Chicken Pesto Salad
Crunchy and colourful, this salad tastes as vibrant as it looks! Herby pesto, salty feta and tender chicken make this your new favourite slimming-friendly lunch.
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NutritionPer Serving
- Calories375
- Carbs4.9g
- Protein37g
- Fat22g
- Saturates3.8g
- Sugars4.3g
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For the full list of ingredients and comprehensive instructions, please see the recipe card below. Before you scroll, there’s important stuff in the blurb!
Every bite of this salad is bursting with fresh flavours! It tastes every bit as summery as it looks, with a zesty, lemon-infused pesto and loads of crunchy, crisp veggies. We’ve marinated the chicken in the same pesto mixture that’s used as the salad dressing – how’s that for easy?
It’s worth letting your chicken sit in the marinade in the fridge for at least half an hour to really infuse those zingy, garlicky, herby flavours. Chop up all your salad veggies while you’re waiting. We’re using lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cucumber and radishes in ours for the perfect crunch, but you can pretty much throw in any veggies that you like. Peppers, red onion, carrot – anything goes!
Finished with a crumble of feta cheese and a drizzle of the dressing, this salad is such a tasty lunch or light dinner.
What diets is this Chicken Pesto Salad suitable for?
This Chicken Pesto Salad recipe is suitable for gluten free diets. It can be made dairy free as long as you substitute the pesto and feta cheese for dairy free versions.
Please make sure to double check all of your ingredients if you’re cooking for people with allergies.
Do you need any special ingredients to make Chicken Pesto Salad?
This is such an easy recipe! You don’t need any special ingredients or equipment to make this delicious salad.
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‘Super simple, super tasty and super fresh. Just what I needed on a hot summer's evening. Perfect for a light lunch or dinner with a side of homemade chips or a jacket potato.’
How many calories are in this Chicken Pesto Salad?
There are 375 calories per portion in this Chicken Pesto Salad recipe, which means it falls into our Everyday Light recipe category. If you’re counting calories or following one of the popular diet plans like Weight Watchers, this recipe fits in perfectly!
NHS guidelines suggest men should aim for 2,500 calories per day to maintain a healthy body weight, and women require around 2000 calories. Each person has different calorie requirements depending on their goal, so you may want to adjust your daily calorie intake according to your own personal goal.
Step 1
In a small bowl, combine the pesto, lemon juice, garlic, water and season with a little salt and pepper.
Step 2
Add the chicken to a bowl and pour over half the dressing. Coat the chicken, cover and pop into the fridge for 30 minutes.
Step 3
Add the pine nuts to a small frying pan and set on a low heat. Heat for 2 minutes until the pine nuts are lightly toasted and golden. Leave to one side.
Step 4
Assemble the salad. Divide the lettuce, tomatoes, radish and cucumber between two plates. Crumble over the feta cheese and sprinkle over the pine nuts.
Step 5
Once the chicken has marinated, spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray. Set on a medium heat add the chicken to the pan. Cook for 10 minutes, moving the chicken round the pan to brown on all sides. Check that the chicken is cooked through, and no pinkness remains.
Step 6
Add the chicken to the top of the salad, drizzle over the remaining dressing and serve.
What could I serve with this Chicken Pesto Salad?
This salad is perfect on its own as a lunch or light dinner. If you’re feeling hungry and want to make it into a heartier meal, you could serve it alongside any of the following dishes:
How do you know when Chicken Pesto Salad is cooked?
You should cook this Chicken Pesto Salad until the chicken is cooked all the way through. The juices should run clear and there should be no pinkness left inside. This should take around 10 minutes,
To keep your family safe, the advice here in the UK is to cook food until it has reached 70°C and maintained that temperature for 2 minutes.
How long can you keep Chicken Pesto Salad in the fridge?
Once you’ve served this recipe, we’d recommend that you eat it within 4 hours.
The marinade can be prepared earlier in the day, and the chicken can be left to marinate in the fridge until you’re ready to serve the salad.
Once the chicken has been cooked it can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. The cooked chicken can be served cold or reheated. We’d recommend making the rest of the salad fresh each time – you want it to be crisp and as crunchy as possible!
Can I freeze Chicken Pesto Salad?
We wouldn’t recommend freezing this recipe. It tastes best when it’s freshly made and served right away.
How do I reheat Chicken Pesto Salad?
If you have marinated and cooked the chicken in advance and stored it in the fridge, it can be reheated from chilled prior to serving. Place the chicken in a microwave safe container and heat until it is piping hot.
Alternatively you can reheat in a frying pan until piping hot all the way through.
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Chicken Pesto Salad
Crunchy and colourful, this salad tastes as vibrant as it looks! Herby pesto, salty feta and tender chicken make this your new favourite slimming-friendly lunch.
-
Prep Time
5 MINS
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Cook Time
10 MINS
- KCals 375
- Carbs 4.9G
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the pesto, lemon juice, garlic, water and season with a little salt and pepper.
- Add the chicken to a bowl and pour over half the dressing. Coat the chicken, cover and pop into the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Add the pine nuts to a small frying pan and set on a low heat. Heat for 2 minutes until the pine nuts are lightly toasted and golden. Leave to one side.
- Assemble the salad. Divide the lettuce, tomatoes, radish and cucumber between two plates. Crumble over the feta cheese and sprinkle over the pine nuts.
- Once the chicken has marinated, spray a frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray. Set on a medium heat add the chicken to the pan. Cook for 10 minutes, moving the chicken round the pan to brown on all sides. Check that the chicken is cooked through, and no pinkness remains.
- Add the chicken to the top of the salad, drizzle over the remaining dressing and serve.
Looking for Slimming World Syns or Weight Watchers (WW) Points?
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6 comments
See what others have to say
SamTuesday 14th June 2022
Love this recipe! Could you also do this with red pesto for a different version?
HollyTuesday 14th June 2022
Hey Sam, You could swap the green pesto for red pesto which sounds super tasty! Just remember to make any calorie adjustment needed, hope that helps!
Amanda HughesTuesday 14th June 2022
Would this dish go with salmon instead of chicken?
HollyTuesday 14th June 2022
Hey Amanda, yes you could swap the chicken for salmon and adjust the calories accordingly, hope that helps!
NicolaMonday 30th May 2022
Chicken breasts vary in size by quite a bit. What weight of chicken is included in the calories here please?
SharonMonday 30th May 2022
Hi Nicola, we used chicken breasts that weigh 130g each, so a total of 260g. Do hope this helps.
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