Sun Dried Tomato Chicken Salad (Print View)
Protein-packed Mediterranean salad with tender chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, crisp vegetables, and tangy balsamic dressing.
# Ingredient List:
→ Chicken
01 - 2 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded or diced (about 2 medium breasts)
→ Vegetables
02 - 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
03 - 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and sliced
04 - 1/2 cup cucumber, diced
05 - 1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced
06 - 4 cups mixed salad greens (arugula, spinach, or romaine)
→ Dairy
07 - 1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled
→ Nuts
08 - 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or slivered almonds (optional)
→ Dressing
09 - 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
10 - 2 tbsp sun-dried tomato oil (reserved from jar)
11 - 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
12 - 1 clove garlic, minced
13 - 1 tsp Dijon mustard
14 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
# How to Make:
01 - In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, sun-dried tomato oil, balsamic vinegar, minced garlic, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper until the mixture is fully emulsified. Set aside.
02 - In a large salad bowl, arrange the mixed greens. Add the shredded chicken, halved cherry tomatoes, sliced sun-dried tomatoes, diced cucumber, and thinly sliced red onion.
03 - Drizzle the prepared dressing over the salad and toss gently until all components are evenly coated.
04 - Scatter crumbled feta cheese and toasted pine nuts or slivered almonds over the top. Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours before serving.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The dressing uses oil straight from the sun-dried tomato jar so every single bite carries that deep tangy concentrated tomato flavor without any extra effort.
- It comes together in twenty minutes with zero cooking if you start with leftover or rotisserie chicken which makes it the smartest hot weather dinner I know.
02 -
- The dressing tastes dramatically better if you let it sit for fifteen minutes before tossing it with the greens because the garlic and mustard need time to meld with the oils.
- Do not dress the salad more than twenty minutes before serving or the greens will weep and pool at the bottom of the bowl which nobody wants at a dinner table.
03 -
- Toast your pine nuts in a dry skillet over low heat and watch them like a hawk because they go from golden to burnt in seconds and there is no rescuing them once they cross that line.
- Saving a few sun-dried tomato strips and a pinch of feta for the very top of the plated salad makes it look intentionally beautiful rather than like everything got stirred into a pile.