn into wide strips if desired
  • 3 or 4pears, such as red Bartlet or Comice, ripe but firm, peeled if desired 
  • ¼cup pomegranate seeds (from about ½ pomegranate)
  • 4ounces blue cheese, such as Roquefort, Gorgonzola or Stilton 
  • 1teaspoon mild honey, for drizzling (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

218 calories; 13 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 23 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 14 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 404 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Make the vinaigrette: Put shallot and vinegar in a small bowl and let soften for about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Whisk in oil. Taste and adjust.

  2. Step 2

    Put radicchio leaves in a low-sided salad bowl and the pear slices in a small bowl.

  3. Step 3

    Sprinkle radicchio very lightly with salt. Add about 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette and toss. Use remaining vinaigrette to dress pears. Arrange pear slices over the radicchio, and scatter the pomegranate seeds on top.

  4. Step 4

    Thinly slice the cheese, and arrange on top. If desired, drizzle with honey.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
121 user ratings
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Comments

Anna

Ugh, I love David Tanis. No trends, no gimmicks, just really good food. A lovely salad

LLBR

This is an outstanding salad. Didn't have pomegranate seeds so we added chopped toasted walnuts and a drizzle of honey. Cannot wait to make it again.

rb

This sounds fantastic, love all three of the ingredients for salads. I'd add pistachios, sunflower seeds or pepitas for extra crunch. This would go well over warm grains if you wanted to add heft to the salad

gigi

very tasty salad. it took several weeks for me to find radicchio; then i could not find the arils and didn't have time to break down a pomegranate, so i added some walnuts. nice combination - i see that someone else did this, too. next time i think i will try black walnuts.

Pat K

I was expecting to love this salad, as I love all the ingredients, especially the pairing of a juicy pear with bleu cheese. However, I found the sweetness of the balsamic vinegar overpowered and interfered with the pear-cheese alchemy. I would use a different dressing next time.

Jill

This is a wonderful salad. I also used walnuts because I didn’t get pomegranate. I will do that next time!

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