My Crispy Chicken Ranch Salad recipe is loaded with vegetables and topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, and ranch dressing. It’s easy enough to pack and take to work for lunch, and hearty enough to have for dinner.
It can be hard to make eating healthy fun and exciting. This is the time of year when people try to eat a bit better now that the holidays have passed, but eating healthy can be so boring. I want meals that I look forward to. This Crispy Chicken Ranch Salad makes eating more vegetables delicious, mostly because the trifecta of bacon, ranch, and cheese is present.
This salad is made with crispy breaded chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, carrots, bacon, cheddar cheese, and homemade ranch dressing. The chicken has a breadcrumb coating. I used whole grain breadcrumbs to add a little more nutritional value to the meal.
I used butterhead lettuce which is my go-to for salads. I like to buy
If you aren’t making ranch dressing from scratch, you should be. It takes just minutes to prepare and it just tastes better. My recipe is made with some Greek yogurt to balance out the other not-so-healthy ingredients.
Want to try some more salad recipes? Here are a few of my favorites:
Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad: Inspired by a salad that Charles eats almost every
The Allis Chopped Salad: Based on my go-to order at one of my favorite restaurants, this chopped salad is heavy on the toppings and big on flavor.
Steakhouse Style Wedge Salad: It’s a classic for a reason, everyone loves a chunk of lettuce topped with blue cheese and bacon.
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Crispy Chicken Ranch Salad Recipe:
Crispy Chicken Ranch Salad
This salad is topped with crispy breaded chicken, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, bacon, cheddar cheese, and homemade ranch dressing. You can serve it for dinner or meal prep it for lunch.
Ingredients
- 2 slices of Bacon
- 2 thin cut boneless skinless Chicken Breasts
- 1 Egg
- about 3/4 cup Plain Breadcrumbs
- 2 teaspoons Butter
- 1/2 cup Chopped Tomatoes
- 1/2 cup Chopped Cucumber
- 1/2 cup Shredded Carrot
- 1/2 cup Sliced Bell Pepper
- 1/4 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 head of Butterhead Lettuce
- Ranch Dressing
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Whisk the egg in a bowl and pour the breadcrumbs into another bowl. Coat the chicken in the breadcrumbs, then the egg, and then the breadcrumbs.
- Melt 1 teaspoon butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken. Cook until the first side has browned, then add the remaining butter and flip the chicken.
- Once both sides of the chicken have browned remove from the skillet. Place on a baking sheet (if you have a rack to line your baking sheet with that will keep the chicken extra crispy). Place the chicken in the oven to finish cooking for 15 minutes.
- Place the bacon on a baking sheet lined with foil and put it in the oven. Cook the bacon until it reaches your desired level of crispness, then remove from the oven and blot the excess grease with a paper towel.
- Once the chicken is done, assemble the salad. Slice the head of lettuce in half.
- Put each half of the head of lettuce on a plate, then divide the vegetables and cheese between the two plates. Add a slice of bacon and a chicken breast, top with dressing, and serve.