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This chicken BLT salad is a hearty main dish salad inspired by the classic sandwich. Loaded with crisp romaine lettuce, tomatoes, bacon, corn, avocado, grilled chicken, croutons and an amazing creamy homemade ranch dressing.
Want another hearty main dish salad? Try this southwest chicken salad with avocado lime dressing!
Why you’ll love it
Hearty main dish salad – This BLT salad is not a side salad, it’s a hearty salad that works great for a balanced lunch or dinner. Grilled chicken and bacon give this salad plenty of protein, avocado adds a healthy fat to the salad, and a generous helping of croutons and corn provides the carbs.
Homemade ranch dressing – Homemade ranch dressing puts the bottled stuff from the grocery store to shame. It’s thick and creamy, and full of fresh herbs, garlic, onion, and Worcestershire sauce.
Grilled chicken – Chicken isn’t usually something you find on a BLT, but adding it to this salad not only boosts the protein, but the flavor as well. I like to use grilled chicken, but you can cook it anyway you’d like. Rotisserie chicken works great too if you’re looking for a shortcut.
The ingredients
- Romaine lettuce – Crispy, crunchy and holds up well with all the toppings.
- Chicken – Cooked chicken of any kind can be used for the salad. I used grilled chicken breasts.
- Tomatoes – Cherry tomatoes are sweet and only need to be cut in half, making them perfect for this salad.
- Avocado – Creamy, rich, and adds healthy fats to the salad.
- Corn – Fresh grilled corn or defrosted frozen corn, adds a little sweetness to the salad.
- Bacon – Crisp salty bacon is a necessity when it comes to a BLT. Use whatever cooking method you like best.
- Croutons – Try making homemade croutons by either baking them like I did in this watermelon peach panzanella salad or grill them like I did for this grilled chicken Caesar salad.
- Greek yogurt – Thick, creamy, and adds a nice tang to the ranch dressing.
- Mayo – Mayo gives the dressing some of it’s creaminess.
- Lemon – Lemon juice cuts through the richness of the dressing and adds a fresh acidic flavor.
- Worcestershire – This sauce has a unique umami flavor. It’s sweet, savory, sour, tangy, and salty and shouldn’t be skipped in the dressing.
- Cilantro and chives – Fresh herbs brighten up the flavor of this ranch dressing. If you don’t like cilantro you can replace it with basil, flat leaf parsley or a combination of the two.
- Garlic power, onion powder – Dried spices for the dressing.
How to make chicken BLT salad
Make the dressing – Add the Greek yogurt, mayo, lemon juice, Worcestershire, garlic and onion powder, roughly chopped cilantro and chives, salt and pepper to a blender. I used a high speed blender, but a regular one should work too. Blend until the dressing is smooth. Pour the dressing into a jar or bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
Cook the chicken – Depending on how much time you have, you can grill, bake or cook the chicken on the stovetop. If you’re in a hurry use any leftover cooked chicken you may have or rotisserie chicken works great.
Cook the bacon – The bacon can be cooked on the stovetop or in the oven. I like to bake it in the oven on a foil or parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet at 400° F. for 10-20 minutes depending on how crisp you want it. Remove it from the onto a paper towel line plate. Roughly chop it for the salad when cooled.
Bake the croutons – This is an optional step, you can always use store bought croutons to save time. However, homemade croutons have superior flavor!
To make them, take several slices of sourdough or artisan style bread and cut it into cubes. Spread them out onto a baking sheet (line it with foil for easy clean up) and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss them until coated. Spread them into a single layer and bake at 400° F. for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
Assemble the salad – Add the chopped romaine lettuce to a serving bowl. Top the lettuce with corn, halved cherry tomatoes, sliced or diced avocado and chicken, chopped bacon, and croutons. The dressing can be poured on top or serve it on the side. I recommend serving it on the side if you plan to have leftovers.
Chicken BLT Salad FAQs:
When stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, the ranch dressing will keep for up to 7 days.
Parts of the BLT salad can be prepped ahead of time, but I would assemble the salad the day you plan to serve it for the best texture and flavor. The croutons can be made 1-2 days in advance. The chicken can be cooked up to 3 days in advance. The dressing can also be made 2-3 days ahead of time. I recommend cooking the bacon the same day so it’s crisp.
Yes. If you really don’t like mayo or are looking for a lighter dressing, replace it with additional Greek yogurt.
More salad recipes you’ll love
- Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
- Caprese Grilled Chicken Salad
- Blueberry Peach Feta Salad
- Autumn Apple and Pear Salad
- Honey Lime Shrimp Salad
Did you make this chicken BLT salad? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.
Chicken BLT Salad
Ingredients
Ranch Dressing
- 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons mayo
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
- 1/4 cup cilantro leaves roughly chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Salad
- 2 cooked chicken breasts sliced or cubed
- 5 slices of cooked bacon chopped
- 1 head of romaine lettuce chopped
- 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/2 cup corn fresh or defrosted frozen
- 1 avocado peeled, pitted and sliced or diced
- 2 cups croutons
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients for the ranch dressing to a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour the dressing into a jar or bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.
- In a large serving bowl, add the chopped romaine lettuce. Top the lettuce with the chicken, bacon, tomatoes, avocado, corn, and croutons.
- Serve the salad with the dressing on the side or poured on top of the salad.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
