Fried Chicken Salad
Fried chicken salad is the perfect blend of crispy chicken and fresh veggies tossed in your favorite dressing. Make it even quicker with frozen chicken tenders or pick up a few in your deli section.
This crispy fried chicken salad was a personal creation of mine several years ago. I started making it for my husband when we first got married, but I’ve really slacked off on making it in the last few years. When he came in and saw it he was pretty excited. That’s sad I think. You can get a fried chicken salad pretty much anywhere these days, but I just think it’s nice to be able to make something at home when you want to.
Tips for fried chicken salad success:
Please don’t get discouraged with the frying in this recipe. I’ll be the first to tell you that unless you are used to frying chicken (or anything for that matter) it can be tricky at first. If your oil is too hot, you’ll burn your breading before the inside cooks. If it’s too cool, you’ll end up with greasy chicken and a breading that won’t stay on. If you really want a shortcut, buy pre-breaded frozen chicken tenders and just bake them or pick up a few in your grocery store’s deli.
Ain’t no shame in easy.
For the greens, dress them as you would any house salad and add veggies your family likes. I’ve listed this with ingredients we like best, but adjust it as you wish. I think it’s best with blue cheese or ranch dressing, but as with anything you find on my blog, make it your own. I want you to be proud to serve it and even prouder when your family gobbles it up.
Crispy Chicken Tender Salad
Ingredients
For the chicken:
- 8 boneless skinless chicken tenders or 3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced into thirds lengthwise
- 1 tablespoons egg beaten and mixed with 2 tablespoons water
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
- vegetable oil for frying
For the salad:
- One head of romaine lettuce
- 2 medium tomatoes
- 1/4 cup sliced green olives
- 1 cup sliced button or baby portabella mushrooms
- 1/2 cup cooked bacon crumbled
- 2/3 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- First, let's fry the chicken.
- Place the flour, salt and pepper in a shallow dish or bowl.
- Mix the water and egg and set aside.
- Dip each piece of chicken in this order: first into the flour, then into the egg then back into the flour. You're done with that part!
- Now heat about an inch of oil in a skillet over high heat. This should take about 6 or 7 minutes to get hot, but keep an eye on it. To see if your oil is hot enough for frying, dip just the end of one of the pieces of chicken in. Does it sizzle all over immediately? If it doesn't, or if it takes a second or two to sizzle it's not hot enough yet. Once your oil sizzles as soon as your meat touches it, gently add a few pieces at a time.
- After they have been in the skillet about three or four minutes, turn your heat down to medium or medium high and just keep it sizzling. If things slow down, turn the heat back up but do your best to keep things steady.
- Turn the chicken after 8 to 9 minutes or earlier if it's getting too dark on one side. Fry the second side another 6 to 7 minutes until it's brown all over. You can cheat and cut a piece open to see if it's done if you need to.
- Set the chicken on a paper towel to drain. As it cools it will crisp, so I like to make mine at least 15 minutes before we plan to eat, but you don't have to. Slice the chicken into bite size pieces.
- Place the rest of the ingredients on dinner plates and top with the chicken. Add your favorite dressing and enjoy. Start to finish this takes me about 30 minutes.
The first time I made this, I used store-bought fried chicken. The second time, I made my own following the recipe. Tastes great either way! I added ranch to my salad and it was delicious! Definitely would recommend!
I used mayo mixed wth lemon-pepper, then used dried bread crumbs instead of flour. The rest was the same.
How do I know if the chicken is ready? It just won’t be pink at all? I unfortunately do not possess a thermometer.
Hey Mark, it’s okay if you don’t have a thermometer. The answer is that the chicken will be firm and no pink inside. You can take out a piece, and cut it open and check the inside. It should be white all the way through. If you follow my directions on how big to cut your chicken, and how long to fry it, you should be just fine. Frying is trial and error if you’re new to it. Just give it a try! –Rachel
Love fried chicken!