THE BEST CHICKEN SALAD ON THE PLANET
GRILLED Lemon-Herb Mediterranian CHICKEN Salad
Raju Patel
By popular vote, the top 2 winners of the chicken salad contest were both leafy and green, full of bright flavors and colors! These were not Grandma's chicken salads, these were not mayo-driven comfort salads.
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The winner, Lemon-Herb Mediterranean Salad, doesn't even come with a recipe. It's an invitation and a celebration.
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"Eat vibrantly! Revel in fresh and bold flavors."
Those of us here in Washington State during the grey rainy days of our winter, seeing this salad, eating this salad, hear an extra invitation when we look at this salad, "Remember the sun!"
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There are no rules for this salad: no measuring, be creative, just dive in!
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Since high school days, I've kept a recipe diary where I glue clippings from magazines and hand-written notes, especially my mother's homemade recipes.
I used to assist my mother in marinating and decorating, and this continues today as a regular weekend thing. The best part is the memories attached to it, the aroma of the lemon, easy available spices, boneless part of the chicken, and obviously rich in protein and minerals.
Words won't end describing this. Lastly, the pure lemon aroma sticks to my fingers for hours, which is just worth of everything!

The best chicken
salad is grilled lemon- herb Mediterranean chicken salad.
The picture says it all!
— Raju Patel
Runner-up
SOUTHWEST CHICKEN Salad
Preeti Ojha

Recipe
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Dipping the chicken in egg first will help the breadcrumbs stick to the chicken. The breadcrumbs and panko become crispy in the oven. The real secret to getting the chicken nice and crispy is to increase the temperature of the oven.
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You will want to line your baking sheet with foil and spray it with nonstick cooking spray so the breadcrumbs don’t stick to the pan. Bake the chicken at 425 F. for six to seven minutes per side. The key is to not overcook the chicken as it will cook fast when it's cut up into smaller pieces like this. You can buy chicken already cut into tenders at the grocery store, or you can cut up boneless, skinless chicken breasts yourself. (If need to make it with grilled chicken, In that recipe, the chicken is seasoned with just a bit of olive oil and taco seasoning, which would work perfectly for this recipe. If you want more of a Smokey flavor and summery feel to this southwest salad, go with the grilled chicken! It will also help cut down on the calories and carbs a little bit.
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My salad dressing recipe uses sour cream as a base with lime juice and other spices mixed in. Here's what you see pictured above: Sour cream, Lime juice, Salt, Cumin, Chili flakes, Paprika, Garlic powder. Feel free to adjust the amount of chili flakes or cumin to make it more or less spicy.
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Mix every thing topping it up with tender chicken and enjoy.
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