Layered Chicken Salad
A 30-minute chicken dinner loaded with fresh vegetables and feta cheese that tastes absolutely delicious!
I love dinners that come together so easily, like this one. This recipe is based on a chicken dinner I make for myself AT LEAST once a month. I especially make this when I need a detox dinner. Something to just refresh my gut and clean away any toxins. The chicken is the star, but the vegetables you layer in the pan amplify the chicken’s flavor. This recipe is about using your favorite salad mix-ins, so let this recipe be your guide. The fresh cucumber, tomato, and avocado with every bite with the hint of lemon, cilantro, and salty feta make everything about this salad addicting and crave-able. Once you’ve nailed my recipe, try adding in your own twist.
Start with your chicken. Drizzle a little oil in the base of your roasting pan then season up your chicken. Bake the chicken until it’s perfectly cooked then let it cool slightly before tearing or dicing up the chicken into pieces. Some people don’t know that they can shred chicken at any stage as long as it’s thoroughly cooked. Two forks will get the job done, you don’t need any special claws or machines to do this. If it’s too hard for you use a knife to dice the chicken.
Top the cooked chicken with your mix-ins. This part is all about about ratio. In order for this dinner to come out tasting the best you want to make sure to check each box.
Use 3 cups of fruits/vegetables, 3 cups lettuce, one chopped fresh herb, one fresh citrus, and one salty cheese/non-dairy/pickled product. This is your formula to recreating your own layered chicken salad that will have just as much, if not more impact than this one. Master the formula, master the chicken salad. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with!
Layered Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 chicken breasts, pounded evenly
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed chili flakes
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 3 cups mixed green lettuce
- 1 avocado, diced
- 1 1/2 cups english cucumber, diced
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 cup feta, torn into bite-size pieces
- 1 lemon, juiced
Preparation
- Preheat a 400° F oven and prepare a 9x13 pan over a baking tray.
- Season chicken with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper flakes. Drizzle with olive oil and bake in the oven for 15 - 20 minutes or until a thermometer inserted into the chicken registers at 160° F. Let cool for 5 - 10 minutes.
- While the chicken is baking, chop up all your vegetables, herbs, and cheese.
- Using two forks, shred the chicken into large bite-size chunks.
- Layer the chicken with tomatoes, cucumbers, avocado, cilantro, mixed greens, and finally feta cheese bites. Squeeze one lemon all over the salad and optionally drizzle with more olive oil.
- Serve as a layered salad, then toss right before serving. Enjoy!