Classic Cobb Salad with Chicken is colorful, healthy and fun to eat, even for kids! Everything can be prepared ahead of time for an easy weeknight dinner.
Winter always has me craving fresh crunchy veggies, so I’m always looking for ways to make a satisfying, not-boring meal out of a salad. Cobb salad is one of my absolute favorite ways to do that. It’s packed with all the stuff you love – eggs, cheese, bacon, creamy avocado – and full of protein, vitamins, and healthy fats.
Instead of being tossed or chopped together, it’s assembled in a fun and colorful way, making it great for introducing picky kids to salad. You can make easy substitutions or additions based on your kids’ tastes, like adding cubed cheddar instead of goat or blue cheese, carrots or cucumbers instead of avocado, adding croutons, and so on!
Best of all, it’s ready in no time and can be made ahead, making it perfect for weeknights. So…
How do you make a Classic Cobb Salad with Chicken?
- Start by hard-boiling some eggs. Use your favorite method if you have one, or follow these tips for perfect hard boiled eggs (I like to make extra for egg salad sandwiches!)
- Cook and slice or cube chicken breasts (or use leftover chicken, or store bought rotisserie chicken).
- Use the same pan you used to cook the chicken to fry up some bacon.
- Cut up some tomatoes and avocado.
- whip up an easy homemade dressing. I love a simple, tangy red-wine vinaigrette with this salad, but feel free to get creative! Creamy dressings like ranch or blue cheese work great too.
- Cover each plate with a bed of greens. Again, use what you love! Crunchy romaine or iceberg works well, as do more tender greens like spinach or mixed baby lettuces. I used a mix of red leaf and butter lettuces here.
- To the greens, add chicken, tomatoes, avocado, sliced eggs, bacon and cheese.
- Drizzle with dressing and serve!
The chicken, bacon, and eggs can easily be prepared ahead of time, so all you have to do is assemble the salad and enjoy!
Cobb Salad
Ingredients
- 4 eggs hard boiled, peeled and sliced
- 8 slices bacon chopped
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- 2 avocados sliced
- 1 cup goat cheese crumbles
- 2 heads lettuce romaine, bibb, or a mix of greens
Dressing
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the chicken: Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Pound chicken breasts to even thickness and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 6 minutes per side until no longer pink inside. Set aside on a cutting board to rest.
- Cook the bacon: In the same pan as the chicken, cook the chopped bacon over medium heat until crispy, about 4 minutes, and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate.
- Make the dressing: Put vinegar, Dijon mustard, shallots, and olive oil in a jar and shake until well-combined. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Assemble the salad: Divide the lettuce between 4 plates. Arrange tomatoes, avocados, cheese crumbles, bacon and chicken over the lettuce and drizzle with dressing.
Hi! I’m Ann and I blog at Our Happy Mess. I’m all about fast, fresh, and family-friendly recipes. I believe cooking from scratch can not only be doable but FUN, no matter how busy life gets!
You can find more of my recipes at Our Happy Mess.
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