Chicken Caesar Salad

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This Chicken Caesar Salad recipe makes the ultimate dinner. With crunchy Romaine lettuce, crispy bacon, tangy homemade dressing, fresh tomatoes and soft boiled eggs, it doesn’t get much better than this!

I’ve always been obsessed with Caesar salad — the crunchy croutons, parmesan cheese and tangy Caesar dressing are just irresistible!

Recently, I’ve been craving a healthier version of a classic Caesar salad recipe, one that tastes amazing but leaves me feeling great.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Everything in this recipe is made from scratch, from the chicken marinade to the dairy free Caesar dressing. It’s the best way to ensure it’s healthy and safe for dietary needs or health concerns. And it is far tastier than anything store-bought!.

It’s an easy meal prep recipe. Make a big batch of chicken and dressing, then you’ll have enough of the chicken Caesar salad to enjoy for multiple meals during the week!

Homemade condiments taste so much better. Seriously, if you compare the flavor and ingredients in my homemade dressing to a store-bought version, you’ll never want the bottled dressing again.

In addition to being great for lunch, it’s also a light, but filling dinner. Serve up this salad as a side dish or a main dish! It’s perfect for both.

Ingredients and Substitutions

This chicken caesar salad recipe only needs simple ingredients! Here’s a list of everything you’ll need:

• lettuce: Traditionally, Caesar salad includes romaine lettuce leaves. Feel free to add some kale, spinach, or other leafy greens into the mix.
• boneless skinless chicken breasts: If you’re not making my chicken with the Caesar marinade, you can use pulled rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken breasts from another recipe.
• eggs: Hard boiled eggs are standard, but I like to use an air fryer soft boiled egg here. It’s a little creamier, and adds a nice texture to the salad.
• tomatoes: Use the freshest tomatoes you can find! You can cut a big tomato or use sliced cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes.
• bacon: Feel free to use regular bacon or turkey bacon. I cook my turkey bacon in an air fryer.
• nutritional yeast: Nutritional yeast is used as a dairy free cheese substitute. However, you can absolutely use real cheese (like parmesan cheese!) if you prefer.

Chicken Marinade

This balsamic chicken marinade is oh-so-luscious! It adds so much flavor to the chicken Caesar salad. Here’s what you’ll need:

• balsamic vinegar: If you don’t have balsamic vinegar on hand, just use apple cider vinegar in the marinade for the chicken recipe and the homemade dressing. You can other types of vinegar as well, so just grab whatever you have in your pantry!
• olive oil: Feel free to use any neutral-tasting oil that you like, such as avocado oil or vegetable oil.
• garlic powder: You can also throw minced garlic in there for a fresher flavor.
• black pepper and salt: No marinade is complete without some salt and pepper!

To make the marinade

Place a chicken breast into a large Ziploc bag or between two sheets of parchment paper. This is so that you can pound it thin without making a mess.

Using a meat tenderizer or heavy rolling pin, gently pound the chicken breast until it is an even thickness. Repeat for all of the chicken breasts you plan to cook.

Next, whisk together the marinade ingredients in a bowl, and pour it into the bag with the chicken. Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes to an hour, or up to 4 hours.

Healthy Cooking Options for the Chicken

If you’re using my recipe for marinated chicken, the breasts will need to be cooked. Grilling is a healthy cooking option, and it’s how I chose to cook mine. If you don’t have a grill, here are a couple of other healthy options:

• Air fry chicken breasts
• Poached chicken
• Steamed chicken
• Instant Pot shredded chicken
• Pre-cooked rotisserie chicken

If you’ll be grilling the chicken for your Caesar salad, this is what you’ll want to do:

1. Preheat the grill to medium-high heat.
2. Grill the marinated chicken for a total of 10-12 minutes, depending on the size of the breasts. Be sure to flip the chicken halfway through the grilling process.
3. Take the internal temperature. When the internal temperature of the breast meat reaches 163°F., take it off the grill and allow it to rest for 5-7 minutes. During the rest time, it will continue to cook, reaching a food-safe temperature of 165°F.

How to Make Chicken Caesar Salad

Ready to make healthier version of this famous salad? Here is a step-by-step guide telling you all you need to know:

1. Prepare the Toppings

Cook and slice the chicken breast into strips, or shred or cube it. Make the dressing and set aside. Cook bacon however you’d like and chop or crumble it as a crunchy topping for the salad — I make air fryer bacon.

Thoroughly wash the romaine lettuce, dry it and then chop it well. Slice the tomatoes.

Boil eggs or pop them into the air fryer and cook to your desired doneness. Slice hard boiled eggs into the halve or quarters and set aside.

2. Assemble the Caesar Salad

First, divide the lettuce among four large bowls.

Then, top each bowl with nutritional yeast (or cheese), homemade dressing, freshly grilled and sliced chicken, tomatoes, eggs, and bacon.

Lastly, sprinkle each salad with extra cracked black pepper and enjoy!

Place leftover lettuce into an airtight container or plastic bag with a few paper towels. Store in the coldest part of your fridge for about a week.

The salad toppings like bacon, eggs and tomatoes can all be stored in containers or plastic zip top bags. Then store each in the fridge for up to a week.

Last but not least, store leftover dressing in an airtight container or mason jar for up to 5 days. Give it a good shake to recombine the ingredients before using.

Chicken Caesar Salad FAQs