italian chicken salad recipe with olives, capers and avocado

Italian Chicken Salad (video)

Name: Italian Chicken Salad (video)
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: For Marinated Chicken:; 2 large chicken breasts; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 2 tablespoons olive oil; kosher salt and ground black pepper; 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves; 1 teaspoon dried basil; For Red-Wine Vinaigrette:; 1/3 cup red wine; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 tablespoon each: lemon juice; balsamic vinegar; Salad Toppings:; 1 large head of Romaine lettuce; chopped; 1/2-1 large; ripe avocado; sliced; 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes; 1 cup sliced cucumbers; 6-8 marinated artichoke hearts; 10-12 sliced green olives; 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese; sliced red or yellow bell pepper; 2 tablespoons capers; rinsed

Published on March 20, 2015 | In Italian/French | By tatyanaseverydayfood |

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- Cook Time
- 20 Minutes
- Difficulty Level

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If you love the zesty and briny flavors of Italian-style salad dressing, you’re going to love this easy Italian chicken salad recipe! This salad is an explosion of Italian flavors: juicy, marinated chicken breast over a bed of fresh vegetables, dressed with a zesty red wine vinaigrette! This delicious salad is perfect for a spring or summer day, lunch or dinner. Make this salad for yourself or a large crowd of people by simply adjusting the quantity of ingredients!

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Watch my video recipe and I’ll show you just how easy it is to make juicy, delicious chicken and how to arrange this eye-catching salad! Want to receive new recipe emails in your inbox? Make sure to subscribe to my website and my YouTube channel and turn on notifications!

How It’s Made!

You’ll love how easily this Italian chicken salad comes together! All the ingredients come together so nicely! First up, the flavorful and juicy chicken! I season the chicken breast with lemon juice, thyme and loads of olive oil. Let the chicken marinate in the lemon juice for at least 30 minutes for best flavor. The chicken is then pan-fried to perfection and sliced for the salad. This salad has a little bit of everything!

The salad base is made with creamy avocado, romaine lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes. For the toppings, I add loads of feta cheese, salty green olives, briny capers and marinated artichoke hearts. All those incredible ingredients taste so great with the lemon chicken! The salad dressing is also super simple and easy to make! Just mix together a bit of wine, olive oil and lemon juice! It’s a light and aromatic dressing. Pour the dressing over the chicken salad when you’re ready to enjoy!

More Recipes!

Enjoyed this delicious Italian chicken salad recipe? Check out some of my other recipes you’re sure to enjoy!

Italian Pasta Salad – the ultimate pasta salad with veggies, cheese, salami, olives and a lemon dressing!
Spinach Chicken Salad – juicy chicken over a bed of spinach, cheese and pears!
BLT Salad – the BEST blt salad with bacon, cheese, tomatoes and avocado!
Prosciutto & Pear Salad – salty prosciutto with creamy mozzarella and pears!
Asian Chicken Salad – crunchy and refreshing cabbage salad with sesame dressing and teriyaki chicken!

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Ingredients

For Marinated Chicken:
2 large chicken breasts
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
kosher salt and ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon dried basil
For Red-Wine Vinaigrette:
1/3 cup red wine
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon each: lemon juice, balsamic vinegar
Salad Toppings:
1 large head of Romaine lettuce, chopped
1/2-1 large, ripe avocado, sliced
1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
1 cup sliced cucumbers
6-8 marinated artichoke hearts
10-12 sliced green olives
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
sliced red or yellow bell pepper
2 tablespoons capers, rinsed

Instructions

Marinate chicken first: place chicken breasts into a small bowl and coat with all marinade ingredients: lemon juice, olive oil, thyme, basil and season generously with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes; can leave overnight.
Preheat a saute pan (use a small one if making just 2 pieces of chicken, like in video) over medium heat. Add chicken and marinade juices; brown chicken on both sides then cover and reduce heat to medium/low. Cook chicken until internal temperature reaches 160F, turning chicken frequently so that it doesn't dry out. Remove from heat and let meat rest for 5 minutes before slicing for salad.
For vinaigrette, simply whisk all ingredients together and set aside until ready to dress salad.
Arrange lettuce in a large bowl and top with vegetables and cheese. Sprinkle capers over the top and then drizzle with prepared dressing. Top with chicken and serve immediately.
This recipe can be adjusted for a larger crowd, just add more lettuce, vegetables, cheese and make approximately 1 chicken breast per person.