Fruit and nuts combine to make our Apple Pecan Chicken Salad a delicious and satisfying main dish salad. Drizzle with a homemade Honey Mustard Dressing and you’ll pack a punch of flavor in every forkful.
Fire up the grill. It’s time for a summer salad for dinner.
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Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe
There’s nothing quite like cool crisp lettuce, fresh fruits and grilled chicken for dinner on a warm summer evening.
But put them all together and drizzle with your homemade salad dressing and it transforms into a main meal all in one bowl.
Make that salad dressing the ever popular Honey Mustard Vinaigrette and you’ll wish it was a never ending bowl with all those flavors.
Toss the fruits and greens and then top with chicken or arrange them on top of the bed of greens and serve the dressing on the side.
The choice is yours. Either way, you'll have a bowl of deliciousness!
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I developed this recipe for the U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council. Hop on over to their site and you’ll find some great tips about blueberries!
Read all about my tips and tricks for baking with blueberries in my interview on the U.S. Blueberry Highbush Council’s blog.
With salad dressing so easy to make you’ll want to check out my Ultimate Guide To Making Homemade Salad Dressings! Making a Homemade Salad Dressing is so easy and takes just minutes.
How to make chicken salad with apples
Scroll down for the full recipe instructions and ingredient amounts in the recipe card below
- Preheat grill for direct heat grilling.
- Season chicken breasts with ½ tsp. kosher salt, ¼ tsp. pepper and garlic powder and grill until chicken is cooked through, turning once. Let stand 10 minutes; slice and reserve.
- Meanwhile, whisk honey, Dijon, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, ½ tsp. kosher salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper until blended.
- To assemble, in bowl combine lettuce, blueberries, apple, red onion and pecans and toss lettuce mixture with some (about ½ cup) of the dressing.
- Arrange sliced chicken over lettuce and drizzle with additional dressing.
Swirls of Flavor Recipe Tips
- Add raspberries for more fruity flavor
- Use rotisserie chicken and it becomes a no-cook dinner!
Substitutions
- No time to make a homemade dressing? Use your favorite bottled dressing
- Substitute your favorite nut for the pecans
- Make with creamy Dijon mustard in place of the whole grain Dijon
Ingredients
Ingredients for chicken salad with apples and pecans:
- boneless skinless chicken breasts
- garlic powder
- honey
- whole grain Dijon mustard
- apple cider vinegar
- olive oil
- garlic
- kosher salt
- pepper
- red leaf lettuce
- blueberries
- Gala apple
- red onion
- pecans
Easy Main Dish Salad Recipes
You can never have enough main dish salad recipes when it comes to a long hot summer. Swirls has easy to make recipes you’ll definitely be serving up all summer long.
Everyone needs a Cobb Salad Recipe in their summer menu lineup. Brimming with all the traditional ingredients, our chicken cobb salad is flavored with a homemade Dijon red wine vinaigrette with chives, a perfect main dish salad.
Apple Cheddar Chicken Salad with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette will wow your taste buds with it’s combination of flavors. Sweet apples. sharp cheddar cheese, pops of sweet cranberries are lightly tossed in a homemade Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette with chicken and romaine lettuce leaves for a hearty dinner salad.
An Italian Chopped Salad will be a welcome addition to your dinner menu on warm summer evenings. Bursting with the flavors of antipasto, our classic chopped salad is filled with salami, provolone, tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts, pepperoncini and red onion and drizzled with a homemade lemon oregano vinaigrette.
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Apple Pecan Chicken Salad With Honey Mustard Dressing
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Ingredients
Chicken:
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. black pepper
- ¼ tsp. garlic powder
Honey Mustard Dressing:
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 Tbs. whole grain Dijon mustard
- 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tbs. olive oil
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ½ tsp. kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp. pepper
Salad:
- 6 cups red leaf lettuce
- 1 1/2 cups blueberries
- 1 Gala apple , cored and sliced
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- ½ cup toasted pecans
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Instructions
Chicken:
- Preheat grill for direct heat grilling.
- Season chicken breasts with ½ tsp. kosher salt, ¼ tsp. pepper and garlic powder and grill until chicken is cooked through, turning once. Let stand 10 minutes; slice and reserve.
Dressing:
- Meanwhile, whisk honey, Dijon, vinegar, olive oil, garlic, ½ tsp. kosher salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper until blended.
Salad:
- To assemble, in bowl combine lettuce, blueberries, apple, red onion and pecans and toss lettuce mixture with some (about ½ cup) of the dressing.
- Arrange sliced chicken over lettuce and drizzle with additional dressing.
This sounds like such a nice refreshing salad that still satisfies. Nice balance of chicken, nuts, and fruit with the salad. Pinning to try soon!
I made this for my family last night to go with your Tips. It was delicious!
So happy to hear that you loved this recipe!
That looks delicious! I am always up for trying new salad recipes. Pinned.
Thank you Joanne. I hope you enjoy the recipe! Savor The Moments, GG
I love both the texture and taste if this salad. Winner all around!
Thank you for your kind words Rasbhari! I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed my recipe. Happy Cooking and Savor The Moments, GG
Amazing recipe, thanks so much! I followed these steps and had a good main salad for our family. Apple pecan chicken salad really a perfect combination. We especially like cool crisp lettuce dipping with sauce.
If you pay attention you can see this recipe is a amazing combination tasty and color. It is not only delicious but also good looking. It's not only balance in nutrition and color. I like combination between red apple, green lettuce, bake chiken's colour and violet of blueberry. So exciting!
I'm so happy to hear that you and your family enjoyed my recipe. Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know Jonathan! Savor The Moments, GG