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Healthy Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad Recipe
Caesar salad definitely rocks my world! I’m not one to order a salad at a restaurant, but if I did, it would without a doubt be the Caesar salad! I’m sure many of you can relate! Caesar salad is just so delicious that it feels like we’re not even having salad!
The traditional Caesar dressing calls for raw egg yolks and anchovies. Perhaps one day I’ll try to make the classic variation, but let me warn you that it takes quite a bit of work to make the dressing!
You shouldn’t have to sacrifice time and energy to have an awesome salad that’s quite close to the original! For that matter, you shouldn’t have to resort to packaged store-bought dressing that’s filled with who knows what to enjoy your Caesar, either! From start to finish, this salad can be made in about 30 minutes! If you have your dressing already prepared, you can shave off about another 5 minutes!
This Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad will definitely become a go-to lunch for you to make! Enjoy that succulent grilled chicken, crispy bacon bits, fresh Romaine lettuce, and freshly baked homemade croutons that are bursting with flavor! No excuse not to have the salad you know and love, so let’s get right to it!
Is This Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad Healthy?▼
Instead of raw egg yolks, mayonnaise, and anchovies in this dressing, we’re going to rely on Greek yogurt for that excellent creaminess! To get such a similar flavor to the original dressing, I’m using Worcestershire sauce. Turns out that this sauce actually has some anchovies in it, but you avoid having to get a can of anchovies or anchovy paste to mix into your dressing! Worcestershire sauce is very versatile, so no worries about getting a niche ingredient!
So, to answer the question, I’d say this Caesar salad is definitely lighter than a classic one. We’re omitting all the highly saturated fat that is found in the raw egg yolks and mayonnaise. The dressing’s texture comes from the Greek yogurt, which is loaded with protein and has no fat. Additionally, Greek yogurt has probiotics and calcium. While I do add olive oil to the dressing, olive oil contains heart healthy monounsaturated fats, which are preferred over the saturated fats in mayonnaise and egg yolks (in that quantity!).
While I’m also adding some fats by adding bacon and drizzling a bit of oil over the chicken, keep in mind our chicken will be grilled, so we will be avoiding some oil in the cooking! I’m actually going to use the bacon fat to cook the chicken. This fat will be great to add so much flavor to our salad, so don’t worry about that!
Additionally, let’s not forget that we are going to have some greens with our Romaine lettuce. It’s all relative, but I’d say this is quite healthy and reasonable to make for an every day lunch compared to the traditional Caesar salad! As I always say, if you’re making every part of this dish at home, it’s probably healthier than what you may find outside! You have complete control of what you put into your food, so use the quantities you would like!
Tools Needed
Ingredients in This Healthy Chicken Caesar Salad Recipe
There are plenty of variations to a Caesar salad, but let’s go over what I’ll be doing in this recipe today:
- Romaine lettuce. Or Boston leaf lettuce.
- Croutons. You can make your own or follow my recipe down below!
- Caesar dressing. Here is my Homemade Yogurt Caesar Dressing recipe, but if you don’t want to make your own, feel free to use your favorite store-bought one!
- Bacon
- Chicken breast
- Parmesan cheese, grated for topping
How to Make the Yogurt Caesar Dressing
It’s very simple to make the Homemade Yogurt Caesar Dressing! Click for more details on the recipe!
- Whisk together Greek yogurt, minced garlic, olive oil, Parmesan, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, and lemon juice.
How to Make Croutons
If you don’t want to make your own croutons that’s fine! But I really recommend you make your own! You’ll be surprised by how easy it is to make them! Plus, you’ll probably have extra for snacking! You can bet that every time I make croutons for this salad, I’m snacking on quite a few of them!
Here’s what to do:
- Preheat an oven to 400°F.
- Melt the butter in the microwave and season with salt and pepper.
- Add chopped baguette into a bowl and pour in the butter. Toss well to combine.
- Transfer to a baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes until light golden brown.
- Once done cooking, set aside to cool down as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
How to Make Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
- As you follow the recipe detailed here for simple grilled chicken, add bacon to the same pan and cook, turning often until light golden brown.
- To assemble the salad, add the whole lettuce leaves in a large bowl and add 1/4 cup of the Yogurt Caesar dressing. Mix well using a spatula.
- Arrange the lettuce leaves on a plate, slice the grilled chicken and top over the salad. Top with bacon, croutons and parmesan cheese as desired.
Tips & Tricks for Amazing Chicken Caesar Salad
- Ensure the parmesan cheese is finely grated for it to completely blend together in the dressing.
- Taste as you go and adjust to your taste. Parmesan is already salty so in the beginning, it’s better to under season than the other way around.
- Don’t flood the lettuce with dressing. Put just enough dressing to ensure the lettuce remains crispy and green.
- Adjust with more lettuce in case you added too much dressing.
- Top generously with parmesan cheese - you need it!
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