Hello. Meet your new salad crush.
She’s a tasty one, full of happy little grape tomatoes and shredded bits of artichoke (!!) all snuggled in nicely between bites of tender chicken and fresh spinach, with quinoa and a yummy Greek-style vinaigrette clinging to all the little salady spaces in between.
What You’ll Need To Make This Salad Happen
The ingredient list is going to make all of us SOS-ers feel very good:
- rotisserie chicken
- grape tomatoes
- artichokes (canned or jarred! easy)
- spinach
- pre-cooked quinoa
- store-bought dressing
Now that I’ve got your salad wheels spinning, I would like to also tell you the other important thing which is that – surprise! – you can actually pick and choose whatever you like because, in addition to freshness and crunch and tang, versatility might be the very greatest thing about salads.
Swap In Whatever You’d Like Here
Substitutions that might make you happy:
- use chickpeas instead of chicken
- use a different grain, or cook your own
- use a different dressing – something lemony, herby, more or less sweet, whatever you like
- add capers for extra briney-ness
- add roasted vegetables of any sort – sweet potato, bell peppers, zucchini
- add cheese
- add nuts or seeds
The world is your salad!
Whether you go my direction with the quinoa / chicken / artichokes / Greek dressing, or go your own way with a spin-off of this combination, you will be eating well.
She is beautiful, colorful, flavorful, nutritious, family-friendly, and everything good that your SOS spring + summer heart could ever want.
Chicken Quinoa Salad: FAQs
It can! For a vegetarian version, just use white beans or chickpeas!
Yes! This can be made ahead and will last in the fridge for 1-3 days. The part that doesn’t last very well is the spinach, so I would suggest waiting to add the spinach to until just before serving, or make a big batch for the fridge and then just add spinach to individual servings.
The dressing from this pasta salad recipe or this LA Chop would be so, so good!
Honestly, it’s great either way!
Prefer To Watch Instead Of Read?
Source notes: I based this off of a salad I used to make a lot from an old Cooking Light cookbook called Fresh Food Fast. Three cheers for old favorites!
Basic + Awesome Chicken Quinoa Salad
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
Spin those salad wheels with this Basic + Awesome Chicken Quinoa Salad that’s easy to customize. Cherry tomatoes, shredded bits of artichoke, tender chicken, and fluffy quinoa all snuggled between pieces of fresh spinach.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or diced (I use pulled rotisserie chicken)
- 1 cup cooked quinoa (I buy this pre-packaged, usually comes in 8–10 ounce packages)
- 1–2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
- one 14-ounce can chopped artichokes, drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup vinaigrette of choice (I used the Panera at Home Greek dressing)
- a handful of spinach or other fresh greens of choice
- salt, pepper, garlic powder to taste
Instructions
- Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl until well-combined.
- Season to taste. YOU’RE DONE!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: chicken quinoa salad, quinoa salad, chicken salad
More Fresh Spring Recipes
- Firecracker Vegan Lettuce Wraps (These lettuce wraps are a big deal, because a) they taste, obviously, aaaamazing, and b) they are lettuce wraps that know how to actually keep you full)
- Roasted Vegetable Bowls with Green Tahini (Delicious perfection with a magic sauce!)
- Mediterranean Quinoa Bowls with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce (For those of us who love Mediterranean flavors)
- Avocado Kale Caesar Salad + Sweet Potato Fries (Salad and fries The restaurant power-combo.)
- 5-Minute Spicy Chickpea Salad (It’s chickpeas, mayo, and sriracha. That’s it.)
Want more veggie-forward recipes? Checkout our Plant-Powered series!