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This Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing, is the fruit salad to beat all others! With fresh seasonal fruit, and a sweet and tangy dressing, it is light, refreshing, and incredibly simple to make.
Looking for more recipes showcasing fresh fruit? Don't miss Blackberry Crisp, Mango Smoothie, Homemade Fruit Roll-Ups, and Pineapple Mango Salsa.
Kristen's Keys for Making the Best Fruit Salad
A good fruit salad isn't complicated, it just comes down to picking the right fruit and letting it shine. The following tips will help ensure you do just that.
- Select fresh, seasonal fruit. In-season fruit is naturally sweeter and more affordable, which is always helpful when you're feeding a crowd.
- The fruit should be ripe, yet firm. Make sure fruit is ripe, but still firm. You want sweet and juicy, not soft and falling apart. Overripe fruit will turn your salad mushy pretty quickly.
- Variety gives you better flavor and texture. A mix of berries, melon, grapes, pineapple, mango, or kiwi works beautifully every time.
- Let chill for at least 30 minutes. That lets the dressing and fruit mingle together, enhancing the overall flavor.
How to Make a Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing
A simple dressing brings out the natural sweetness of the fruit without overpowering it. Finishing the salad fresh mint is optional, but does make it feel a extra special.
Step One: Prepare Fruit Salad Dressing
Add the honey to a small bowl, then zest the lime directly over it. If the limes feel firm, microwave them for 20-30 seconds to help release more juice. Slice them open, squeeze the juice into the bowl, and whisk to combine.
Step Two: Prepare Fruit
Wash all fruit well and dry it thoroughly. If need, peel, then chop into bite-sized pieces.
Step Three: Combine and Chill
Pour the dressing over the fruit and gently toss to combine. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes to let the fruit absorb the flavors of the dressing.
Step Four: Garnish and Serve
Right before serving, sprinkle ribbons of fresh mint over the fruit, give it a light toss, and dig in.
Recipe FAQs
Avoid canned fruit and frozen fruit, as either can water down the salad quickly. I also recommend avoiding fruit that browns, like apples, bananas, and pears.
Yes! For best results, serve within 12 hours of preparation. The fruit will still be good up to 24 hours, but it may release more juices over time.
Dry your fruit well after washing, avoid overly ripe fruit, and serve within 12 hours. Those steps make a noticeable difference.
Serving Suggestions
This fruit salad is suited to serving for Easter brunch, summer cookouts, potlucks, and more! Check out some of my favorite menus below.
- A Brunch to Remember: Pair with hash brown breakfast casserole, classic quiche, blueberry coffee cake, and/or French toast casserole,
- Summer Cookouts: Serve alongside burgers, crockpot pulled pork, or grilled shrimp along with potato salad, Antipasto pasta salad, and creamy coleslaw, for a summer cookout menu that everyone will love.
- Potluck Gatherings: This fruit salad is one of my go-to dishes for potlucks. Just like Homemade Baked Beans, BLT pasta salad, and Texas Sheet Cake, it is a hit with any crowd!
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Fruit Salad with Honey Lime Dressing
Ingredients
Honey Lime Dressing
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 teaspoon lime zest, ~1 lime
- 3 tablespoons lime juice, ~2 limes
Fruit Salad
- 3 cups fresh strawberries, stemmed, hulled, and halved
- 1 pint fresh blueberries
- 4 medium kiwi, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 cups seedless red grapes, halved
- 3 medium mango, peeled, cored, and diced (about 2 cups)
- 5 mint leaves, optional
Instructions
- Prepare Honey Lime Dressing. Combine 1 teaspoon lime zest, 3 tablespoons lime juice, and 3 tablespoons honey together in a small mixing bowl until well incorporated. Set it aside to use on fruit salad. *Tip zest the lime BEFORE cutting open to juice.
- Wash, Dry, and Chop. Wash and dry the fruit, even if you plan to peel the fruit. If needed, peel the fruit and cut into small bite-sized pieces. Aim for each piece to be about the size of a blueberry.
- Combine. In a large mixing bowl, combine the prepared fruit with the prepared dressing.
- Chill. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, but no longer than 24 hours prior to serving.
- Serve. Right before serving, chiffonade 5 mint leaves by stacking the leaves on top of each other, rolling them into a cigar-like shape, and then slice the leaves into thin ribbons. Add the prepared fruit salad and gently toss to combine. Transfer the fruit salad into a serving bowl and serve immediately.
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published in 2022 and updated in 2026.
This fruit salad was absolutely delicious! Cut the fruit the day before added the dressing 8 hours prior, and the mint 30 minutes prior to serving the salad. The fruit salad was refreshing and yummy. The salad was liked by young and old alike at our 4th July BBQ.
I adore hearing this, Laura! Thank you so much for sharing.
nice fruit salad
It feels like I am making this every week! My family loves fruit, so I love keeping a bowl of this in the fridge & they can grab some any time they want.
Wonderful! I am happy to hear your family is enjoying so much.
Delicious and easy! I was going to make a fruit salad, but my strawberries weren't quite as sweet as I'd like and was thinking it needed something to sweeten it. Just then,my brain pinged and your recent email came floating up from the foggy recesses of my memory (I've been very tired this week so I'm as surprised as you!) to save the day! I had to use agave and bottled lime juice, but it turned out so good! I used a melon medley bowl from the store, cotton candy grapes, blueberries and strawberries.
Yay! So happy this fruit salad worked out well for you.
There's nothing better than a refreshing fruit salad on a hot summer day. This tastes AMAZING and was perfect for our weekend pool party.
Thanks for sharing Erin! This is a super dish for pool parties!
This is the dish of summer to me. I love having this at every get together!
Awesome! I am so glad you enjoy it so much Katie!
Wow! it's like a treasure salad. You add all the best possible ingredients for a salad to make it super healthy.