Grilled Chicken Salad
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Last updated on Apr 24, 2025
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My go-to grilled chicken salad made with juicy marinated chicken, fresh veggies, grilled corn, roasted sweet potatoes and avocado all served over greens and topped with a homemade honey mustard dressing.
I’m excited, because today, I’m sharing my go-to grilled chicken salad recipe! This is a salad I’ve been making for years, but I’ve never gotten around to sharing the full recipe… until today.
This salad has a great balance of lean protein, healthy fats and veggies which makes it an awesome meal-sized salad for lunch or dinner. Plus it’s so easy to make and can easily be customized! And don’t even get me started on the honey mustard dressing… it’s definitely what takes this salad to the next level, IMO!
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Grilled Chicken Salad
This isn’t just a boring salad with chicken on top—it’s a full, balanced meal that hits all the marks. Here’s why you’ll love it:
- Flavor-packed – The addition of roasted sweet potatoes, marinated grilled chicken and a honey mustard dressing adds so much flavor to this salad!
- Protein-rich – Grilled chicken adds lean protein and turns this into a meal-sized salad!
- Versatile – You can customize this salad to your liking, adding or subtracting ingredients as you please.
- Meal-prep friendly – Prep components of this salad ahead of time for easy lunches or dinners throughout the week.
- Balanced – This salad has a good mix of veggies, protein, carbs and healthy fats, making it a nutritious salad choice.
Ingredients Needed
- grilled chicken – we’re using my easy grilled chicken breast recipe for the protein in this salad! All you have to do is make a simple marinade, let the chicken marinate for 1-12 hours and grill it up! The end result is chicken breasts that are juicy, tender and packed with flavor.
- romaine lettuce – the base of this salad! The romaine adds a nice crunch and pairs well with the rest of the ingredients.
- cucumber – adds a refreshing crunch.
- cherry tomatoes – these add a slightly sweet flavor and pop of color.
- red onion – adds a pungent and slightly spicy element.
- grilled corn – adds a slight sweetness and smokiness to the salad.
- roasted sweet potatoes – I followed my recipe for roasted sweet potatoes. I love adding some roasted veggies to my salads!
- avocado – adds creaminess and some healthy fats to this salad.
- honey mustard dressing – this honey mustard dressing is one of my faves! It’s made with simple ingredients like dijon mustard, lemon juice, olive oil, apple cider vinegar and spices. Its sweet and tangy notes complement the flavors of the chicken and veggies brilliantly.
Customize Your Salad
This grilled chicken salad is super flexible! Here are a few easy ways to switch things up based on what you have or need:
- Chicken options: No grill? No problem. You can use air fryer chicken breast or even baked chicken tenders. Leftover rotisserie chicken works in a pinch too.
- No romaine? Swap in chopped kale, spinach, or spring mix. If using kale, I recommend massaging it first, like in my massaged kale salad.
- Sweet potato swap: Don’t have time to roast sweet potatoes? Try roasted delicata squash or you can also make these sweet potato croutons instead, which are bite-sized and a tad crunchy.
- Dressing alternatives: Honey mustard is my go-to here, but this salad also pairs beautifully with balsamic vinaigrette.
- Make this dairy-free and vegan: Simply skip the feta cheese or use vegan feta cheese like this Follow Your Heart dairy-free vegan crumbles or VIOLIFE Just Like Feta Block.
How to Make Grilled Chicken Salad
This grilled chicken salad is simple to prep and packs in so much flavor. Here’s how to pull it all together:
Step 1: Whisk together the marinade ingredients and pour over chicken in a shallow dish or zip-top bag. Toss to coat and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Step 2: While the chicken marinates, make the honey mustard dressing and chop your salad ingredients.
Step 3: Grill chicken over medium heat for about 5 minutes per side, or until cooked through and the internal temp reaches 165°F. Let rest, then slice.
Step 4: Start with a bed of romaine, then top with veggies, sweet potatoes, avocado, and sliced chicken. Drizzle with dressing and enjoy!
Brittany’s Tips
A few tips to help your chicken salad turn out just right:
- Pound your chicken: If your chicken breasts are thick, gently pound them to an even thickness for quicker, more even cooking.
- Don’t skip the resting time: Letting the chicken rest before slicing keeps it juicy and helps lock in flavor.
- Use a grill pan: If you don’t have an outdoor grill, a stovetop grill pan works great and still gives you that charred flavor.
- Double the marinade: It’s so good, and works great as a quick dressing or drizzle on other proteins later in the week.
How to Prep in Advance & Store
If you want the real deal but don’t have time to make everything for this grilled chicken salad in one night, you can prep all of the components in advance for faster assembly. Here’s what I would prep in advance:
- Chicken – You can either make the marinade the night before you want to make these salads and let the chicken sit overnight. Then cook the chicken when you’re ready to make dinner. Or you can cook the chicken 1-3 days prior for quicker assembly.
- Roasted sweet potatoes – These sweet potatoes are hands-off once they’re roasting, but it does take a little time to cook. Make a batch at the beginning of the week and use all week long!
- Honey mustard dressing – Another simple component to prep in advance!
I recommend storing each component in separate containers. That way your lettuce won’t get soggy. Everything should last 4-5 days in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to enjoy, heat up the chicken and sweet potatoes (or enjoy them cold) and assemble your salad!
Frequently Asked Questions
Boneless skinless chicken breasts are ideal, but chicken thighs also work if you prefer dark meat. Just adjust cooking time accordingly.
Absolutely. While homemade dressing is my go-to, a quality store-bought honey mustard or balsamic vinaigrette works great in a pinch.
Yes—as long as your dressing is gluten-free, this entire salad is naturally gluten-free.
Popular Salad Recipes to Try
- Mandarin Orange Chicken Salad
- Mediterranean Salmon Salad
- Grilled Salmon Salad with Peaches and Corn
- Roasted Broccoli Quinoa Salad
- Greek Pasta Salad
- Poppy Seed Chicken Pasta Salad
Be sure to check out the full collection of salad recipes on EBF!
If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.
Grilled Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Grilled Chicken
- 1- 1 ¼ lb boneless chicken breasts
- 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar or lemon juice
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Salad
- 1 head romaine lettuce
- ½ cucumber, chopped
- ½ cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 2-4 Tablespoons chopped red onion
- ½ cup grilled corn
- Roasted sweet potatoes
- 1 avocado
- Feta cheese, optional
- Honey mustard dressing
Instructions
- Whisk vinegar, oil, garlic powder, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper in a small bowl until well combined.
- Place chicken in a shallow dish or 1-gallon sealable plastic bag. Add the marinade, toss to coat and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 12 hours.
- While chicken is marinating, make dressing and prep remaining ingredients.
- Remove chicken from the marinade, shake off excess and discard leftover marinade. Heat a grill or grill pan. Once hot, place the chicken on the grill and cook for about 5 minutes per side, or until cooked through and no longer pink. You want the internal chicken temperature to be 165F.
- Assemble salad by adding a bed of romaine lettuce to two bowls. Top with cucumber, tomatoes, onion, corn, sweet potatoes, avocado and sliced chicken breast. Drizzle with dressing and enjoy!
Notes
- Roasted sweet potatoes: Feel free to make these sweet potato croutons instead if you prefer.
- Storage: I recommend storing each component in separate containers. That way your lettuce won’t get soggy. Everything should last 4-5 days in the refrigerator. When you’re ready to enjoy, heat up the chicken and sweet potatoes (or enjoy them cold) and assemble your salad!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi!
I just found your web and made this salad, so good! I added apples & sweet potato chips (too lazy to roast one) hehehe…
Would try your other recipes as well. So thank you and stay healthy! Greetings from Indonesia 🙂
Yay! This is so great to hear. I am so glad you are loving this salad. Thank you for sharing your review + star rating, I really appreciate it!
Absolutely delicious!!!
The chicken marinade was soooo yummy and the chicken grilled up juicy and perfectly.
Yay! So glad you loved this recipe, Sandra. Thanks for making it and for coming back to leave a review. I so appreciate it!