Next Post
Strawberry Watermelon Salad with Burrata.
This post may contain affiliate links, please see our privacy policy for details.
This Summer Chicken Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing is the perfect quick and easy dinner salad for any night of the week. Grilled chicken tossed with a tangy bacon-herb dressing, greens, grilled chicken, peppers, corn, tomatoes, creamy avocado, and crumbled cheese! It’s colorful and so delicious. Enjoy this for dinner and save the leftovers for lunch – it’s always good. Or serve this up at your next backyard dinner with friends.
With the start of summer 2022 just days away I’m in full-on summer cooking mode and really loving the recipes I’m working on! And this salad is a real highlight. So many yummy flavors, textures, and colors in this quick-to-make dinner salad.
My motto this summer is super flavorful dinners that have a lot happening, but don’t require too much time in the kitchen or too much cooking. It’s kind of a tricky recipe formula to figure out. But for the recipes where I’m able to get it right, it’s perfection!
I’m excited to share that I hit my mark.
Growing up, summertime dinner salads were on a weekly rotation at our house. My dad would do big pasta salads or salads filled with the leftovers in the fridge.
This salad is loosely inspired by dad’s summer salads – just taken up a notch!
Here are the details
To start, this recipe requires pre-cooked chicken, peppers, and corn. The idea is that you already have the leftovers in the fridge. If you’re like my family, we always have some grilled or roasted chicken on hand. And I have roasted peppers in the pantry!
Of course, if you need to grill up chicken the day of, I’m giving you my recipe for herb grilled chicken in the notes. It’s my go-to grilled chicken. Simple, but great tossed up in salads. Just a mix of olive oil, grainy dijon, balsamic vinegar, herbs, and garlic.
When you have all the salad ingredients together, make the dressing. The dressing really is the heart of this salad. Crisp up some bacon, then toss it with olive oil, vinegar, shallots, garlic, thyme, and the secret – a small number of fig preserves. The preserves add a touch of sweetness that compliments the salty bacon.
Next, the croutons. A last-minute addition on my end, but one that’s so delicious! The torn ciabatta bread gets crisped up in the bacon grease, then tossed with garlic and sea salt. They add a crunch to every bite and are totally addicting.
Now, assemble everything. The salad base is mixed greens and or romaine. Whatever you prefer. I use mixed greens – spinach, arugula, spring mix, and romaine are all good for a balance of flavor and crunch. Then, grilled chicken, peppers, corn, sweet cherry tomatoes, and creamy avocado.
The final layer is the cheese. I LOVE to use crumbled blue cheese, but I know this isn’t for everyone. You can certainly use feta, goat cheese, or cubes of cheddar, all would be delicious.
Everything together is SO GOOD! Grilled chicken, crunchy garlic croutons, salty bacon, creamy avocado, and a savory, tangy dressing that really completes the salad and makes every bite special.
Looking for other summer salad recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Corn, Tomato, and Avocado Pasta Salad
Pesto Chicken Caesar Salad with Tomatoes and Burrata
Honey Mustard Pretzel Chicken and Avocado Bacon Salad
Marinated Tomato Feta Orzo Salad Jars
Pesto Chicken and Avocado Bacon Salad Wraps
Lastly, if you make this Summer Chicken Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Summer Chicken Salad with Hot Bacon Dressing
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 550 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Dressing
- 6 thick-cut slices of bacon, chopped
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 1-2 cloves garlic, grated
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fig preserves
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- chili flakes
- kosher salt and pepper
Salad
- 1 cup torn ciabatta bread
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 6 cups mixed salad greens
- 2 cups grilled chicken, cubed or shredded
- 1-2 roasted/grilled bell peppers, sliced
- 3 ears grilled corn, kernels removed from the cob
- 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 avocado, sliced
- 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese or feta cheese
Instructions
- 1. To make the dressing. Combine all ingredients except the bacon in a glass jar and whisk until smooth. 2. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Drain onto a paper towel. Stir the bacon into the dressing. 3. To make the croutons. Heat the same skillet used to cook the bacon over medium heat. Add the bread and toss in the bacon grease. If needed add 1-2 tablespoons olive oil. Cook until toasted, 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic, then remove from the heat and season with salt. 4. To assemble the salad. In a large salad bowl, combine the greens, chicken, peppers, corn, tomatoes, avocado, cheese, and croutons. Toss well with the dressing. Enjoy!
Notes
Herb Grilled Chicken: In a large bowl, toss 1 pound of chicken tenders with 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons grainy dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, 1/3 cup chopped fresh herbs, kosher salt and black pepper. Set your grill, grill pan, or skillet to medium-high heat. Grill the chicken until lightly charred and cooked through, turning halfway through cooking, about 10 to 12 minutes.
Obsessed with the dressing!! The first time I made this recipe it was just for myself. I portioned out servings in mason jars, ingredients in typical mason jar order,( all but the avocado and croutons) such a satisfying lunch or light dinner. While the recipe is a bit labor intensive, it’s delicious and worth making again. I make the dressing often (double batch because it’s that good) and keep it on hand in a jar. The olive oil makes it solidify a bit, I stir it, portion out a few tablespoons into a small bowl and it comes down to room temp/ liquifies.
Hi Cynthia,
Amazing!! I am so excited to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! Have a great weekend☀️
This salad has all the summer feels. All of the grilled veggies and that bacon dressing is such a perfect combo! Will definitely be making again!
Hi Cherry,
Happy Friday!? Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was a winner! xx
This is definitely not a 5 star recipe, this is a 100 star recipe!!!
I made this last night for dinner for myself and husband, and let’s just say I almost made myself sick. I just kept eating it and eating it. I got corn, red bell peppers and tomatoes from my farmers market.
The marinated chicken, the dressing, the croutons!!!!!! I can’t even explain how good it all was. We are having company for dinner next Saturday and this will be served. I’m pretty sure I could eat this every day.
Another winner, Tieghan!!!
Hey Jayne,
Amazing! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it! Have a great Monday! xTieghan
Such a great salad recipe! I’ve never made homemade croutons before, but they sent this recipe to the next level. My only question: 6 slices of thick bacon make a ton of bacon. Is all the bacon added to the dressing? It almost made it like a bunch of bacon and a little liquid. The taste was great, but I wasn’t sure if I did something wrong. Even before adding the bacon the dressing was outstanding and I will use a base for other salads.
Hey Julie,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner and really appreciate you making it:) Yes, all of the bacon is added to the dressing but you could certainly reduce that to your liking for next time. xTieghan
Just saw this one and will be trying to shortly! Looks amazing. Quick question out of curiosity…wondering why the dressing is called a “hot bacon” one…i see that the cooked bacon goes in it but is it warm other than the bacon perhaps being added just after cooking? Not sure it matters but simply curious :-). Thanks!
Hi Sheila,
Yes, the dressing will be warm from the bacon:) I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
I made this for dinner tonight. It was SO good. But we love ALL your recipes!! The herb chicken will be a go-to from now on. And the dressing was a huge hit!!
Hey Elaina,
I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Hope you’re having a great Wednesday! xT
Made this for dinner. Super flavourful and absolutely delicious!!!
Hey Julie,
Amazing!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so excited it was enjoyed! Hope you’re having a great weekend! xx
I had this salad for lunch today and it was outstanding! The dressing is so good. I made the herbed grilled chicken as well and let it marinate overnight before grilling.
10/10 definitely making this again.
Hi Courtney,
Amazing!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so excited it was enjoyed! Hope you’re having a great weekend! xx
Another delicious recipe! I finally learned how nice and how much fun making a really good salad can be!!! Totally inspiring!
Hey Martine,
Wonderful! I am so excited to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for trying it out! xx
Amazing!
Like others, I created from scratch, but 100% worth the time investment!
A new family favorite!
Hi Amy,
Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe:) I am so glad it was enjoyed! Hope you’re off to a great Monday! xxT
I’m a little annoyed about how much we liked this salad because it was so delicious, but honestly a bit of a pain to make from scratch, lol. If you actually do have a bunch of grilled veggies & leftover chicken as Tieghan suggests, it’s an easy and phenomenal salad that stands on its own — but we made everything from the ground up and it was pretty time-intensive for a regular dinner for just the two of us. (Would totally make this as an impressive luncheon/dinner salad though!)
We made the herbed chicken & charred the bell peppers on the stove on our Le Creuset grill pan which worked really well, and used frozen roasted corn (which was actually really good; easy alternative to the grilled corn). The croutons were totally worth it.
I would double or triple the dressing if we make this for a crowd — it’s so delicious that we used almost all of it for just two servings, whoops. I also might throw the cherry tomatoes on the grill pan next time to give them a bit of warmth just to see how that goes!
Overall, such an amazing salad — not a fast weeknight option if you don’t already have prepped chicken & veggies, but so worth it for a dinner party or “date night”. Loaded with veggies and flavor but didn’t feel heavy, so it was perfect for a hot summer evening.
Hi Meghan,
Awesome!! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe:) I am so glad it was enjoyed! Sorry it’s so much work. Hope you’re off to a great Monday! xxT
This was so full of flavor and satisfying. I added some jalapeños to the veggies being grilled and used the herb marinade for the chicken. Delicious! I’m still amazed that my husband and son are in week 6 of one “main course salad” per week and going back for seconds!
Hey Lucy,
Happy Friday!!? I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! xxT
Wow! Delicious!! Made it with your herb chicken recipe. So good. The hubs already asked me to make it again.
Hi Andrea,
Happy Monday!! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was a hit, thanks for trying it out and sharing your review:)
Absolutely delicious! Very easy to make and makes a great lunch for the next day.
Hi Lidia,
Happy Friday! Thanks for giving this recipe a go, I love to hear that it was a winner! ? xx
I’ve made this twice. Once w the chicken and it was our meal…so delicious! And the second time, I left the chicken out and made as a side salad for company. T she loves it.
Hi Danette!
Happy Wednesday! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:) xx