• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Delicious on a Dime

Delicious & Affordable Seasonal Recipes - Delicious on a Dime

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Recipe Index
  • Save Money
    • Stock your Pantry on a Dime
    • Stock your Freezer on a Dime
    • 2 Easy Ways to Save Leftover Tomato Paste
    • 7 Steps to Meal Planning
    • Fresh Herbs
    • Freeze Cheese
    • Freeze Goat Cheese
    • Freeze Mushrooms
    • Superstar Food for Your Budget
    • Stock Your First Kitchen
    • Stock Your Fridge on a Dime
    • The Best $10 Kitchen Tool
  • Food for Thought
    • What are we to do?
    • On Buying Local
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
Home » Recipes » Salads » Strawberry Chicken Salad with Creamy Maple Dressing

Strawberry Chicken Salad with Creamy Maple Dressing

2 · Jul 23, 2019 · 2 Comments

Sharing is caring!

  • Pin
  • Share
  • Yummly
Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
This EASY Strawberry Chicken Salad and the Creamy Maple Dressing that goes with it are SO addictive you’ll be craving it every day!  The perfect summer salad!
Platter of Strawberry Chicken Salad with sliced apples, walnuts and goat cheese
Ok guys, this salad (and the dressing) is one of my ABSOLUTE favourite things to eat right now.
It’s easy.  It’s fast.  It requires very little cooking.
It is so freaking delicious it might just be my favourite salad EVER.
And I bet, if you try it, it’ll be your favourite salad ever, too!
Juicy summer strawberries, simple savoury chicken, creamy goat cheese, earthy walnuts and THE MOST AMAZING SALAD DRESSING YOU WILL EVER EAT.
Haha.  Yup.  It really is that good. (Did I mention it only has two ingredients and takes ONE minute to make?)
If some of those ingredients sound expensive, don’t worry!  We’re going to chat about keeping costs under control, below.

Tips to make this Summer Strawberry Salad budget friendly:

We employ a few tricks with the salad ingredients to make it more affordable that you’d first think.
1. Use seasonal fruit.  This is the perfect summer salad, because strawberries are fresh, cheap and so sweet and delicious!
2. Buy goat cheese in bulk.  We buy our goat cheese at Costco and freeze it.  Read about how easy it is to freeze goat cheese in this post, so you can save money on groceries!
3. Have a stocked pantry (read about our pantry essentials here).  We buy walnuts and pumpkin seeds in bulk and save a lot of money that way.  Where we live, Costco has the best price on walnuts.  And I pick up pumpkin seeds at Walmart (Joe’s Tasty Travels brand seems to be the cheapest option).
4. Stock up on chicken breast when it’s on sale and freeze it individually (did you know you can freeze individual chicken breasts without even touching them?!  Check out our simple chicken breast freezing instructions here!).
I find one large chicken breast is fine for a dinner salad for two people, especially if the salad incorporates other hearty foods like walnuts, pumpkin seeds and apples.
5.  Be flexible.  You can easily change up the greens we use in this recipe, so use whatever you have easy access to (if you have spinach in your fridge or garden, don’t run out and buy mixed greens!).
Also, keeping a pot of chives growing on your window sill is a great way to have constant access to chives and other fresh herbs  – check out this post on growing herbs to save money!

Close up view of Strawberry Chicken Salad

FAQS – Strawberry Salad with Chicken

Can I use frozen strawberries for this salad?

I haven’t tried it, but I honestly don’t think it would work out very well.  The texture of the strawberries would be wet and mushy and I’m not sure it would make the best salad.
This is a fantastic summer salad recipe because that’s when fresh strawberries are at their BEST.  Let’s enjoy them while they’re in season 🙂

Can I make this strawberry chicken salad ahead of time?

Sure!  While I looooove the combination of hot chicken on goat cheese in salads, you can definitely make all the components of this salad ahead of time, and just mix it together at the last minute.  I would let the people eating it add their own dressing at the time of eating.

Do I have to use goat cheese/walnuts/apples/pumpkin seeds for this salad?

Nope.  Feel free to substitute with what you have easy access to (this makes it more convenient and also more budget friendly).  Do you have almonds or pecans?  You can use those.  Do you have pears?  They’d be delicious too.   If you have feta in your fridge don’t run out and buy goat cheese (although it does have some great health benefits).  You get the idea. 🙂

Can I use a different dressing with this salad?

Yes, technically you can use whatever you have on-hand, or think would be tasty with this flavour combo.  HOWEVER…  I think that this Creamy Maple Salad Dressing is LITERALLY the most delicious salad dressing I’ve ever eaten and seriously lends itself to the flavours of this salad, so I highly recommend you at least try it ONCE.  Please!!!!

The perfect summer salad – Step-by-Step Instructions

Chicken breast, strawberries, goat cheese, mixed greens, walnuts, apples, pumpkin seeds, chives

Ingredients for Strawberry Chicken Salad

Chunks of raw chicken

Cut raw chicken up into bite-sized pieces.

Chunks of chicken cooking in a frying pan

Heat some oil over medium in a frying pan and when it’s decently hot, add the chicken pieces, spreading them out so that they are all touching the pan.  Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper
Tip: Let the chicken pieces cook for at least 3-4 minutes before you move them, which will help them turn golden brown.

Chunks of chicken searing in a frying pan

Once they’ve cooked on the first side, turn them over to cook for at least 3-4 minutes on the other side.
Tip:  To see if they’re done, cut open the biggest piece to make sure it’s cooked through (the meat is white).  I like to quickly brown them a bit on all sides, but try not to overcook them because then the chicken will be dry.

Slices of strawberries and apples for Strawberry Chicken Salad -

While the chicken is cooking, prep the other salad ingredients.  Wash and slice the strawberries and apples.
Tip:  If you don’t plan to serve this immediately, squeeze a bit of fresh lemon juice over your apple slices to keep them from browning.

Crumbled goat cheese and walnuts for Strawberry Chicken Salad

Cut up or crumble goat cheese and roughly chop walnuts into pieces (if using whole walnuts).  Feel free to toast your walnuts in a dry pan if you want to (sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t – just depends – this salad is delicious either way).

Platter of Strawberry Chicken Salad - with dressing

Assemble on individual plates or a large platter, starting with washed and dried greens, adding slices of apples and strawberries, and scattering pumpkin seeds (pepitas), walnuts, goat cheese and chopped chives around.  Top with chicken and serve.
Tip:  I LOOOOVE topping this with the hot chicken straight from the pan (and also hot walnuts, when I opt to toast them) because it melts the goat cheese, but if that’s not your thing you can cool the chicken (or even cook it in advance) and just let it warm to room temperature for a few minutes before serving.

Platter of Strawberry Chicken Salad with dressing being poured on

Serve with the MOST amazing salad dressing you will ever eat – our Creamy Maple Salad Dressing.  It’s a beautiful match for the ingredients in this salad!
Enjoy! 🙂
5 from 1 vote
Platter of Strawberry Chicken Salad with sliced apples, walnuts and goat cheese
Print
Strawberry Chicken Salad
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
 

This EASY Strawberry Chicken Salad and the Creamy Maple Dressing that goes with it are SO addictive you'll be craving it every day!  The perfect summer salad!

Course: Main Course, Side Dish
Cuisine: Canadian
Keyword: salad recipes, summer salad
Servings: 4 as side dish, 2 as main dish
Calories: 336 kcal
Author: Myra
Ingredients
  • 1 chicken breast
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 apple
  • 1 cup strawberries
  • 4 oz goat cheese
  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
  • 2 tbsp chives (or can use minced red onions, or even regular onions - soak in water to lessen the bite)
  • 4 cups washed and dried mixed greens (or can substitute whatever you have on-hand)
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 batch Creamy Maple Salad Dressing*
Instructions
  1. Heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.

  2. Once pan is hot, add olive oil, swirl to coat bottom of pan and add chicken, spreading it out over the bottom of the pan. Season generously with salt and pepper. Let chicken cook 3-4 minutes without disturbing it, before flipping it to cook the other side. Once it is nearly cooked through, stir it around to brown all sides**. Taste a small piece. If it tastes blah, add a bit more salt.

  3. While chicken is cooking, use a new cutting board to slice apples and strawberries, crumble goat cheese and chop walnuts into smaller pieces (if using whole walnuts). Mince chives.

  4. Arrange salad on individual plates or a platter, starting with mixed greens. Then, evenly sprinkle apples, strawberries, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, goat cheese, chives and chicken. Finish with freshly cracked salt and pepper.

  5. *Serve with Creamy Maple Salad Dressing and enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes
*Creamy Maple Salad Dressing
**Cut open the largest piece of chicken to make sure the meat is cooked (white) inside.
Nutrition Facts
Strawberry Chicken Salad
Amount Per Serving
Calories 336 Calories from Fat 207
% Daily Value*
Fat 23g35%
Saturated Fat 6g38%
Cholesterol 49mg16%
Sodium 182mg8%
Potassium 487mg14%
Carbohydrates 13g4%
Fiber 3g13%
Sugar 7g8%
Protein 22g44%
Vitamin A 854IU17%
Vitamin C 34mg41%
Calcium 71mg7%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

You might also like:

Healthy Fall Salad with Kale, Sweet Potatoes and Creamy Maple Curry Dressing is delicious and easy
Healthy Fall Salad
Large black bowl full of creamy chayote squash salad with bacon, cheddar cheese and onions
Chayote Salad Recipe
This Healthy Mexican Salad is super easy to make and is amazing with our Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing! Make it as a dinner salad or a side dish - it's fantastic!
Healthy Mexican Salad
2

All Recipes, Appetizers, Chicken, Fast & Easy, Gluten Free & Gluten Free Option, Healthy, Main Course, Make Ahead, Parties & Potlucks, Salads, Side Dish, Spring, Summer, Vegetarian & Vegetarian Option spring, summer

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Alvina says

    July 24, 2019 at 7:47 am

    Will definitely be trying this one, sounds delicious.

    Reply
    • Myra says

      July 24, 2019 at 8:22 am

      Thanks! Hope you like it! 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

About Us

About Us Photo

Hi!  We're Myra & Laurier.
We want to help YOU eat delicious food, AND save money on groceries!
With years of experience, we bring you EASY and CHEAP recipes and tips.
Take back control of your grocery budget, AND eat amazing food.
READ MORE

Popular Posts

Chocolate Cherry Coconut Cheesecake - tastes like a cherry blossom! - such an easy homemade dessert recipe - for the holidays or anytime!

Chocolate Cherry Coconut Cheesecake – tastes like a cherry blossom!

Leftover Turkey Shepherd's Pie is ready to eat (or an easy freezer meal)

Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie (freezer meal!)

Compilation of photos of recipes using ripe bananas

25+ Overripe Banana Recipes – The BEST Ways To Use Them Up!

Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken - a simple sauce that's fantastic on chicken or pork!

Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken

The most delicious ways to use lemon curd, from some of the Internet's best food and recipe bloggers. Whether you're looking for dessert, breakfast or just for a treat, these recipes should come with a warning: prepare yourself for some serious lemon cravings.

15 Incredible Recipes Using Lemon Curd That You Need In Your Life

Cake roll covered with whipped cream and sliced strawberries, garnished with mint leaves, on a colourful platter decorated with flowers

Easy Strawberry Cake Roll

Cover of $5 Meals eBook with salad on cover.

Popular Fall Recipes

Healthy Lemon Blueberry Muffins (with yogurt!) are perfect for clean eating or just for regular baking - make your mornings delicious!

Healthy Lemon Blueberry Muffins (with yogurt!)

This Light and Fluffy Stuffing was the perfect addition to a heavy holiday meal. Delicious!

Light and Fluffy Stuffing

Make this easy, healthy, (cheap!) granola today! It's fantastic!

The Ultimate Guide to Easy, Healthy, (Cheap!) Granola

Bowls of bright orange Thai butternut squash soup ready to eat

Thai Curry Soup – with squash, carrots or sweet potatoes!

Amazon Associate Disclosure

Creative Cooking Solutions is a participant in the Amazon.com.ca, Inc. Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.ca. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Footer

Copyright © 2019 · Delicious on a Dime · Privacy Policy

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok