Meet your new favorite salad! It hits that perfect sweet-and-savory balance, with plenty of crunchy, peppery bites, all tossed in a homemade dressing you’ll want on pretty much everything.
My Favorite Summer Salad
Arizona heat is no joke. Yes, it’s a dry heat, but 113°F is still hot. The last thing you want to do is cook, but you need to eat. This salad saves the day in the most delicious way! When you meal prep a bunch of chicken or throw some chicken strips in the toaster oven, this comes together quickly.
The peppery arugula and sharp radishes balance out the sweet raspberries and candied pecans. The salty feta, crisp cucumbers, and cabbage, and maple dijon vinaigrette round out the bite. Chicken gives it a full-bodied bite that is satisfying without feeling heavy.
Raspberry Chicken Salad Ingredients
Most of these ingredients are simple, fresh staples that create the perfect balance of texture and flavor when combined. This is a perfect way to use up that leftover chicken!
- Veggies: baby arugula, purple cabbage, English cucumber, and radishes
- Fresh raspberries
- Feta
- Cooked Chicken: oven-baked breasts or breaded chicken strips
Chef Lori’s Tip for Meal Prep: Layering is Key!
If you’re making this ahead of time, put the heavy, crunchy veggies (cabbage, cucumbers, radishes) at the bottom, then the chicken. Next, top with the feta and pecans, then the arugula. Keep the dressing separate and toss it right before eating so nothing gets soggy. Once tossed, add the raspberries on top so they don’t get mashed.
How to Assemble the Salad
Bringing this salad together takes mere minutes once everything is sliced and ready to go.
My advice is, whether you’re creating this as one big salad or several small salads, put the raspberries on at the very end to avoid smashing them when tossing the salad. In the images, I do show the berries in the salad pre-tossing, as this is simply for the photos, but right before I tossed it, I did remove them and then sprinkled them back on top.
- In a small food processor, add all the ingredients (except the poppy seeds) for the Maple Dijon Vinaigrette, then mix to combine and emulsify. Add in the poppy seeds, stir, and then set aside.
- To a large bowl, add the arugula, cucumbers, cabbage, radishes, chopped chicken, and candied pecans. Toss gently to combine. Plate, then garnish with raspberries and drizzle with the vinaigrette.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This is one of those recipes that actually leaves you feeling full and satisfied. You can go with baked chicken breasts or frozen chicken strips. This salad is a summer staple in our house as it’s light, refreshing, and just tastes really good!
- SUPER QUICK ASSEMBLY: It comes together in minutes using prepped chicken and pecans
- GREAT FOR MEAL PREP: When you layer, the sturdy veggies stay crunchy so you can pack them ahead of time.
- HITS EVERY FLAVOR NOTE: You get sweet, salty, peppery, and crunchy all in one bowl!
- TEXTURE IN EVERY BITE: Between the creamy feta, juicy berries, and crisp radishes, you never get a boring, one-note bite.
- CRAVE-WORTHY DRESSING: That homemade Maple Dijon vinaigrette cuts right through the peppery arugula and ties the whole plate together.
Arugula Chicken Salad FAQs
- Can I make the dressing ahead of time? Absolutely, I actually encourage it. It will keep in the fridge for up to a week.
- How do I keep the raspberries from getting mashed? Raspberries are fragile, so don’t toss them hard with the heavy veggies. I tend to gently scatter them over the salad before eating it.
- Can I use frozen Raspberries? Stick to fresh salad ingredients, as frozen ones will get mushy as they thaw.
- How do I meal prep this salad so it doesn’t get soggy? It’s all about layering and separation. Put the heavy, crunchy veggies (cabbage, cucumbers, radishes) at the bottom, then the chicken. Next, top with the feta and pecans, then the arugula. Keep the dressing separate and toss it right before eating so nothing gets soggy. Once tossed, add the raspberries on top so they don’t get mashed.
Easy Substitutions
This salad is very forgiving. Go with what you have on hand.
- The Greens: If you don’t like arugula, baby spinach, or mixed greens work quite nicely.
- The Fruit: Fresh blackberries or sliced strawberries are a great swap.
- The Cheese: Goat cheese or shaved parmesan can easily replace the feta.
- The Crunch: Swap the candied pecans for toasted walnuts, sliced almonds, or sunflower seeds. Or omit completely for nut allergies.
- The Protein: If you’re out of chicken, sliced turkey, or prosciutto works.
- The Dressing: Strawberry Poppy Seed Vinaigrette (dressing) or Easy Honey Peach Poppy Seed Vinaigrette both work.
- Vegetarian: You can omit the chicken and substitute chickpeas or white beans.
Here’s what I used:
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Chef Lori’s Recipe Thoughts
This salad I’ve been making for the better part of a decade. For years, Mr. Fantabulous would eat this, but ONLY if I picked out raspberries, as he’s not a big fan of them. Recently, I made this for lunch but had to step away from the counter to take a call.
When I returned, I saw him going to town on the salad – my salad. When I looked for the discarded raspberries and saw none, I asked where they were. He looked up at me, batting his eyes and said, “Yeah… so you were right, honey. They DO make the salad. Leave them in from now on.”
In that moment, I had both a win and a loss. The win was his finally trying the berries in the salad, and the loss was that I had to make a whole new salad.
Raspberry Chicken Salad with Arugula and Feta
This Arugula Raspberry Chicken Salad is the perfect mix of sweet and savory. Tender chicken, juicy raspberries, sharp radishes, feta, & candied pecans topped with a homemade maple Dijon vinaigrette.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 4 side salads or 2 large dinner salads
Ingredients
Salad
- 5 ounces baby arugula
- 1 English cucumber, sliced into coins
- 1 1/2 cups shredded purple cabbage
- 6 radishes, sliced thin
- 4–6 ounces crumbled feta
- 8–12 ounces fresh raspberries
- 8 ounces sliced cooked chicken breast (or ~7–8 cooked large chicken strips)
Maple Dijon Vinaigrette
- 1 medium shallot, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup orange juice (no sugar added)
- 1/4 cup peach vinegar
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 3/4 cup olive oil
- *optional 1-2 ounces fresh raspberries for more sweetness (about 2 ounces)
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons poppy seeds
Instructions
Make the Maple Dijon Vinaigrette
- In the bowl of a 4-cup food processor, add the shallots and, if using, the raspberries, and process for 15-25 seconds or until the shallots and raspberries are all broken down. Add the remaining ingredients except the poppy seeds. Process for about 30 seconds, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.
- Scrape and process for an additional 15 seconds, or until the mixture is fully emulsified. Add in the poppy seeds and stir to combine. When not in use, cover with a lid and store in the fridge for up to a week.
Assemble the Salad
- To a large bowl, add the arugula, cucumbers, cabbage, radishes, chopped chicken, and candied pecans. Toss gently to combine. Plate, then garnish with raspberries and drizzle with the vinaigrette.
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