Chicken Avocado Salad

Recently a friend requested me for a low fat low carb recipe and this one truly makes the cut. On the surface it seems like it may be unhealthy but this is a great dish. Avocado and rosemary grilled chicken is sprinkled with fresh lemon juice. The richness of the avocado makes it easy to go without adding additional fat in the dressing. And rosemary chicken has just the right amount of flavor to keep the taste buds happy!

There are a few must-dos for this salad that will make it better than your average salad.

• Grilled chicken breasts - the grilled chicken must be juicy and tender. There is no room for hard and stringy chicken breast meat in a salad. There are a few things that will help grilled chicken to turn out good every time .

• Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness. This is the single most important step to getting perfect grilled chicken. Pounding the meat ensures that the entire piece of meat cooks evenly and every bite has the same texture throughout. 

• Sprinkle sea salt, crushed black pepper and rosemary (dried/fresh) on your chicken breast towards the end of the pounding. This will make sure that the seasonings will stick to the meat. 

• Add a bit of extra virgin olive oil to the heated pan just before you put in the chicken breast. This is a lean piece of meat and the bit of fat in the pan will ensure that the meat gets nicely browned on both sides. I love the fruity flavor of olive oil. But care must be taken to never heat it in the pan for a long time as it may burn. 

• Play with textures in a salad. I believe in having different textures in every meal I eat. It may not be possible always but its very easy to achieve it in this salad. If I break it down for you - the chicken has a bite to it, the avocado is rich and smooth, cherry tomatoes give a bit of sweetness, spring onions give a bit of crunch and a mild onion taste. Nuts or dried fruits are another great way to add texture. I use pistachios in this salad. They have a wonderful green color that complements the avocado and spring onions and a mild crunchy taste with a hint of sweetness! This combination, sprinkled generously with sea salt and lemon juice is a feast for the palette. 

The final finishing touch to this salad is a bed of baby spinach leaves. I cannot even begin to describe how much I love these greens. They dont need to be cooked and hence very healthy! I just toss spinach leaves with some fat free Italian dressing and that is the bed on which I like to serve the salad. It complements the richness of the salad very well.

This is just one way of making this salad or any salad that works well for me but feel free to change as you like it. Play with the ingredients, the dressings, the textures and you'll enjoy it for sure!

✅ INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup grilled chicken breast cubes (please refer to the note above)
• 1 avocado (halved, stone and pulp removed and cut into cubes)
• 1/2 cup cherry tomato halves
• 1 spring onion (chopped finely)
• 2 tablespoons pistachio nuts (chopped)
• 2 cups baby spinach (washed and dried)
• 1 teaspoon fat free Italian dressing
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• sea salt to taste.

✅ INSTRUCTIONS

1. Prepare the chicken as recommended in the note above. Alternatively you may use already roasted chicken that can be bought at the supermarket. Cut into cubes and set aside to come to room temperature. 
2. In a bowl, add the avocado, spring onions, cherry tomatoes and pistachio nuts and mix to combine. Add the chicken pieces, sprinkle with sea salt, lemon juice and mix to combine. 
3. Toss the salad leaves with the fat free dressing and make a bed on a serving plate. Top with the chicken mixture above and serve.

Jyotsna

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About Wanni Arachchige Udara Madusanka Perera

Hey, I'm Perera! I will try to give you technology reviews(mobile,gadgets,smart watch & other technology things), Automobiles, News and entertainment for built up your knowledge.