I love a good Caesar salad. It is actually one of my favorite types of salad. As simple as it is, the flavor of a good Caesar salad combined with the crunchiness of the Romaine lettuce and the croutons are a beautiful combination. The Caesar salad has its origins in Mexico, where it was created by an Italian-American restaurateur in the 1920s.
The bold flavors of anchovies, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic are crucial components of a good Caesar dressing. Something I have learned over the years is that the fewer ingredients a recipe calls for, the more important it is that those ingredients are high quality. When making Caesar salad at home, I shop for the brightest, crispest Romaine lettuce I can find. Even better is getting the lettuce right out of our garden, though sadly the heat here limits our lettuce crop each year. I love using whole, fresh lemons and freshly grated Parmesan, and I like using homemade croutons if we have any in the pantry.
Sometimes meal prep requires a LOT of prep. That is okay, because having meals ready for the whole week makes that prep worth it. Other times, though, it is nice to make meals that require very little work. This is one of those meals. Using a good Caesar salad as the base, all we do is blacken some chicken, slice it, and add it to our salad. It makes for a great tasting, light, and healthy lunch that leaves you full and energized.
For the blackened chicken, I use boneless, skinless breasts that I butterfly before seasoning and cooking. Butterflying the breasts makes it easier to cook them more evenly while preventing them from drying out. I love firing up the grill to cook chicken breasts, but I actually prefer to make these on the stovetop in a good cast iron skillet.
The key to good blackened chicken is butter. Use plenty of butter and heat it to just before it starts burning. This nice, hot butter will help to form the beautiful crust we are looking for. As for the seasoning, I find it is easiest to use your favorite blackening seasoning. I personally love Old Bay® Blackened Seasoning. One thing to check when seasoning is if your chosen seasoning contains salt. The Old Bay® contains salt, so that is all I use. I have used seasonings without salt in the past, and when I do, I make sure to salt the breasts before adding the seasoning.
One last note on cooking the chicken: resist the urge to turn the chicken too soon or too much! You must leave the chicken in place for a few minutes before turning it to build that beautiful crust. If you butterfly the breasts like I recommend, the chicken usually only takes about 15 minutes to cook. Always check the meat with a meat thermometer, though, ensuring the chicken is cooked to a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the thickest part of the breast.
I hope you enjoy this salad as much as we do. Leave a comment if you have any questions or suggestions.
Blackened Chicken Caesar Salad
Ingredients
- 2 Chicken breasts, butterflied
- Blackening seasoning
- 4 tbsp Butter
- 2 heads Romaine lettuce
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/4 cup Prepared Caesar salad dressing
- 2 tbsp Lemon juice
- 1 cup Croutons
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat a cast iron skillet on medium heat. Add butter to skillet and heat until just before burning.
- Season the chicken breasts and place in hot butter. Cook for about 3 minutes. Turn over and cook the other side for about 3 minutes. Turn every 3 minutes after, cooking until the internal temperature of chicken is 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the thickest part.
- Set the chicken aside and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
- While the chicken is resting, prepare the salad. Cut the lettuce into 1/2″ strips, tearing it apart and placing in a large bowl. Add the Parmesan cheese, salad dressing, and lemon juice. Toss them to coat evenly. Salt and pepper to taste.
- Slice rested chicken breasts into 1/4″ strips. Add croutons and chicken immediately before serving.