Cold Chicken Salad Recipes

On a summers day, there's nothing like a healthy mix of chicken and green salad vegetables to thrill the taste buds.

If you have grilled chicken leftover from a summer barbecue, throwing together a salad is the perfect way to use it.

Grilled Chicken & Bean Salad Recipe

This recipe uses store cupboard items, as well as fresh herbs, to create a tasty salad, full of goodness and bursting with flavour.

Ingredients

• tin of chickpeas (400g)
• tin of kidney beans (400g)
• 1 red onion, chopped
• basil leaves, torn
• fresh parsley, chopped
• 250g grilled or cooked chicken, cut or broken into pieces
• 250g tomatoes (large or cherry), chopped or sliced
• ¼ cucumber

Create a homemade dressing using 2tbsp oil, 4 tbsp balsamic vinegar & 1tsp whole grain mustard, with a sprinkling of salt and pepper. If you're in a hurry, simply use a mustard & honey dressing.

1. Mix dressing with chickpeas, beans, onion & herbs
2. Cover and set aside for flavours to marinade for at least one hour
3. To serve, add chicken, tomato and cucumber

Serve with chunks of fresh bread

Chicken & Nut Salad Recipe

This is a really tasty and nutritious dish, easy to put together.

Ingredients

• 3 apples
• lemon juice
• 150g baby spinach
• 500g cooked chicken
• 2 tsbp roasted peanuts, chopped
• 6 tomatoes
• ½ cucumber
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1. Peel, core and chop the apples, covering with lemon juice to prevent discoloration
2. Add spinach, chopped chicken, peanuts, tomatoes and cucumber
3. Drizzle over balsamic vinegar

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Easy Caesar Salad Recipe

If you're short on time, you can create a quick caesar salad in just a few minutes.  Simply buy the following ingredients at the store:-

• 1 gem lettuce
• 1 romaine lettuce
• 50g tin anchovy fillets (drained)
• 25g grated parmigiano regiano (cheese)
• 50g croutons
• caesar salad dressing

1. Tear the lettuce leaves up, wash, dry and create a bed for the salad
2. Add in broken piece of anchovy fillet
3. Sprinkle over cheese and pour over dressing
4. Top with croutons
5. Serve

There are hundreds of variations to make this popular summer favorite, but this is a quick throw-it-all-together recipe that gets the salad on the table in under 5 minutes. 

It's the perfect meal to keep you cool in hot weather!

Recommended Resources

Easy Summer Recipes - tips on foods for picnics , appetizers and food for kids