Valentina Ablaev
This amazing Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe is going to become your go-to salad during grilling season! A light and flavorful salad loaded with lettuce, veggies, croutons, eggs, and slices of juicy grilled chicken.
Chicken adds so much heartiness to your salad, just like in our classic cobb salad or our delicious Southern Chicken Salad.
There is nothing better than a hearty and flavor-packed homemade salad! Chopped romaine is tossed with cucumbers, tomatoes, boiled eggs, croutons, and, best of all, juicy grilled chicken breast! The chicken is made with our simple grilled chicken marinade, giving you the BEST chicken.
Don’t want chicken in your salad? Try our salmon salad recipe or top this salad with easy grilled shrimp instead of chicken!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy. This salad is full of protein and healthy fats, making it the perfect lunch.
- Customizable. All of the ingredients in this salad can be customized to perfectly suit you.
- Easy. It’s as simple as throwing a few ingredients together, and you have a restaurant-level salad!
Ingredients for Grilled Chicken Salad
- Chicken – we love our juicy grilled chicken recipe using our easy chicken marinade! You can also use air fryer chicken breast or our pan-seared chicken for this recipe.
- Lettuce – in this salad we use romaine lettuce but you can also use a spring mix, or iceberg lettuce.
- Vegetables – a combination of cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion. They add so much flavor and texture.
- Corn – use canned corn or corn off of grilled corn on the cob.
- Avocado – adds some creaminess and is super healthy!
- Bacon – crispy air-fried bacon adds the perfect amount of texture and flavor.
- Eggs – our hard-boiled eggs are the perfect addition to this salad.
- Ranch – our classic ranch dressing gives this salad so much flavor. Of course you can always use your favorite store bought ranch dressing.
- Croutons – homemade croutons add the perfect crunch to this salad.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
The BEST thing about a salad is that you can add what you want to your salad. The toppings aren’t limited!
Substitutions and Variations
All of the add-ins, substitutions, and different variations to the recipe you want to make.
- Vegetables: Add more color to your salad by adding mini peppers, banana peppers, cherry tomatoes, and even olives!
- Cheese: Blue cheese crumbles, feta cheese, or shredded cheddar cheese all make a delicious addition to this salad.
- Nuts: The addition of almonds or walnuts can add so much incredible texture and flavor.
- Drizzle: Finish your salad with a homemade balsamic glaze just like in our classic caprese salad.
- Dressing: This salad tastes incredible with a greek salad dressing or even a homemade poppy seed dressing.
How to Make a Grilled Chicken Salad:
- Marinade the chicken using our grilled chicken marinade. Grill for a few minutes on both sides until fully cooked through. Cut into thin strips and set aside to cool.
- Air fry the bacon and cut into small pieces.
- Hard boil the eggs and slice into squares.
- Cut up all the vegetables into bite-sized pieces and add to a large salad bowl. Add in the chicken, bacon, and eggs.
- Add the creamy ranch dressing and toss the salad together. Finish off with the croutons and serve!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, for the best flavor, we recommend at least one hour of marinating.
Yes! You can substitute the boneless skinless chicken breast for boneless skinless chicken thighs or even chicken tenders.
Yes, you can prepare everything ahead of time, just DO NOT mix in the dressing until ready to serve.
Store & Reheat
- Storage. This salad is best when served immediately because as the salad gets soggy from the dressing. If you do have leftovers you can keep them in the refrigerator and enjoy the following day.
- Freeze. We do not recommend freezing this salad.
More Recipes:
If you enjoyed this chicken recipe, be sure to try our other popular salad recipes; here are some of our favorites:
If you tried this grilled chicken salad recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below – we appreciate it!
Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breast
- ranch dressing
chicken marinade-
- 2 Tbsp oil
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp italian seasoning
- 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
salad-
- 2 heads romaine, chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 mini cucumbers, sliced
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 2 boiled eggs, chopped
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1 cup cooked corn
- 1 cup croutons
- 4 oz bacon, cooked and chopped
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken following our grilled chicken marinade recipe.
- Once the chicken is grilled, slice into thin slices.
- Cut up and prepare all the ingredients for the salad.
- Add all the salad ingredients into a salad bowl and toss in desired salad dressing.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Storage. This salad is best when served immediately because the dressing makes it soggy. If you do have leftovers, you can keep them in the refrigerator and enjoy them the following day.
- Meal prep. Make the chicken in advance and chop up all your ingredients. Add everything to tupperware without the dressing and store! Dress the salad with the ranch when you are ready to eat!
