5 Cup Salad, also known as Ambrosia Salad, is a sweet fruit salad made with just 5 ingredients. Your guests and your family will love this vintage recipe.
5 Cup Salad is an easy fruit salad that got its name because it’s made with approximately one cup of each of the five ingredients.
This recipe was particularly popular in the 1950s, and many readers have shared that their grandma or aunt or mom made this over the years, usually for the holidays. Variations of this recipe (with oranges and coconut) date back to the 1800s!
In certain parts of the country, 5 Cup Salad is also known as Ambrosia Salad. Ambrosia means “food of the gods”, referring to Greek mythology. I can see why—it has the best combination of flavors and textures! Here are a few tips for making it:
- Be sure to drain the pineapple and mandarin oranges well. This prevents the salad from becoming runny.
- Sweetened coconut is best for this recipe—it nicely contrasts with the tangy sour cream.
- This salad is endlessly customizable. See “Variations” below for ideas!
Jump to:
Ingredients
- Mini marshmallows are best for this. If you only have large marshmallows, you can cut them into quarters using kitchen shears.
- Canned crushed pineapple and canned mandarin oranges are the base of the salad. You can also use pineapple tidbits or small pineapple chunks if you prefer.
- Sweetened shredded coconut adds sweetness and crunch. I don’t recommend using unsweetened coconut.
- This recipe calls for one cup of each ingredient, except for the sour cream (you’ll need ¾ of a cup instead). I tried it both ways and prefer the ¾ cup version. You can use either regular or reduced fat.
How to Make 5 Cup Salad (Ambrosia)
- Drain the mandarin oranges. Drain the crushed pineapple but reserve 1 tablespoon of pineapple juice. Mix the pineapple juice with the sour cream.
- Add the 1 cup of pineapple (drained), 1 cup of mandarin oranges (drained), 1 cup of mini marshmallows, and 1 cup of shredded coconut.
- Stir gently until combined. Refrigerate the salad for at least one hour, or up to 8 hours. The refrigeration time allows the flavors to combine and intensify.
- Serve! You can reserve a few mandarin orange slices for the top if you like.
Variations
- Replace the mini marshmallows with pastel colored marshmallows (also known as rainbow marshmallows, “fun mallows”, or fruit flavored marshmallows)
- Use pineapple tidbits instead of crushed pineapple
- Use fruit cocktail (drained) in place of the pineapple or mandarin oranges
- Add maraschino cherries (drained) in place of the pineapple or mandarin oranges
- Stir in ½ cup of chopped pecans
- Replace the sour cream with whipped cream, Greek yogurt, or 8 oz of softened cream cheese
- For a sweeter salad, you can replace the sour cream with whipped topping (like Cool Whip) or vanilla yogurt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Snip the marshmallows into quarters using kitchen shears to turn them into mini marshmallows. There are 8 large marshmallows in 1 cup.
You can use full-fat Greek yogurt in place of sour cream for this recipe. It’s not as traditional, but it’ll still be delicious!
You can replace the sour cream in this recipe with 1 (8 oz) block of softened cream cheese. Make sure that it’s softened completely, otherwise it’ll be impossible to mix it with the fruit without smashing the fruit.
More old fashioned fruit salad recipes
Whether it’s a side dish or a dessert, I LOVE a sweet salad. Old Fashioned Pistachio Salad and Taffy Apple Salad are two other favorites in our family!
And Snickers Salad always makes me laugh—it’s the furthest thing from a “salad” but GOSH is it good! Glorified Rice is another side dish from the 1950s and before. It’s surprisingly delicious!
Or if you’re after another salad made with lots of fruit, this Creamy Fruit Salad is made with a sour cream, orange juice, and honey dressing—it complements the fruit perfectly.
📖 Recipe
5 Cup Salad (Ambrosia)
Ingredients
- 1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple
- 1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges
- 1 cup mini marshmallows
- 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- ¾ cup sour cream (regular or light)
Instructions
- Drain mandarin oranges. Pour 1 tablespoon of pineapple juice out of the can and into a large bowl, then drain the crushed pineapple. Discard any additional pineapple juice, or save for another use.
- Add sour cream to the reserved 1 tablespoon of pineapple juice. Stir to combine.
- Add the mandarin oranges, coconut, marshmallows, and crushed pineapple to the sour cream mixture. Use a spatula to gently fold all of the ingredients together.
- Place the salad in the refrigerator for at least one hour, or up to 8 hours, to allow the flavors to blend.
- When ready to serve, stir the salad and transfer it to a large bowl. Garnish with additional shredded coconut, if desired. Serve immediately.
One Comment