My easy fruit cocktail salad features a rainbow of different fruit and a sauce made with pineapple and vanilla pudding that is incredible! This is a fabulous summer side dish or dessert that can be made using fresh or canned fruit, it's delicious either way! Try a refreshing fruit cocktail salad at your next get together!
Easy Fruit Cocktail Salad
Fruit cocktail salad is an all-around summer classic. It always makes an appearance at BBQs, cookouts, potlucks, you name it!
This easy fruit cocktail salad with vanilla pudding sauce can be thrown together in no time and then left to chill until you're ready to serve! It truly is the ultimate quick summertime side dish or dessert!
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🥘 Ingredients
You can use fresh or canned fruit for this recipe! I used fresh this go around, but either will be delicious.
- Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix – 1 3.4-ounce box.
- Pineapple – 2 ½ cups fresh pineapple cut into chunks or use 15-16 ounces of canned pineapple. Reserve the juices from the fresh or canned pineapple.
- Mandarin Oranges – 2 cups peeled mandarin orange slices. 8 ounces of mandarin orange slices = 1 cup. Use around 15-16 ounces of canned mandarin oranges.
- Strawberries – 2 cups, fresh, cleaned, stem removed, and sliced.
- Red Seedless Grapes – 5 cups.
- Apples – 2 large apples, washed, cored, and cut into bite-sized chunks.
- Bananas – 2 large bananas, sliced.
Peaches or nectarines, pears, and cherries are also perfect additions to your fruit cocktail salad.
*Be sure to see the recipe card below for ingredients, amounts & instructions!*
🔪 How To Make A Fruit Cocktail Salad
It doesn't get much simpler than this easy fruit cocktail salad. You will need a knife and cutting board for cutting fruit, of course, then a small bowl, a large bowl, and a silicone spatula for mixing.
- Make sauce. In a small mixing bowl, combine ½ a cup of pineapple juice (reserved from your fresh or canned pineapple) with 3.4 ounces of vanilla pudding mix (*see note). Stir until the pudding mix is completely dissolved and set aside.
- Combine the fruit. Slice and prepare your fruit. Then, combine all the fruit (2 ½ cups fresh pineapple, 2 cups mandarin oranges, 2 cups strawberries, 5 cups red seedless grapes, 2 large apples, and 2 large bananas) in a very large mixing bowl. Pour the prepared pudding mixture over all of the fruit and mix gently to combine.
- Chill. Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving.
Serve this fruit cocktail salad any time you need to feed a crowd! Offer it up with some air fryer BBQ Little Smokies and loaded baked potato salad for an easy summer-worth spread that everyone will enjoy!
💠Angela's Pro Tips & Notes
- Always wash fruit prior to use to remove pesticide residue, dirt, and other germs or bacteria.
- If making in advance, wait to add bananas until right before serving. They won't refrigerate well for more than a day to my tastes.
- The pineapple juice can be supplemented with orange or lemon juice if desired.
- Mix some mini marshmallows in just before serving for an extra sweet treat!
- Storing: Store fruit salad cocktail covered or in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 2-3 days.
🥠More Delicious Fruit Recipes!
- Blueberry Tart
- Raspberry Crepes
- Strawberry Pineapple Lemonade
- Pineapple Sunshine Cake
- Roasted Berries
- No Bake Strawberry Cream Pie
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📖 Recipe Card
Fruit Cocktail Salad
Ingredients
- 3.4 oz instant vanilla pudding mix (1 3.4-ounce box)
- 2 ½ cups fresh pineapple (cut into chunks, reserve the juice from cutting your fresh pineapple or draining the canned chunks)
- 2 cups mandarin oranges (peeled and sliced)
- 2 cups strawberries (fresh, cleaned, stem removed, and sliced)
- 5 cups red seedless grapes
- 2 large apples (washed, cored, and cut into bite-sized chunks)
- 2 large bananas (sliced - *see note)
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, combine ½ a cup of pineapple juice reserved from your fresh or canned pineapple with the vanilla pudding mix (*see note). Stir until the pudding mix is completely dissolved, set aside.
- Slice and prepare your fruit. Then, combine all the fruit in a very large mixing bowl. Pour the prepared pudding mixture over all of the fruit and mix gently to combine.
- Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.
Notes
- Always wash fruit prior to use to remove pesticide residue, dirt, and other germs or bacteria.
- If making in advance, always wait to add bananas until right before serving. They won't refrigerate well for more than a day to my tastes.
- The pineapple juice can be supplemented with orange or lemon juice if desired.Â
- Mix some mini marshmallows in just before serving for an extra sweet treat!
- Store fruit salad cocktail covered or in an airtight container in the refrigerator and enjoy within 2-3 days.Â
- Each 6 ounces of pineapple chunks = 1 cup, and every 8 ounces of mandarin orange slices = 1 cup.
Susie says
How do you make this fruit salad, with canned fruit cocktail, please? Thank you.
Angela Latimer says
You have to convert the cups to ounces - the 2 1/2 cups pineapple is equal to a 20 ounce can of pineapple, etc. Overall the fruit totals 15.5 cups or roughly 124 ounces of canned fruit. Mix with the reserved pineapple juice and vanilla pudding mix as directed once you have your canned fruit drained and combined.