BACON HONEY MUSTARD CHICKEN SALAD
The heat of summer calls for salads - and this Bacon Honey Mustard Chicken Salad does not disappoint! It's got tender chicken, crispy bacon, sweet corn, juicy tomatoes, ripe avocado, and zingy dressing all on a bed of crisp romaine. This salad is also macro-balanced, gluten free, and dairy free!
Did you know? Nitrites (like those found in bacon) can either be converted to carcinogenic nitrosamines or heart-healthy nitric oxide in your stomach. Research shows that consuming nitrites with vitamin C and antioxidants favors the formation of nitric oxide. This is could be why nitrites in vegetables have not been linked to pancreatic or colon cancers! (source)
So, if you're going to eat bacon, worry less about "cured versus uncured" (both have nitrites), and worry more about how much vitamin C you're consuming along with it! Tomatoes are a great source of vitamin C.
Choosing the best chicken
For this recipe, you can use chicken breasts or chicken tenderloins. I used chicken breast because that's what I had. Look for "free range" chicken raised with "no antibiotics," which indicates the chickens had outdoor access and were free of disease. "Organic" chicken is required to have outdoor access, cannot be administered antibiotics, and must be fed organic feed. I try to purchase "animal welfare certified" chicken when I can find it, because it's important to me that animals are treated humanely and allowed to live a happy life.
Making the dressing
The dressing combines lemon juice, honey, wholegrain mustard, dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, fresh garlic, and pepper. Feel free to swap the fresh garlic for one quarter teaspoon of granulated garlic or garlic powder if that's all you have! If you'd like a richer dressing, you can swap the lemon juice for olive oil. You can also use more or less honey depending on your personal preference for sweetness.
Best vegetables for salad
Honestly, use whatever you like that's in season! I went with sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, avocado and romaine lettuce. You could also do boiled potato, red pepper, carrot ribbons, cucumber, summer squash, butter lettuce, green onion, or chives. If you want a truly striking salad, try to choose a variety of colors.
The avocado should only be added when ready to eat! You can also omit the avocado and use olive oil instead of lemon juice on the dressing for some healthy fats.
Meal prep option
If you'd like to use this salad recipe for meal prep, I would suggest freezing the chicken and bacon portions together, refrigerating the salad portions, and storing the dressing in a separate container in the fridge. Then you can reheat the chicken and bacon, add to your salad, and top with dressing! I find this method allows maximum convenience while still keeping the flavors fresh.
Here is the printable recipe for this Bacon Honey Mustard Chicken Salad. I hope you'll rate and comment below if you try it!
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