Basil Balsamic Chicken Salad

Basil Balsamic Chicken Salad is a flavorful chicken salad that's great to keep in the fridge for a light lunch or high protein snack

I am so excited that the weather is starting to warm up and that it's almost spring! You seriously have no idea.

One of my favorite things to keep in my fridge during springtime and the summer is some type of chicken salad.

I usually make chicken salad with cottage cheese or avocado because I'm not a huge fan of mayo or using yogurt in place of mayo. I mean, mayo and yogurt do not taste the same, so I think regular chicken salad tastes wrong when you replace the mayo with yogurt.

Anywho, I decided to make a version of chicken salad using yogurt. I love the tanginess of the yogurt mixed with the poached chicken, tomatoes, basil, and onion.

After making the chicken salad, I turned around and made the yogurt dressing again and used it for my salads. It's also a wonderful marinade for chicken. This gem of a recipe is multi-purpose and who doesn't love that?!

I honestly couldn't decide if I should give y'all the recipe for the dressing or for the chicken salad. So you're getting both. You have to make the dressing to make the chicken salad.

To make the chicken salad, you'll poach the chicken. Start with 1.5 pounds of chicken which will give you just about 1 pound of cooked chicken. {I weighed it before and after to make sure}. You can also just use 1 pound of cooked and shredded chicken {it's about 4 cups}.

While the chicken is cooling, make the Creamy Balsamic Basil Dressing. Just add all the ingredients to a food processor, blend together, and you're done. Simple as that. Try not to taste it because you will probably want to get out a spoon and just eat it from the bowl. It's that good.

Shred the cooked chicken, add in some chopped cherry tomatoes, and minced onion. Then pour the incredibly tasty dressing on top and voila! You have yourself a perfect, flavorful chicken salad. You can put it in a pita pocket, on some toast, in a lettuce wrap, serve with crackers, or just eat straight from the bowl with a fork which is typically what I do 😉

Basil Balsamic Chicken Salad

Usher in springtime with this flavorful chicken salad. It's great to keep in the fridge for a light lunch or high protein snack

Print Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 8

Author: Meme

Ingredients

• ▢ 1.5 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
• ▢ 2/3 cup minced onion {about 1/2 medium onion}
• ▢ 2 cups cherry tomatoes halved {about 1 pint}

For the dressing:

• ▢ 3/4 cup plain yogurt
• ▢ 3 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• ▢ 1/2 cup fresh basil
• ▢ 1 clove garlic minced
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions

• Add the chicken to a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and cook until chicken is done {about 20-25 minutes}. Remove from water, and set aside to cool.*
• Once cool, shred the chicken and put into a non reactive bowl {plastic or glass, not metal}. Stir in the onion and tomatoes.
• Meanwhile, add all the ingredients for the dressing into a food processor. Blend until smooth. Add extra basil, balsamic vinegar, or salt if desired.
• Transfer most of the dressing to the chicken & veggies. Toss until completely coated. Add extra dressing if needed.
• Let sit for about 30 minutes before eating. Keep refrigerated.

Notes

*You can use 1 pound {about 4 cups} cooked and shredded chicken.

*Use regular plain yogurt or Greek plain yogurt. The Greek yogurt will make the dressing thicker, so add a tablespoon or so of water if needed.

What to Use in This Recipe

Mini Food Processor

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What to use in this recipe:

Meme

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