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It’s the kind of amazing salad worth calling a meal, one that’s great for dinner or meal-prepped for lunch with the tips below.
What Makes it a Cobb Salad?
Cobb salad is a classic high-protein salad with crispy lettuce, tomatoes, and bacon, like a BLT salad, but better by adding avocado, hard-boiled eggs, blue cheese, and chicken or turkey. A great Cobb Salad holds its own flavors so it’s best with simpler dressing, such as a red wine vinaigrette.
This recipe is made with blackened chicken breasts to give even more flavor to the salad. The blackened seasoning creates a super tasty crust of flavor that makes a huge difference! Of course, you can also prep this Cobb Salad with rotisserie chicken or pan-seared chicken leftovers.
That said, once you try blackened chicken, you’ll want it again! So it’s a great time-saving idea to meal prep the chicken and use it for this recipe and other delicious meals, like my Blackened Chicken Salad and this Blackened Chicken Pasta.
Chicken Cobb Salad Ingredients
What makes a Cobb Salad special is the toppings, making the simple romaine lettuce base an afterthought -yes, I know you’re here for the toppings, me too!
Add to the shopping list:
- Chicken breasts: boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Chicken thighs also work.
- Blackened seasoning: adds a smoky, slightly spicy flavor. Use store-bought seasoning or my homemade recipe.
- Butter or olive oil: for searing the chicken.
- Romaine: the base of this Chicken Cobb Salad. Other kinds of lettuce also work.
- Hard-boiled eggs: sliced into rounds or wedges.
- Avocado: a classic dreamy Cobb salad ingredient!
- Cucumber: thinly sliced to add crunch.
- Cherry tomatoes: or heirloom, grape, or any other ripe tomato (in season).
- Shallot: crunchy and delicious! You can also use red onions instead.
- Blue cheese crumbles: that classic salty, cheesy flavor you crave in a Cobb salad!
- Bacon: cooked and crumbled to find deliciousness in every bite!
- Dressing: the red vine vinaigrette is amazing! You can swap it for your favorite homemade dressing for cobb salad or store-bought dressing.
You’ll find the measurements in the recipe card below.
How to Make a Cobb Salad
Cook the chicken or use up leftovers, add the other tasty ingredients, and in no time, there you got it: an epic chicken Cobb salad that makes a terrific meal to eat for dinner or pack for school or the office!
Check how easy it is to make this salad at home:
- Prep the chicken
On a flat surface, pat dry the chicken breasts. Distribute the seasoning on both sides of the chicken breasts. - Cook the chicken
Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, melt the butter. Place the chicken breasts on the pan and cook the first side for 7 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts over and cook for another 7 minutes on the other side until the internal temperature reaches 165F. Cooking time on the second side will vary by the thickness of the chicken breast. - Let the chicken rest
Remove the chicken breasts from the pan onto a board to rest for 5 minutes before slicing. - Assemble the salad
Meanwhile, assemble the salad bowl by layering the chopped Romaine, topping it with hard-boiled eggs, cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, avocado slices, sliced shallot, blue cheese crumbles, crumbled bacon, and sliced chicken breasts. - Add the dressing
Drizzle ½ cup salad dressing over the chicken Cobb salad and toss to combine. Add more salad dressing if desired.
Recipe Video
Want to see how this epic salad is made, step-by-step? Watch this 2-minute recipe video to see it for yourself!
Need more delicious ideas? Check out these chicken salad recipes that hit the spot every single time.
Dressing Options
There’s no way you can go wrong when choosing a dressing to drizzle over this mouth-watering Chicken Cobb Salad. I love serving this recipe with my Red Wine Vinaigrette, champagne dressing, or a simple maple dijon vinaigrette. Classics like Ranch or balsamic dressing are also perfect options!
How to Prep Salad Ahead of Time
This salad is perfect for meal prep since many of the ingredients can be cooked ahead and assembled inside individual food prep containers. The only exception is the avocado, which I recommend slicing the same day you’re going to eat it.
Here's how to pack it so it stays fresh:
- Layer all the salad ingredients inside 4 meal prep containers except for the sliced avocado.
- Pack the salad dressing separately, about 2 tablespoons, inside a small, lidded container.
- The morning of, slice ¼ of an avocado and pack it inside the lunch container.
- Drizzle salad dressing right before enjoying it for lunch.
Chicken Cobb Salad
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 ½ teaspoons blackened seasoning
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- 1 large head of romaine, washed and chopped
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced into rounds or wedges
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1 small cucumber, thinly sliced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 shallot, sliced (or ¼ cup red onions)
- ⅓ cup blue cheese crumbles
- 4 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
- ⅓ cup Red Wine Vinaigrette
Instructions
The dressing:
- If making the dressing, combine all the vinaigrette ingredients and refrigerate the jar for up to one week or, until ready to use
Make the blackened chicken:
- On a flat surface, pat dry the chicken breasts. Distribute the seasoning on both sides of the chicken breasts.
- Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, melt the butter. Place the chicken breasts on the pan and cook the first side for 7 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts over and cook for another 7 minutes on the other side until the internal temperature reaches 165F. Cooking time on the second side will vary by the thickness of the chicken breast.
- Remove the chicken breasts from the pan onto a board to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.
Build your dream salad:
- Assemble the salad in a large bowl by layering the chopped Romaine, topping it with the hard-boiled eggs, cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, avocado slices, sliced shallot, blue cheese crumbles, crumbled bacon, and sliced chicken breasts.
- Drizzle ½ cup salad dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Add more salad dressing if desired.
For Meal Prep:
- Layer all the salad ingredients inside 4 meal prep containers except for the sliced avocado. Pack about 2 tablespoons of salad dressing inside four small, lidded containers. The morning of, slice ¼ of an avocado and pack it inside the lunch container. Drizzle salad dressing right before your first bite.
Theresa Scott says
Looks delicious. Will be making this recipe today .
Thanks Theresa