Pittsburgh Chicken Salad Recipe

This Pittsburgh chicken salad recipe will change the way you think about salads. A salad usually has a lot of greens, other vegetables, and more often than not, protein.

Pittsburgh chicken salad, however, features a food item you never thought would make its way into a salad: French fries. Let’s see how these ingredients work together to make a healthy salad.

Is This Pittsburgh Chicken Salad Recipe Healthy?

Yes, this Pittsburgh chicken salad is healthy. This may surprise you, but this layered salad with chicken and French fries can be a part of a healthy diet.

There are 232 calories, 2.7 g of saturated fat, and 57 mg of cholesterol in each serving of this salad. These are reasonable numbers considering there are high-calorie items like cheese, French fries, and mayonnaise in this salad.

Save

Sticking to our nutrition guidelines, we also limit the sodium level of the salad to 266 mg.

Thanks to the chicken, this salad also contains 16 g of lean protein, which promotes muscle health and can contribute to weight loss.

The vegetables in this recipe include lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and potatoes. They provide you with fiber and antioxidants, which supports heart, skin, and digestive health.

Main Ingredients

• For the chicken

We use skinless and boneless chicken breast as it is the leanest cut of chicken. The seasoning contains olive oil, paprika, pepper, salt, and garlic powder.

• For the salad

The vegetable lineup consists of cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red onions, romaine lettuce, and potatoes. The latter is made into French fries, which is the signature twist of a Pittsburgh salad.

Cheddar cheese is never a bad choice for a chicken salad, as its sharp flavors complement the chicken nicely.

• For the dressing

We choose a simple but creamy dressing for this salad. Mayonnaise, milk, Greek yogurt, and garlic powder make a dressing compatible with chicken and fries.

• Garnish

Sprinkle some parsley to add some color and herby flavors to this already stacked salad.

Save

What Else Can You Add to This Salad?

Adding more vegetables never hurts. Some of our favorites are carrots, radishes, and celery.

You can also substitute the ingredients in the salad. For the vegetables, you can experiment and use ones with similar tastes and textures.

In Pittsburgh, this salad is called steak salad so beef or even salmon are some protein alternatives.

If you’re looking for new flavors, replace cheddar cheese with blue or pimento cheese.

The dressing is also customizable. There are renditions of this salad that feature Buffalo sauce or ranch dressing.

How to Store and Reheat the Leftovers

• Salad

The salad, including the French fries, should last for 3-4 days in the fridge. Transfer the leftover salad to an airtight container and refrigerate.

We don’t recommend freezing salad because the high-water content of the ingredients can turn them mushy.

• Chicken

Cooked chicken breast should stay fresh in the fridge for 3-4 days, same as the salad. Store the chicken in a separate airtight container. You can also freeze chicken for up to 4 months in airtight containers or heavy-duty freezer bags.

You can reheat chicken using the microwave, oven, air-fryer, or skillet. Add a little water while reheating to prevent the chicken from drying, this isn’t applicable for air-fryers.

Save

Awesome Salads Featuring Grilled Meats

In just 20 minutes you can make a flavorful salad with shiny, sticky chunks of chicken that is our BBQ chicken salad. The BBQ sauce is our homemade version, made to suit a salad so that everything is balanced in taste.

We adore the idea of a salad mix: a convenient bag of greens that saves us from having to go through various types of lettuce. We made this grilled chicken salad with one by simply making a balsamic dressing, grill some chicken, chop it up, and toss everything together. The grapes, however, were a nice addition that adds an addictive juiciness.

How to Make Pittsburgh Chicken Salad

5 from 1 vote

Our Pittsburgh chicken salad recipe shows you how to make a salad with chicken breast and vegetables in a new and unique way.

Pin Print

• cook TIME 20 mins
• prep TIME 10 mins
• total TIME 30 mins

• COURSE Side Dish
• CUISINE American
• SERVINGS
  4

  servings
• CALORIES 232 kcal

INGREDIENTS

1x2x3x

• 8 oz skinless boneless chicken breast
• 8 oz potatoes (cut into strips)
• 3 oz chocolate cherry tomatoes (halved)
• 4 oz romaine lettuce (roughly chopped)
• 2 oz cucumbers (sliced)
• 1 oz red onion (sliced)
• 0.5 oz cheddar cheese (shredded)
• 2 tbsp parsley (finely chopped)
• 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp milk
• 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder (divided)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt

INSTRUCTIONS

Prep

1

Chicken: The USDA does not recommend washing or rinsing raw chicken as doing so can spread bacteria to kitchen surfaces.

2

Vegetables: The first thing you need to do is wash them carefully since we’re not cooking them. Wash them gently under running water.

Cook

1

Season 8 oz chicken with 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Mix well and let them marinate for 3 minutes.

2

Place the marinated chicken and 8 oz of cut potatoes on a lined baking tray. Cook in the oven for 12 minutes at 400°F.

3

Meanwhile, make the dressing. Combine 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise, 2 tbsp milk, 2 tbsp Greek yogurt, and 1/2 tsp garlic powder.

4

Let the fries and chicken cool then slice the chicken into equal slices of your choosing.

5

Assemble the salad with 4 oz romaine lettuce, 2 oz cucumbers, 3 oz cherry tomatoes, 1 oz red onion, fries, chicken, and 0.5 oz cheddar cheese.

6

Garnish with 2 tbsp parsley, serve, and enjoy.

NUTRITION

Nutrition Facts

How to Make Pittsburgh Chicken Salad

Amount Per Serving (1 serving)

Calories 232Calories from Fat 108

% Daily Value*

Fat 12g

18%

Saturated Fat 2.7g

17%

Trans Fat 1g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 3g

Cholesterol 57mg

19%

Sodium 266mg

12%

Potassium 631mg

18%

Carbohydrate 14g

5%

Fiber 3g

13%

Sugar 3g

3%

Protein 16g

32%

Vitamin A 3038IU

61%

Vitamin C 15mg

18%

Calcium 64mg

6%

Iron 1mg

6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Keywords: how to make pittsburgh chicken salad, pittsburgh chicken salad, pittsburgh chicken salad recipe