Flavor-Packed 30-Minute Grilled Chicken Artichoke Salad You’ll Love

This grilled chicken artichoke salad was one of the first dishes I fell in love with when I moved to Knoxville. Excited to try all the new restaurants, I set my sights on Central Flats and Taps, one of the highest-rated spots my friends couldn’t stop raving about. So, on date night, my hubby and I gave it a try.

Dan became obsessed with their spicy hot wings while I swooned over the grilled chicken artichoke salad (they call it the Spicy Chicken Salad). It was so simple and fresh that I was pretty sure I could recreate it at home and save some moo-lah.

Why 30-Minute Grilled Chicken Artichoke Salad is Perfect for Food Lovers

I was right! I was able to make this scrumptious grilled chicken artichoke salad in under 30 minutes and for a fraction of the cost. Though I love date night and having someone else wash the dishes, I was excited to make something at home that tasted so “restaurant quality.” Let me show you how I made it:

Step 1: The Salad

This is super simple: just lettuce and cucumber. I used a bag of spring mix and then diced a cucumber with the skin still on. Later on, you’ll need a can of drained artichokes and some roasted red peppers. I bought them in a jar from Mezzetta’s.

Step 2: The Chicken

This step is also really easy: 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts put into a ziplock bag and smothered in Italian dressing. Use as much dressing as you like. I think I used about 3/4 cup to 1 cup. I let it marinate for about 10-15 minutes, but you could leave it for up to an hour.

Heat up your skillet with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, and then grill the chicken. I used my cast iron skillet since it is well seasoned, but you could easily use a large saute pan, a grill pan, or outdoor BBQ. Cook the chicken for about 5-7 minutes on each side or until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.

Remove the chicken and let it rest for a few minutes while you prepare the rest of the salad. When you’re done, cut it into slivers.

For each plate of grilled chicken artichoke salad, I took a generous portion of greens and topped it with roasted red bell peppers and artichokes. Then I sprinkled on feta cheese. Blue cheese also tastes wonderful on this salad.

Step 3: The Dressing

The standard ratio for a vinaigrette dressing is 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. You can dress it up with fancy ingredients like grainy mustard, shallots, or your favorite herbs. But I like my balsamic vinaigrette simple. I whisked up 3 Tablespoons of olive oil, 1 Tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, and a pinch of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper (maybe a 1/8 tsp of each). Bada bing, bada boom… DONE! Whisk it up and pour a little over your grilled chicken artichoke salad.

If you want to make a large batch of this dressing and keep it in the fridge for salads throughout the week, try this proportion and shake it in a mason jar:

3/4 cup olive oil + 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar + 1/2 tsp Kosher salt + 1/2 tsp ground pepper + optional add-ins = SUPER YUMMY BALSAMIC VINAIGRETTE!

Optional add-ins could be minced garlic, herbs (such as oregano or basil), shallots, honey, brown sugar, red pepper flakes, etc.

Enjoy Your 30-Minute Grilled Chicken Artichoke Salad

And there you have it! A beautiful, healthy, and restaurant-quality grilled chicken artichoke salad in 30 minutes! My family and I enjoyed the salads with copycat Starbucks black tea lemonade and M&M peanut butter bars for dessert.

I think this salad would also be great to serve at a large dinner party or at a backyard BBQ. Toss it at the last minute with the balsamic dressing so it doesn’t get soggy. Is this a salad you think you’ll try? Leave me a comment below and let me know! Happy cooking, y’all!

30-Minute Grilled Chicken Artichoke Salad

A flavor-packed 30-minute main-dish salad: Italian-dressing marinated chicken grilled in a cast iron skillet over spring mix with cucumber, artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers and feta, with a simple 3-to-1 balsamic vinaigrette.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Servings: 4 salads

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: American

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

Chicken

• 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3/4-1 cup Italian dressing for marinating
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Salad

• 1 bag spring mix
• 1 cucumber diced, skin on
• 14 oz artichoke hearts 1 can, drained
• 1/2 cup roasted red peppers jarred, such as Mezzetta
• 1/2 cup feta cheese or blue cheese

Balsamic vinaigrette

• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Method

 

1. Put the chicken in a zip-top bag with the Italian dressing and marinate 10-15 minutes (up to an hour).
2. Heat the olive oil in a cast iron skillet (or grill pan or BBQ) and cook the chicken 5-7 minutes per side, until it reaches 160°F (rising to 165°F as it rests). Rest a few minutes, then slice into slivers.
3. Pile spring mix and cucumber on each plate and top with artichokes, roasted red peppers and feta.
4. Whisk the olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper (the classic 3-to-1 ratio) and drizzle a little over each salad. Top with the sliced chicken.

Notes

Dress the vinaigrette up with grainy mustard, shallots or herbs if you like, or make a big batch and keep it in the fridge.