Focus Tips
- Keep the dressing separate until the last second or the salad will collapse.
- Match any new vegetable cuts to the original salad so the bowl stays refined.
- Plate the chicken on top, not mixed through, so the lunch still looks composed.
Lunch
Chopped Salad Leftover Lunch
A lunch built from prepped salad components and sliced chicken, finished fresh right before eating.
Pull Out Before Starting
- leftover cooked chicken
- romaine
- cucumber
- tomatoes
- cilantro
- avocado
- pepitas
- cotija
- vinaigrette
- mixing bowl
Prep Before Cooking
- 2 cups chopped romaine
- 1/2 cup cucumber, small dice
- 1/2 cup Roma tomato, small dice
- 1 tbsp cilantro, chopped
- 6 oz leftover cooked chicken, thinly sliced
- 1/2 avocado, sliced
- 2 tbsp pepitas
- 2 tbsp cotija
- 2 tbsp vinaigrette
Technique Spotlight
Holding chopped salads for later service
Target
The lunch should still feel crisp, light, and intentional after assembly.
Common Miss
Predressing the greens or throwing everything together makes the salad soggy and blunt.
- Toss only the vegetables with the dressing and add the chicken and avocado after plating.
- Keep wet ingredients like tomatoes drained if they have released excess juice.
Method
How to make it
- Combine the romaine, cucumber, tomato, and cilantro in a cold bowl.
- Dress lightly with the vinaigrette and toss once.
- Plate the salad in two mounds and top with the sliced chicken, avocado, pepitas, and cotija.
- Serve immediately.