• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

  • Home
  • Recipes
  • About Me
  • Privacy Policy
Home » Dinner » Chicken Chopped Salad

Chicken Chopped Salad

April 1, 2017 by Susan Leave a Comment

If you’ve never been to Chicago, you should go just so that you can eat at Portillo’s.  When we make a trip back home, a trip to Portillo’s might trump a visit with family.

Portillo’s started out as a tiny hot dog stand and now has several locations in the Chicaoland area along with a few scattered across the country.  Unfortunately for us, there is not a location in Texas…yet.  The menu has grown and expanded throughout the years and no one in my family ever even orders the hot dog that made them famous.

My boys start fantasizing about Portillo’s weeks before we head home.  They talk about getting burgers, Italian Beef sandwiches, and of course, their AMAZING crinkle cut french fries.  When I chime in saying how I can’t wait either, they look at me with a smirky frown.

“What are you going to get Mom, a salad?”

SIGH.  It’s true.  I go to Portillo’s and order a salad.  BUT I definitely eat some fries and insist on ordering the orange cup of cheese to dip them in.  What can I say?  I live on the edge.

I need to explain that it’s not just salad.  It’s a Portillo’s Chopped Salad.  This is a bowl of  chopped romaine, iceberg, tomatoes, red cabbage, green onion, ditalini pasta, Gorgonzola cheese, and their house dressing. On the side is a lemon poppy seed muffin that my son immediately takes. Just to be annoying, I have special instructions when I order.

“Chopped Salad, no pasta, and easy on the cheese.  Warm chicken, please. Dressing on the side.”

Unlike other restaurants, they don’t even hesitate with a special order or modification.  Which is awesome because I never order anything as is (besides cheese fries).

Looking around the parking lot and restaurant, you think you will never get your food.  There’s just so many people.  The drive thru line wraps through the parking lot.  Some locations have police officers directing traffic during peak hours.  Yet somehow, you barely have to wait for your food.

My kids eat their food just as fast.  Last time, they each ordered a burger and fries.  Just to make sure they wouldn’t leave hungry, they also split an Italian Beef sandwich.  Oh to be young with a burning metabolism…

Since it’s already swim suit season here in Texas, I wanted to make a salad that is not only healthy, but satisfying.  Lean grilled chicken is packed with protein and keeps the belly satisfied much longer than if I were just eating cheese fries.   The rainbow of veggies combined in one bowl really is a thing of natural beauty.  All the ingredients are prepped, so this is my healthy and packable lunch for the week.

With every crunchy bite, I’m thinking of home.  Time to plan a trip back to Chi-Town so that I can eat at Portillo’s see my parents.

Print
Yum
Chicken Chopped Salad

Chicken Chopped Salad

Ingredients

    Salad:
  • 4-6 cups chopped romaine
  • 1 cup chopped baby spinach
  • 1 cup chopped red cabbage
  • 1 finely diced roma tomato
  • 1 carrot, peeled and grated
  • 1/4 cup feta (or blue cheese or gorgonzola)
  • 2 Tbsp sunflower seeds (I used roasted/unsalted)
  • Chicken:
  • 3-4 chicken breasts
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 20 grinds pepper
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • Dressing:
  • 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp melted coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp Greek yogurt
  • 4 fresh basil leaves
  • 1/2 - 1 tsp sugar (depending on personal preference)
  • Pinch of salt

Instructions

    Marinate the Chicken:
  1. Preheat grill to medium heat.
  2. Pour lemon juice over chicken and turn to coat. Add olive oil, salt and pepper.
  3. Grill approximately 7-8 minutes per side, depending on thickness of chicken.
  4. Remove from grill and reserve for use in salad.
  5. Make the Dressing:
  6. Combine all dressing ingredients in mini-prep or blender until well combined. Season to taste. Alternatively, whisk all ingredients together.
  7. Prepare the Salad:
  8. Dice chicken into bite sized pieces.
  9. Put all salad ingredients on large platter for everyone to serve from.
  10. Let each person put desired ingredients on their plate.
  11. For each serving, combine ingredients from plate with a few teaspoons of dressing in a large bowl. Toss to combine. Return to plate.
  12. Repeat with each serving.
  13. Alternatively, combine all ingredients in large bowl and distribute among plates. Doing it individually is a good option for picky eaters.
Schema/Recipe SEO Data Markup by Yummly Rich Recipes
0.1
https://preheatlife.com/chicken-chopped-salad/

Filed Under: Dinner, Easy, lunch, New, Recipes, Salad Tagged With: chicago food, chicken, chopped salad, portillos, Salad

Recently

  • Spinach Ricotta Egg Flats November 19, 2019
  • Apple Cakebread October 30, 2019
  • Swim Food October 22, 2019
  • Skinny Down Power Up Bowl July 17, 2018
  • Quinoa Egg White Bites May 17, 2018
Previous Post: « Eggceptional Egg Bites
Next Post: Cashew Quinoa Bowl »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Let’s take this to the next level! Connect with ME:

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

Subscribe to be notified of new happenings from PreheatLife.com

Popular

Kolacky

Archives

  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • July 2018
  • May 2018
  • February 2018
  • December 2017
  • October 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org
save 20% at feastdesignco.com

Copyright © 2021 on the Foodie Pro Theme

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkPrivacy policy