Honey Mustard Chicken Salad
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Made with the juiciest, tender honey mustard chicken, romaine, strawberries, avocado and corn. And the dressing is perfection!
I have the most amazing news ever.
It’s going to be 63 degrees F in Chicago on Sunday! I know, I couldn’t believe it either. I’m even seeing all the restaurants dusting off and setting up their outdoor dining for the warm weekend ahead.
And if you guys have all been braving that midwest winter, I think it’s safe to say we all want to shove our hats/gloves/parkas into a storage bin and never see it again until November/December.
Good riddance, winter.
I’m even going to fire up that grill this weekend to make the cilantro lime chicken and this honey mustard chicken.
I’m not entirely sure which to make first. Probably this honey mustard variation. Because hello, we have greens!
We have crisp romaine, fresh strawberries, velvety avocado slices, and sweet, juicy corn kernels. Oh and the salty, crispy bacon bits. Can’t forget about those.
My favorite part is that we get to use the dressing for the marinade as well, killing 2 birds with one stone. Not to mention, the chicken thighs comes out so stinking juicy and tender!
CAN I USE CHICKEN BREASTS?
Yes, chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken when thrown on the grill.
WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE A GRILL?
No grill, no problem. A cast iron grill pan or a large cast iron skillet will work beautifully here, especially during those winter month when it’s too cold to grill out!
Honey Mustard Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup whole grain Dijon mustard
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 4 slices bacon, diced
- 1 head romaine, roughly chopped
- 1 ½ cups quartered strawberries
- 1 avocado, halved, seeded, peeled and sliced
- 1 cup corn kernels, canned or roasted
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together Dijon, green onions, olive oil, honey and vinegar; season with salt and pepper, to taste; set aside 1/3 of the mixture. Place remaining 2/3 of the mixture in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- In a gallon size Ziploc bag or large bowl, combine chicken and reserved Dijon mixture; marinate for at least 2 hours to 6 hours, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the chicken from the marinade.
- Preheat grill to medium heat.
- Brush chicken with canola oil; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add chicken to grill, and cook, turning occasionally, until chicken is completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 10 minutes.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Drain excess fat; transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate.
- To assemble the salad, place romaine lettuce in a large bowl; top with chicken, bacon, strawberries, avocado and corn. Pour the Dijon dressing on top of the salad and gently toss to combine.
- Serve immediately.
Did you make this recipe?
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Winner winner chicken salad dinner!
This salad is screaming summer time! I can’t wait to try it. I especially love all the mustard seeds you have going on – yum!
My husband and I loved this. The dressing/marinade was so good! Recipe was easy to follow, and made for a great, quick dinner. Thank you!
You are so welcome, Tina!
I made this for my family. We were all skeptical about the addition of the strawberries, and were surprised to find that we all loved it. The salad was refreshing. The dressing was very good. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes you come up with! Its hard to find time to cook nightly. We visit your site regularly for ideas and are thankful for the quick and easy recipes!
Thank you so much for sharing, Caroline! The strawberries are the best, aren’t they? 🙂
Can you use regular balsamic?
For 1 tablespoon, you can substitute 1 tablespoon cider vinegar or red wine vinegar plus 1/2 teaspoon sugar.
Your book has the nutritional info but this on line recipe doesn’t. I was looking for the sodium information. Might you know what that is? I am excited to make it today!
Hi Kitrsten! Nutritional information is provided only for select online recipes at this time. However, if it is not available for a specific recipe, we recommend using free online resources at your discretion (you can Google “nutritional calculator”) to obtain such information. Hope that helps!
This was delicious!
Great!
This sounds like the perfect spring/summer salad and I can’t wait to try it! As a native Midwesterner though (Southwest Michigan, represent!) I have to warn you – we frequently get a late April blizzard that takes everyone by surprise. So maaaaybe keep the coats and gloves handy… just in case!
This looks incredibly delicious!
So many beautiful colours and flavours 🙂
Love me some honey mustard chicken!! And I love how you added the strawberries to the salad too!!
White balsamic wine vinegar? That’s a thing? Would white wine vinegar suffice?
This is a specialty vinegar best used in recipes that call for it specifically. For 1 tablespoon, you can substitute 1 tablespoon cider vinegar or red wine vinegar plus 1/2 teaspoon sugar.
I can do that! Thank you!!!