Chicken and bacon salad is made with chunks of tender chicken and crispy bacon combined with fresh salad ingredients and smothered in a tangy lemon-flavoured honey and mustard dressing.
This summery chicken and bacon salad is a complete meal in one bowl! There's minimum cooking involved and with only a small amount of preparation, you can have this dish on the table in only half an hour.
It's packed with juicy chicken pieces, crispy bacon, tasty sauteed mushrooms and as many salad ingredients as you can cram into the bowl.
The chicken breasts are coated with honey and mustard before they are pan-fried until golden brown. The honey and mustard flavour is carried through into the salad dressing, along with a hint of lemon, ensuring that each mouthful is packed with a delicious taste.
What I love about this recipe is how versatile it is. You can mix and match the base salad ingredients to suit whatever you have in your refrigerator. And as long as you slather everything with my delicious honey mustard dressing it will taste amazing.
As I mentioned, this is a complete meal in a bowl. All you will need to serve with it is a helping of crusty bread. I love how the seeds in these no-knead seeded bread rolls complement the crunch of the seeds in the salad.
Just as soups and stews are a typical winter stand-by, one-bowl salads are the perfect summer meal!
If you don't believe me, try it for yourself. I can practically guarantee that after one mouthful you'll be hooked!
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Here's how to make it.
Ingredients
These are the ingredients for this delicious honey and mustard-flavoured salad.
The recipe will serve 4 people as a main. There is only one chicken breast in the photo because when I made this dish I halved the ingredients as there was only hubby and myself at home that night!
This chicken and bacon salad recipe is extremely versatile; you can vary the ingredients to suit your availability. However, to avoid waste, I recommend you stick more or less to the recipe for the quantity of chicken and bacon. The amounts given in the printable recipe card below are my suggestions.
Salad
- Chicken breasts - you should allow 85 grams (or 3 ounces) of chicken per person, which for 4 people would be roughly the equivalent of 2 large chicken breasts. The chicken breasts will be seasoned with salt and pepper and lightly coated with honey and Dijon mustard before they are pan-fried in olive oil.
- Bacon - I like to use streaky bacon with a nice marbling of fat running through it. The bacon will be fried gently until it turns crispy.
- Mushrooms - you can use large chestnut mushrooms and slice them thickly (as I have done here) or use baby button mushrooms and leave them whole. I like to saute the mushrooms with the bacon but if you prefer to leave them raw that's up to you.
- Salad leaves - for convenience I used a pack of baby salad leaves which I like because they include baby spinach leaves. You could substitute with butter lettuce, rocket, shredded iceberg or whatever variety you enjoy.
- Seeds - I love adding seeds to my salads for the element of crunch they provide. I've used a mixture of sunflower and pumpkin seeds. You can leave them out if you wish.
- Chilli - I like to add a finely chopped red chilli to provide a subtle heat, but this is optional.
- Other salad ingredients - these are up to you. I used halved cherry tomatoes, diced avocado, and sliced spring onions and radishes. Sugar snaps would make a nice addition and sliced celery would add extra crunch.
Ingredients for the honey mustard dressing
This is a super tasty and easy dressing to complement any salad. Simply shake the ingredients together in a screw-top jar!
What's great about this dressing is that you can double the ingredients, use what you need and store the leftovers in the jar in the refrigerator.
- Olive oil - use a good quality extra virgin olive oil.
- Dijon mustard - if you want an extra kick substitute with English mustard. You could also use wholegrain mustard.
- Honey - adds sweetness.
- Vinegar and lemon juice - cuts through the sweetness of the honey and adds tartness and a delicious citrus flavour. You could leave out the vinegar and just use lemon juice.
- Garlic paste - I prefer using garlic paste in salad dressings rather than chopped garlic as the paste combines more easily, resulting in a smoother dressing. If you like to use fresh garlic it should be very finely minced. On the other hand, if you don't like garlic, leave it out.
- Salt and pepper - I've included them as ingredients, but my advice would be to taste the dressing first and season with salt and pepper to suit your taste. You may find you don't need any additional seasoning.
What to do
To make this chicken and bacon salad there are only a few easy steps:
- Fry the chicken breasts in a coating of honey and mustard until golden.
- Fry the bacon and mushrooms in the same pan to pick up the honey mustard flavour.
- Combine the dressing ingredients in a screw-top jar.
- Combine the salad ingredients.
- Drizzle with dressing.
And here are the details.
Season the chicken breasts lightly with salt and black pepper and rub them all over with honey and mustard.
Heat one or two tablespoons of olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and add the chicken breasts. Turn the heat down to low and cover the pan with a lid.
Cook the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes per side until golden brown. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside to rest.
Add the bacon pieces to the same pan, and stir to pick up any honey mustard residue that has been left behind from frying the chicken.
Fry the bacon for 3 to 4 minutes until it is crispy, then add the mushrooms.
Continue to fry until the mushrooms have softened and soaked up all the moisture from the pan.
Cut the chicken into slices.
Place all the dressing ingredients into a screw-top jar and shake thoroughly to combine.
Assemble the salad
Place the salad leaves into a serving dish and add the chicken, bacon and mushrooms.
Add the remaining ingredients, and pour on the salad dressing.
Toss the salad to combine the dressing and serve immediately with a side of crusty bread.
Tips for a perfect outcome
Here are my top tips to ensure the chicken and bacon salad always turns out perfectly:
- When frying the chicken, use a low heat so the honey does not burn. The chicken will be cooked when the internal temperature reaches 74C or 165F. If you do not have a thermometer, cut the chicken in half - it should be completely white with no pink showing.
- Use the pan the chicken was cooked in to fry the bacon and mushrooms. This way you will pick up any remaining honey and mustard flavours left over from frying the chicken.
- Prepare and chop the vegetables which the chicken and bacon are cooking and leave them in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble.
- This salad is best served cold so allow the chicken and bacon to cool to room temperature before adding them to the dish.
- To avoid the salad becoming limp, do not add the dressing until just before you serve the salad.
- You may not need all the salad dressing. Any leftover dressing can be stored in a screw-top jar in the refrigerator.
Equipment
I recommend using a non-stick frying pan for frying the chicken, bacon and mushrooms.
You will also need a large salad bowl and salad servers for assembling the salad.
Storage
Store the salad ingredients in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble.
Add the salad dressing immediately before serving.
This dish is best eaten fresh, and due to the oil in the dressing does not store well.
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Related recipes
Visit my sides and salad recipes page for other delicious salads. Here are a few you may enjoy:
📋The recipe
Chicken and bacon salad with honey mustard dressing
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Frying Pan
- Large salad bowl
- Glass jar with lid for mixing the dressing
- Sharp Knife
- Chopping Board
Ingredients
- 10½ ounces / 300 grams chicken breast fillets
- 3½ ounces / 100 grams bacon diced
- 1 pound / 225 grams mushrooms sliced
- 3 - 4 cups baby lettuce leaves approx 75 grams or 2½ ounces (washed and dried)
- 10 cherry tomatoes halved
- 2 - 3 shallots or spring onions sliced
- 1 medium avocado pear peeled, pip removed and diced.
- 1 small red chilli seeds removed and finely diced
- 4 medium radishes sliced
- 2 tablespoons mixed sunflower and pumpkin seeds optional but adds a nice crunch
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for frying
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard for coating the chicken
- 1 teaspoon honey for coating the chicken
- salt and black pepper to taste for seasoning the chicken
Honey mustard dressing
- ¼ cup / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon garlic paste
- 1 - 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard depending on taste
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice substitute with bottled lemon juice
Instructions
- Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and black pepper to taste and then rub them on both sides with the honey and mustard.10½ ounces / 300 grams chicken breast fillets, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon honey, salt and black pepper to taste
- Heat the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan and place the chicken in the pan. Turn the heat to very low, cover the pan with a lid and fry the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes on each side until browned and completely cooked.2 tablespoons olive oil
- Remove the chicken to a plate and leave it to rest.
- Add the bacon to the same pan the chicken was cooked in, and fry it on low heat until it starts to brown and crisp. This will take between 5 and 6 minutes. Stir frequently so that the bacon picks up the remains of the honey and mustard that the chicken would have left behind.3½ ounces / 100 grams bacon
- Add the mushrooms and fry them with the bacon until the mushrooms have released their moisture and are quite dry. This will take another 3 to 4 minutes. Leave to cool.1 pound / 225 grams mushrooms
Make the dressing
- Measure all the dressing ingredients into a screw-top jar, seal the lid and shake vigorously until well combined.¼ cup / 60 ml extra virgin olive oil, ½ teaspoon garlic paste, 1 - 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- Put the dressing in the refrigerator to chill until you are ready to assemble the salad.
Assemble the salad
- Slice the chicken into thin pieces.
- Place the lettuce leaves into a large salad bowl.3 - 4 cups baby lettuce leaves
- Add the chicken, bacon and mushrooms.
- Add the remaining salad ingredients10 cherry tomatoes, 2 - 3 shallots or spring onions, 1 medium avocado pear, 1 small red chilli, 4 medium radishes, 2 tablespoons mixed sunflower and pumpkin seeds
- Drizzle the salad with the salad dressing and toss to combine thoroughly.
- Serve with crusty bread as lunch or a light supper.
Notes
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- When frying the chicken, use a low heat so the honey does not burn. The chicken will be cooked when the internal temperature reaches 74C or 165F. If you do not have a thermometer, cut the chicken in half - it should be completely white with no pink showing.
-
- Use the pan the chicken was cooked in to fry the bacon and mushrooms. This way you will pick up any remaining honey and mustard flavours left over from frying the chicken.
-
- Prepare and chop the vegetables which the chicken and bacon are cooking and leave them in the refrigerator until you are ready to assemble.
-
- This salad is best served cold so allow the chicken and bacon to cool to room temperature before adding them to the dish.
-
- To avoid the salad becoming limp, do not add the dressing until just before you serve the salad.
-
- You may not need all the salad dressing. Any leftover dressing can be stored in a screw-top jar in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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VJ
This is my new favourite summer salad! Great for a lazy meal in the sun!