Healthier Chicken Caesar Salad (Meal Prep, High Protein, Delicious)

So, this year one of my goals is to share with you easier, more delicious and healthier meal prep ideas so that you feel inspired to cook and eat healthier. And when I say healthier, I don’t mean boring and tasteless! I mean full of flavour and delicious, so that you enjoy eating what you made. And given, it’s summer here in the southern hemisphere, I have been making more salads for my lunch.

On the menu this week is my healthier chicken caesar salad. This salad is a bit more involved as there are a few elements that need to be put together, i.e. the egg, chicken, croutons, salad and caesar dressing. But it still took me under 40 minutes to put together from chopping up the salad, baking the chicken to making the delicious caesar dressing. In my books, this is a winner! You can also make this for dinner or a potluck party – trust me, it will be a winner 🙂 And this meal prep is also reasonably affordable at under $5 per serve. So, here it is.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I have. As always, please let me know what you think of this recipe. If you like what you see on this blog, you can follow me on my blog, Facebook or Instagram for some food porn. Also, if you do recreate this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @subz_foodie 🙂

Serves 4 mains (or 6-8 side dish)

Ingredients

For the chicken:

• 400g chicken tenderloins (or chicken breast);
• Pinch of cayenne pepper (can be removed if you don’t like a bit of heat);
• 1 tsp mixed dried herbs;
• 1-2 tsp ground garlic powder; and
• Salt and pepper to taste;

For the croutons:

• 4-6 slices of wholemeal bread (or any bread you have) – depending on how hungry you are;
• Salad and pepper to taste; and
• Olive oil spray;

For the caesar dressing:

• 100g light greek yogurt;
• 100g strained greek yogurt (or more light greek yogurt);
• Juice of 1 lemon;
• 2 garlic cloves, minced;
• 2 tsp dijon mustard;
• 2 tsp honey/maple syrup/sugar;
• 1 tbsp parmesan cheese;
• Salt and pepper to taste; and
• ***Optional: 2 anchovies fillet, minced;

For the salad:

• 2 large cos lettuce, roughly chopped;
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes (or 2 medium tomatoes), halved;
• 1 red capsicum, diced;
• 4 eggs, boiled to your liking; and
• ***Optional: Parmesan cheese for topping

Method:

For the chicken:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celcius and grease a baking tray;
2. In a bowl, marinate the chicken tenderloin and allow to rest for 10 minutes;
3. Then, transfer the chicken to the baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked; and
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool;

For the croutons:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celcius and grease a baking tray;
2. Chop the bread into 1.5-2cm squares and season with some salt and pepper;
3. Transfer to a baking tray and spray with some olive oil spray. Bake for 8-12 minutes until the it becomes crunchy and golden brown. You make need to give the baking tray a shake half way through to ensure the croutons cook evenly. *You can also airfry the croutons at 170 degrees Celsius for 8-12 minutes; and
4. Remove from the oven and alow to cool;

For the caesar dressing:

1. In a bowl, place all the ingredients and whisk together until well combined; and
2. ***Cook’s tip: If you want a smooth dressing, place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy;

The assembly:

1. Prepare 4 salad bowls or tupperwares (if meal prepping);
2. Slice the baked chicken tenderloins into bite size pieces;
3. Slice the boiled eggs into halves/quarters or to your liking;
4. Divide the cos lettuce, tomatoes and capsicum into the 4 bowls. ***Meal prepping tip: I would place a paper towel on the top of each tupperware to avoid the salad going bad/soggy;
5. Then, top each salad bowl with some sliced chicken and boiled egg;
6. Then, top each salad bowl with some croutons. ***Meal prepping tip: I would keep the croutons in an airtight container;
7. Then, top with the caesar dressing. And you can also top with some parmesan cheese for extra deliciousness. ***Meal prepping tip: I would keep the dressing in a separate tupperware to avoid the salad from going bad/soggy;
8. Enjoy 😉

Crouton making:

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I think it took me much longer to write this blog post than actually make this salad!

Happy making,

Suba Xx