An appetizer table for a good party isn't complete without a vegetable tray! This homemade veggie tray is way better than the pre-made one in stores. Choose your favorite fresh crisp vegetables, then make some homemade ranch dressing, and serve it up to your party guests.
Easy Vegetable Tray Recipe
A veggie platter has a way of transcending holidays, seasons and parties. Sure, maybe we're not eating veggies "in season" sometimes, but every party I go to has a vegetable tray — no matter the time of year!
It's something easy that really everyone will eat. Maybe the picky eaters won't choose a tomato or cucumber, but dip a vegetable in enough sauce and it's unrecognizable and totally delicious.
Having some healthy foods at parties is always beneficial too. Don't get me wrong — I love jalapeño popper dip and pizza muffins as much as the next person. But having an easy, healthier appetizer always makes me feel a bit better about my plate.
If you're not a cook, this vegetable platter is the perfect thing for you to volunteer to bring to the next party. All you need are raw veggies and a creamy dip. An easy vegetable tray is a party staple and crowd-pleaser!
And yes, you could buy one of these trays! But who knows how long they've been on the shelf. When you go the DIY route — with homemade ranch dressing to boot — you can be sure the veggies are fresh and pick-and-choose the ones you like best.
Why You'll Love this Recipe
I'm sure we all have reasons to love a good crudite platter! A few reasons I love snacks like this are:
- Game day parties, holiday parties, and special occasions always need some healthy options. So this is an easy way to ensure there is something relatively healthy on ever party appetizer table.
- You can create manageable sizes of platters for any size party you are planning. If you have an large party, then easily create an extra large platter with a variety of flavorful dips. A small party just needs a small platter with a tasty dip!
- They're easily customizable. So you can use whatever vegetables and dip that you want and turn a vegetable tray into a platter of your favorites.
What to Put on a Veggie Tray
A vegetable platter is typically just made of crisp raw veggies and a delicious dip or two. You can add cheese and crackers if you want, but then that kind of morphs the platter into more of charcuterie board. Which is perfectly ok! A few good vegetables for these platters are:
- cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes
- broccoli florets
- cauliflower florets
- sliced english cucumbers
- carrot sticks or baby carrots
- celery sticks
- sliced bell peppers
- mini peppers
- snap peas
Need some ideas for different dips? Here's a few tasty additions to dunk these crunchy veggies in:
- ranch dressing
- guacamole
- french onion dip
- whipped feta dip
- fresh hummus
- jalapeño ranch
- sour cream dip
- buffalo chicken dip
How to Build an Easy Vegetable Tray
It is easiest to make a good vegetable tray on a large platter or even a sheet pan.
Place the ranch dip, or other favorite dip, on the center of the platter.
Then, slice and cut fresh vegetables and arrange them around the bowl or bowls of veggie dip. Make sure you have a variety of vegetables so that there is something for everyone on the platter. It's also good to have a variety because the rainbow of colors is very pretty!
Serve the vegetable tray immediately, or cover it well with plastic wrap and then store in the fridge until needed.
How to Store a Veggie Tray
If you have any leftovers after your party, you can either transfer them to an airtight container and cover the platter tightly in plastic wrap. Then store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Hot Tip: Pre-cut vegetables from the grocery store often do not last as long as cutting fresh vegetables yourself. If you need the platter to stay fresh for awhile, then cut your own veggies!
What to Serve with a Vegetable Platter
There is a myriad of different appetizers that pair well with a vegetable tray. You can make a fruit tray with a tasty fruit dip that would look so pretty next to a fresh veggie tray!
A fresh tomato tart with puff pastry also pair well with a vegetable tray. Want another crunchy appetizer to serve with these crisp veggies? Then make easy crostini and top with tomato bruschetta!
Fresh pita chips with yummy dip and crispy crackers are always good pairing with veggies too!
Tips for Success
Here are some tips and tricks for making this recipe:
- Need a way to keep your platter cold during a party? Then fill a pan with ice water and place the veggie tray on top of it. It will keep the vegetables cold and crispy, which also makes their flavor bettter!
- If you are serving the vegetable platter immediately, then make sure the veggies have been refrigerated before chopping. Cold veggies are much better than room temp veggies.
- At minimum, use at 3-4 different raw vegetables on a platter. The more variety, the better!
- Garnish your tray with fresh herbs for a pretty presentation!
FAQ
It is most often much more affordable to make your own vegetable tray. Buying trays with pre-cut vegetables typically raises the prices because the work to cut the veggies is already done. Cutting your own veggies really will only add a few minutes onto the preparation process and will save money!
You do not have to blanch veggies when making a vegetable tray. However, you can if you'd like. Most veggie platters are made with fresh, cold, raw vegetables and are easy to store in the fridge to keep cold!
More Vegetable Recipes
If you make and love this recipe, please leave a ★★★★★ review below! It means so much to me when you try my recipes, and I'd love to know how it goes. Please leave a comment below if you have any questions.
Easy Vegetable Tray
Make an easy vegetable tray whenever you need a quick and healthy appetizer. It's a great simple snack too!
Ingredients
Vegetables
- 10-12 carrot sticks or baby carrots
- 1 cup broccoli florets
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 8-10 celery sticks
Homemade Ranch Dressing
- ¾ cup high-quality mayonnaise
- ¾ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 bunch chives (approximately ¾ ounce)
- 1 bunch parsley (approximately ¾ ounce)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Chop carrot sticks, cucumbers, celery, and broccoli florets after cleaning the veggies well.
- Combine ranch dressing ingredients in a bowl and use an immersion blender or food processor to blend together
- Add more salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the ranch dressing into a small bowl and place it onto the center of a serving platter.
- Arrange fresh vegetables around the fresh dip.
- Serve immediately or wrap in plastic wrap and store in the fridge until ready to serve!
Notes
This recipe serve 4-6 people. If you plan to serve a large crowd, double or triple the amount of veggies the recipe calls for. You can add different vegetables and extra dip to the platter too!
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 363Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 576mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 8gSugar: 14gProtein: 5g
Kelsey says
This really helped me put together a lovely veggie tray for Sunday Night Football. I never know exactly what to put on them or how to organize it and your pictures really helped. The homemade ranch dressing was a hit, too!
Leslie says
The homemade dressing was a hit. I'll never used bottled again for vegetable trays.
Irene says
If you're not a cooking enthusiast, trust me, this Easy Vegetable Tray is foolproof. Just grab your favorite veggies and whip up the dip. Cheers to a veggie-filled party success! 🥦🍅🥕
Holly says
That homemade ranch is the bomb! Thanks for the recipe