Turn your next chicken recipe into a fun, healthy, and flavorful feast with this green goddess cobb salad. The Panera-inspired salad is easy to make and works well as a main course for lunch or dinner.
If constantly find yourself ordering the Panera Green Goddess Cobb Salad, look no further than this recipe. The homemade green goddess dressing is the perfect way to elevate a basic cobb salad and keeps well in the fridge so you can enjoy it for days to come.
Plus, the combination of crunchy romaine, creamy avocado, crispy bacon, and juicy chicken in this Green Goddess cobb salad recipe ensures that this dish is a balanced meal filled with protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
Why You’ll Love It
- Great for Meal Prep – The green goddess cobb salad recipe makes a large portion that can be enjoyed as a meal prep idea for easy lunches or as a main course for a family dinner.
- High in Protein – This healthy salad contains over 30 grams of protein per serving making it a great high-protein meal.
- High in Fiber – The leafy greens, avocado, and green goddess dressing make this a low-carb recipe with 6 grams of fiber.
- Full of Flavor – The combination of chicken, eggs, bacon, avocado, veggies, and green goddess dressing ensures that this salad is full of healthy fats, flavor, color, and texture in every bite.
Ingredients + Substitutions
- Chicken – To add some protein to the salad. The recipe calls for chicken breast, but you can use chicken thighs if preferred, or you can use leftover chicken or rotisserie chicken if you want to cut down on prep time.
- Bacon – To add some more protein and healthy fats. The recipe calls for pork bacon but you can use turkey bacon if desired.
- Eggs – To add even more protein and healthy fats. The recipe calls for hard-boiled eggs, but you can cook them soft-boiled if you like.
- Avocado – To add some healthy fats and fiber.
- Lettuce – To make the base of the salad. I used romaine lettuce but you can use iceberg lettuce if preferred, or use a dark leafy green like spring mix, spinach, or arugula if preferred.
- Tomatoes – To add some veggies. I used cherry tomatoes but you can use grape tomatoes or whole tomatoes if desired.
- Red Onion – To add some color and crunch. I added raw red onion but you could make pickled red onions if preferred.
- Plain Yogurt – To make the creamy green goddess dressing. You can use plain yogurt or Greek yogurt, both will work well.
- Olive Oil – To add some healthy fats to the dressing and cook the chicken.
- Lemon Juice – To balance the dressing with some acid. I use fresh lemon juice but lemon concentrate, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar will also work well.
- Fresh Herbs – To make the herby green goddess dressing. Any combination or ratio of cilantro, parsley, basil, dill, and/or mint will work.
- Garlic – To flavor the dressing. The recipe calls for a garlic clove but you can use garlic powder if needed, see the notes section of the recipe card for details.
- Salt and Pepper – To season the dressing and the salad.
Although I didn’t add any, you could add some blue cheese or feta cheese to the salad to add some additional protein and fat.
Dietary Adaptions
To Make it Gluten-Free: Ensure you are using certified gluten-free bacon.
To Make it Dairy-Free: Swap the yogurt for mayonnaise.
How to Make Homemade Green Goddess Dressing
Green goddess salad dressing is very easy to make and a great way to add some healthy fats to a classic cobb salad. Simply combine yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, fresh herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper in a small food processor or blender and blitz until smooth.
Red’s Nutrition Tip
This green goddess cobb salad is a great source of protein, fiber, and healthy fats. If you wanted to make it a more well-balanced meal or stretch it into more portions, I would recommend serving it with a source of complex carbohydrates, such as a side of bread or pita, or add some cooked rice or roasted potatoes to the salad.
Storage
Once prepped, the salad can be stored in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 4 days and the dressing can be stored in a seperate airtight jar for up to 1 week. Depending on the ripeness of your avocado, you may want to wait to add it until you are ready to eat, as it can brown if it’s too ripe.
More Chicken Salad Recipes:
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Green Goddess Cobb Salad
Turn a classic cobb salad into an extra healthy dish with a little green goddess salad dressing. This copycat Panera green goddess cobb salad salad is high in protein and fiber and great for lunch or dinner.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes -
Cook Time: 20 minutes
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Total Time: 30 minutes
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Yield: 4 servings 1x
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Category: Salad
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Method: Stovetop
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Cuisine: American
Prep Time:
Yield:
Category:
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Cuisine:Ingredients
Chicken:
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt
- Pepper
Cobb Salad:
- 4 eggs
- 4 slices bacon
- 1 head romaine lettuce, roughly chopped
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 avocado, peeled and cubed
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onions
Green Goddess Dressing:
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup mixed fresh herbs, such as parsley, basil, dill, basil, cilantro, and/or mint
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Begin by making the dressing. In a small food processor or blender, add the yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, herbs, garlic, salt, and pepper, and blitz until smooth and well incorporated. Taste and add seasoning as needed and then set it aside.
- Next, boil the eggs. Bring a small pot of water to a boil then, using a spoon, gently add your eggs to the pot and boil for 10 minutes. Once cooked, remove the eggs from the pot and transfer them to a bowl with ice-cold water until cool enough to handle, then peel the eggs, and slice them in half.
- Next, cook the chicken. Place the chicken on a cutting board and season generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Warm the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet or pan, add the chicken breasts, and cook for 5-6 minutes per side until cooked through or an internal temperature of 165°F is reached. Once cooked, transfer to a cutting board to rest for at least 5 minutes, and then slice them into thin strips.
- While the chicken is resting, cook the bacon. In the same pan, add the strips of bacon and cook for 2-3 minutes per side until crispy or cooked to your liking. Then transfer them to a plate lined with a paper towel, allow them to cool, and then chop or crumble them into bite-size pieces.
- Once everything is ready, assemble the salad. If serving immediately, add all of the salad ingredients to a large bowl, drizzle with dressing, and toss well before serving. If meal prepping, divide the lettuce, tomatoes, red onion, avocado chicken, bacon, boiled eggs, and evenly across 4 airtight containers, and divide the dressing evenly across 4 small jars, cover everything with lids, and store them all in the fridge.
- The salad can be stored in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 4 days and the dressing can be stored in a seperate airtight jar for up to 1 week.
Notes
To Use Rotisserie Chicken: Omit the raw chicken breasts and use 3 cups of sliced or shredded rotisserie chicken or leftover cooked chicken.
To Use Garlic Powder: Swap the garlic clove for 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bowl
- Calories: 550 calories
- Sugar: 5 grams
- Fat: 42 grams
- Carbohydrates: 13 grams
- Fiber: 6 grams
- Protein: 34 grams
How many does this recipe serve? How much of a portion of 1 bowl equals 550 calories please?
The recipe makes 4 servings, so 1 bowl is a 1/4 of the full recipe, it’s noted in the recipe card. 🙂
“That’s a keeper!” My husband’s words when he finished his dinner! Will definitely be making this again. Thank you, again, Stephanie!
Love to hear it! Thank you, once again, for sharing, Carine. 🙂
We tried this recipe yesterday, and it was excellent ! We followed the recipe, exactly as written, and really enjoyed it. There are 4 generous servings. The green goddess dressing was fantastic. We will be using it again.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Marilyn! Thank you so much for sharing. 🙂