This Strawberry Chicken Salad with Spinach is delicious and packed with fresh ingredients. It’s also meal-prep and make-ahead friendly!
The chicken breasts are seasoned with herbs and spices, and pan-seared or grilled until perfectly juicy and tender. It’s served on a bed of fresh baby spinach, topped with strawberries, blueberries, feta, avocado, and candied pecans.
To bring everything together, drizzle with a homemade creamy balsamic dressing. Seriously, this strawberry chicken salad is AMAZING!
No more boring salads for dinner! This Strawberry Chicken Salad is packed with fresh and flavorful ingredients. Plus it’s make-ahead and meal-prep friendly.
Lots of amazing and fresh ingredients here! It’s got tender baby spinach, strawberries, blueberries, avocado, feta cheese, candied pecans, and tasty chicken breasts. Every ingredient in this strawberry chicken salad is fresh and easy to prep.
It all starts with flavorful seasoned chicken. The chicken breasts are generously seasoned with dried herbs, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. It’s then seared or grilled until tasty, juicy, and tender.
To bring everything together, drizzle with a homemade creamy balsamic dressing. It’s tangy, sweet, and savory all at the same time. Seriously, this balsamic dressing is out of this world!
Why I love this strawberry chicken salad:
- Packed with fresh ingredients: Lots of fresh spinach and berries, which are healthy and so good for you.
- Make-ahead and meal-prep friendly: There are many ways to make it ahead for convenience and ease. I share lots of tips and recommendations above!
- Highly customizable: Switch it up by adding other types of berries, cheeses, greens, or dressing to your liking.
As you can see, we love adding fresh fruits to salads. Try this Apple Kale Salad or Grilled Peach Salad. Both are refreshing and absolutely delicious!
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Flavorful Seasoned Chicken
Whenever I cook chicken for my salads, I always make it a point to season the chicken generously. There’s nothing worse than bland chicken.
The chicken for this strawberry chicken salad is seasoned with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and a generous drizzle of olive oil.
Doing so has other advantages as well. Letting chicken sit in a seasoning blend (salt, pepper, spices, oil), even if it’s just for 15-20 minutes, helps to tenderize it. The way it works is this: salt draws out moisture from the chicken, and then the chicken reabsorbs this moisture, tenderizing and flavoring it.
Other salads with flavorful chicken: Mediterranean Grilled Chicken Salad, BBQ Chicken Salad.
The Creamy Balsamic Dressing
A great dressing makes a good salad exceptional. This strawberry chicken salad is no exception.
Balsamic vinaigrette is a classic dressing choice for strawberry spinach salads. The strawberry chicken salad is tossed with a homemade creamy balsamic dressing. The addition of Greek yogurt to the dressing makes it creamy and smooth, which adds great texture to the salad.
It’s super easy too! The dressing takes just 5 minutes to prepare and is make-ahead friendly.
Ingredient Notes
The full ingredient list can be found in the recipe card down below, but I wanted to call these out:
- Fresh strawberries and blueberries: Make sure they are fresh and plump. Don’t use frozen.
- Baby spinach: Use fresh spinach and make sure it’s not wilted.
- Crumbled feta cheese: Feta is my cheese of choice, but you can also try blue cheese, gorgonzola, or goat cheese.
- Sliced red onion: Totally optional.
- Creamy balsamic dressing: It can be made up to 7 days in advance.
- To make candied pecans, I used pecan halves, brown sugar, water, and salt. You can also use raw pecans or other types of nuts.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1 | Season the chicken
Pound the chicken to ½ inch thick evenly (this will prevent overcooking). Season with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and a few drizzles of olive oil. Let it sit for 15 minutes to allow the flavors to come together and tenderize the chicken a bit. Meanwhile, prep the rest of the ingredients.
Step 2 | Make the creamy balsamic dressing
Follow these instructions to make the creamy balsamic dressing. It takes 5 minutes or less to make. Make it up to 5 days in advance, if desired.
Step 3 | Make the candied pecans
In a skillet, combine the pecan halves, brown sugar, water, and a pinch of salt. Stir to coat the pecans in melted sugar for about 1-2 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool.
Tip: To make this salad healthy, skip the “candied” part. Use raw pecans.
Step 4 | Cook the chicken
In a large skillet, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Cook chicken for about 6-8 minutes per side, or until fully cooked through. You can also grill the chicken. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
Step 5 | Assemble the salad
- Arrange a bed of baby spinach leaves
- Top with strawberries and blueberries
- Top with sliced chicken
- Top with diced avocado, sliced red onions, crumbled feta cheese, and the prepared candied pecans
Then, drizzle with the prepared creamy balsamic dressing…and that’s how you make a wonderful strawberry chicken salad! It’s so good.
Variations and Substitutions
There are several ways to customize this strawberry chicken salad recipe. Here are a few ideas:
- Spinach: Try a blend of mixed greens.
- Berries: Add blackberries or raspberries.
- Chicken: I made a pan-seared chicken for this salad, but you can also grill it.
- Candied pecans: Skip the “candied” part and just use raw nuts.
- Feta cheese: Try goat cheese, feta, blue cheese, gorgonzola cheese.
- Creamy balsamic dressing: Use your favorite dressing. Great options are strawberry vinaigrette, lemon poppy seed dressing, or a honey garlic vinaigrette
Make Ahead and Meal Prep Tips
You can make strawberry chicken salad in advance. Here are some tips and guidelines:
- Make the creamy balsamic dressing and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
- Make the candied pecans 3 days in advance and store either at room temperature or in the fridge.
- Cook the chicken in advance and refrigerate. Reheat slightly before serving.
- Note: I’d recommend slicing the strawberries the same day so they don’t get soggy. If you need to slice them in advance, do it the day before.
Tips for meal prep:
- Don’t add the dressing until ready to eat. Keep in a small dressing container.
- Don’t combine the ingredients until ready to eat. Arrange them side by side in boxes so they don’t get soggy.
- Wait for the chicken to fully cool down before packing it.
- Store in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Other Refreshing Salads
I’m a huge fan of incorporating fresh fruit in my salads whenever I can. Fruit adds so many refreshing and bright flavors.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! See “Make Ahead and Meal Prep Tips” section above for details.
No. They will be mushy and soggy. Use fresh strawberries, blueberries, and spinach.
Yes, definitely!
Yes, it can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.
I’d recommend a strawberry vinaigrette, lemon poppy seed dressing, or a honey garlic vinaigrette. Either store-bought or homemade work.
This recipe was published in 2018 and updated in February 2022 to include new photos and information, plus a few recipe modifications.
Tips for Success
- Use fresh baby spinach, strawberries, and blueberries. Make sure the spinach isn’t wilted and that the berries are plump and in good condition.
- The chicken can be pan-seared or grilled. Up to you!
- The creamy balsamic dressing can be made up to 7 days in advance.
- If you prefer not to make candied pecans, raw pecans (or any other nuts) are fine too.
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Strawberry Chicken Salad
Equipment
- Meat tenderizer to pound the chicken
Ingredients
Seasoned chicken
- 4 small chicken breasts, pounded to ½ inch thick evenly - or 2 large chicken breasts
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Candied pecans
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon water, plus more as needed - plus more as needed
- 1 cup pecan halves
- A pinch of salt
For the salad
- 4 cups sliced strawberries
- 2 cups fresh blueberries
- 10 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves
- 2 ripe avocados - peeled and sliced
- 1 cup crumbled feta - or to taste
- Sliced red onions
- Creamy Balsamic Dressing
Instructions
- Season the chicken with a 1 tablespoon olive oil, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, salt (about ½ teaspoon per breast), and pepper. Let it sit on the counter for 15 minutes to let all the flavors absorb. This will also help tenderize the chicken. Meanwhile, prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Make the creamy balsamic dressing according to this balsamic dressing recipe.
- Make the candied pecans: Melt brown sugar with the water in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the pecans plus a pinch of salt. Stir to coat the pecans in melted sugar for about 1-2 minutes. Let them cool slightly.
- Heat about 1-2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken for about 6-8 minutes per side until fully cooked through or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. Transfer to a plate and let it rest for 10 minutes. Slice the chicken.
- Assemble the salad: Start with a bed a spinach, then top with strawberries, blueberries, sliced red onions, avocado, the sliced chicken, feta, and candied pecans. Drizzle with the prepared balsamic dressing and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Notes
- Seasoning the chicken: Let the seasoned chicken sit on the counter for 15-20 minutes prior to cooking to allow the chicken to absorb all the flavors. This also helps to tenderize it a bit.
- To cook juicy chicken breasts, pound the chicken evenly to ½ inch thick. Cook for 6-8 minutes per side, don’t overcook. Let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing. The chicken can be pan-seared or grilled.
- Use fresh baby spinach, strawberries, and blueberries. Make sure the spinach isn’t wilted and that the berries are plump and in good condition.
- Make ahead: The balsamic dressing can be made up to 5 days in advance and refrigerated. Candied pecans can be made 3 days ahead (refrigeration recommended). The chicken can also be cooked 1-3 days in advance and slightly reheated.
- Spinach: Try mixed greens, romaine, arugula.
- Berries: Add blackberries or raspberries.
- Chicken: I made a pan-seared chicken for this salad, but you can also grill it.
- Candied pecans: Skip the “candied” part and just use raw nuts.
- Feta cheese: Try goat cheese, herbed feta.
- Creamy balsamic dressing: Use your favorite dressing, it doesn’t have to be this one.
Mellen Paine says
Absolutely will be a staple salad around my house from now on
Rebecca says
Absolutely delicious. Have made many times and getting ready to make again. Also of importance to me as presentation. It is very beautiful and appealing.
Kay says
Absolutely delicious and very impressive salad. I always look forward to your recipes and I have to say it is tough to decide which recipe to try first! Thanks for so many great recipes,
Tania says
Aww, thank you so much Kay! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipes!