Assembling the right mix of proteins, greens, fun crunchy toppings, and a robust dressing ties any salad together in a way that provides great tastes and essential nutrients without making the meal mundane. Making a picture-perfect Caesar salad relies on a delicate interplay between salty, savory, and umami ingredients. This is even more important when chicken is tossed into the mix. When preparing a grilled chicken Caesar salad recipe, you might be lingering on the question of how best to season your chicken. While some might opt to marinate chicken in the Caesar dressing for a truly cohesive flavor, if you’d prefer a lighter touch, choose chicken seasoning that parallels the flavors already present in your salad. Keep it simple and thoughtful with basic salt, pepper, garlic, and savory herbs.
The main flavors of a classic Caesar salad recipe include fresh lettuce or greens, plenty of hearty Parmesan cheese, and zing of garlic and anchovy in the dressing, which is commonly accented with a dash of Worcestershire sauce and freshly squeezed lemon juice. Keeping all of this in mind, your chicken seasoning should be complementary to this flavor profile without being overpowering. Seasoning with salt and pepper to taste is always key as well as a generous shake of garlic powder. For an extra pungent addition, mix in some freshly minced garlic to your seasoning blend too. This is an excellent start for a well-rounded chicken Caesar salad.
Preparing the ultimate chicken Caesar salad
If you want to take a shortcut to streamline your chicken seasoning, start with a rotisserie chicken that you can cut up and add to your salad as this will have the basic flavors to complement just about any Caesar recipe you choose. For those starting from scratch, try using boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts for a richer flavor, keeping in mind that the dark meat will be slightly higher in calories and fat content. You can easily purchase a pre-made poultry seasoning like Frontier Co-op Salt-free Poultry Seasoning or make your own spice blend by mixing up your preferred ratios of rosemary, sage, thyme, marjoram, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and nutmeg. You can either mix this up in olive oil as a marinade or apply it to your chicken as a dry rub before cooking. Make sure to let the chicken sit with the seasoning to give the spices and herbs enough time to fully permeate.
Once you’ve fully cooked your seasoned chicken, use it to top and toss with your favorite Caesar salad recipe. You can get creative with crunchy toppings of parmesan crisps and homemade croutons. Be sure to set aside extra poultry seasoning to add your homemade crunchy toppings for even more cohesive flavors. From there, simply toss everything together with your favorite store-bought or homemade Caesar dressing, and enjoy.
