Grilled Chicken Salad recipe is an absolute favorite because of its versatility. An easy, homemade honey mustard serves as both the chicken marinade and dressing. Toss with whatever is on hand, such as greens, avocado, corn, bacon, blue cheese, or hard boiled eggs, and you have a healthy, filling meal!
Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe
We feasted on Grilled Chicken Salad all summer long, but even with fall rolling around, we still can’t get enough. I love how the marinade and honey mustard dressing use pantry staples, and the salad ingredients can change depending on what’s in season or needs to be used in the fridge.
As you grill the chicken, throw on other veggies, or even fruits, to add to the salad. For instance, I loved making Grilled Chicken Salad with grilled peaches and corn.
Make Grilled Chicken Salad Any Way You Like!
Customize Grilled Chicken Salad recipe according to your own taste. Here are some ideas to add to the greens and honey mustard chicken breasts:
- tomatoes
- onion
- cucumbers
- blueberries
- feta
- nuts, such as pistachios, almonds, or walnuts
- avocado
- bacon
- hard boiled eggs
- peaches
- corn
- goat cheese
How to Make Grilled Chicken Salad and Dressing
- In a small bowl place ingredients for honey mustard dressing / marinade.
- Whisk until oil is fully incorporated and dressing looks emulsified (creamy and smooth).
- Place chicken in a plastic bag and pour 1/3 cup of honey mustard mixture in for marinade. In the remaining honey mustard, whisk in mayonnaise, and set aside in refrigerator to use for dressing.
Tips / Tricks for Making Grilled Chicken Salad and Dressing:
- The easiest way to fully incorporate the honey mustard marinade / dressing ingredients is to pour everything in a lidded jar and shake vigorously. The oil and vinegar will emulsify without having to spend a lot of effort and time whisking.
- Grilled Chicken Salad can be prepared in stages ahead of time. The honey mustard marinade / dressing can be made up to a day in advance. Also, grill the chicken, corn, peaches, and cook the bacon and eggs earlier in the day. When ready to serve, just assemble the salads and pour on the honey mustard dressing.
- Be sure the grill grate is clean, hot, and oiled before grilling to prevent food from sticking. The easiest way to oil a grate is to dip a paper towel in vegetable oil and use long tongs to swipe the towel over grate.
- When grilling the chicken, you’ll know when it’s ready to be flipped when it releases easily from the grate. Try not to overly handle or flip to ensure crispy, charred grill marks with a moist interior. Always use a thermometer (pull at 160ºF) for consistent results.
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Grilled Chicken Salad and Dressing
Ingredients
Honey Mustard Dressing / Marinade:
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons whole grain mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise (regular or light)
Salad:
- 1 pound chicken tenderloins or thinly sliced breasts
- 2 peaches, pit removed and sliced in half
- 4 ears corn, husks removed
- 18 ounces package romaine lettuce, washed and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 eggs, hardboiled
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1/3 cup blue cheese crumbles
- fresh chives, for garnish
Instructions
Honey Mustard Dressing / Marinade:
- In a small bowl whisk together honey, vegetable oil, dijon mustard, whole grain mustard, vinegar, salt, and pepper until well combined and oil is completely incorporated.
- Place chicken tenderloins or thinly sliced chicken breasts in a large ziplock bag. Pour in 1/3 cup of marinade and refrigerate for 30 minutes - 1 hour.
- To the remaining marinade add 1/3 cup mayonnaise. Whisk to combine, cover, and set aside in the refrigerator.
Salad:
- While chicken is marinating, boil eggs, cook bacon, wash, and cut lettuce. The lettuce, bacon, eggs, avocado, and blue cheese can be assembled on plates and set aside in the refrigerator while grilling the chicken, peaches, and corn.
- Preheat grill to medium high heat and oil grate. Grill corn 15-20 minutes, rotating every 4-5 minutes. Grill peaches on cut side only for 5 minutes or until charred. Set both aside to cool.
- Grill chicken 4 minutes per side. Use a thermometer to make sure it reaches a temperature of 160ºF.
- Cut corn off of cobs, slice peaches and chicken. Divide between assembled plates. Drizzle with honey mustard dressing and garnish with fresh chives.
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Recipe Notes
- The easiest way to fully incorporate the honey mustard marinade / dressing ingredients is to pour everything in a lidded jar and shake vigorously. The oil and vinegar will emulsify without having to spend a lot of effort and time whisking.
- Grilled Chicken Salad can be prepared in stages ahead of time. The honey mustard marinade / dressing can be made up to a day in advance. Also, grill the chicken, corn, peaches, and cook the bacon and eggs earlier in the day. When ready to serve, just assemble the salads and pour on the honey mustard dressing.
- Be sure the grill grate is clean, hot, and oiled before grilling to prevent food from sticking. The easiest way to oil a grate is to dip a paper towel in vegetable oil and use long tongs to swipe the towel over grate.
- When grilling the chicken, you’ll know when it’s ready to be flipped when it releases easily from the grate. Try not to overly handle or flip to ensure crispy, charred grill marks with a moist interior. Always use a thermometer (pull at 160ºF) for consistent results.
Nutrition
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Here are some items I used to make this recipe:
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Piepie says
I just made this marinade for the chicken, last minute. I didn’t completely read all the way thru and added the mayo for the marinade. And I think it still came out pretty darn good. Next time I will leave out the mayo for the marinade and hopefully get it marinated for longer than 1 hour.
Melissa says
Thanks so much for sharing! Glad it still worked out for you. This is one of my favorite dinners in the summer months!
Best,
Melissa
Karly says
I could go for this right now! Thanks for sharing!
Melissa says
Thanks Karly! I love creating salads…possibilities are endless 🙂