Tag: chicken

Buttermilk Barbecue Chicken – Sorry, Fried Chicken, Your Secret is Out by Gordon Ramsay

Buttermilk is a very popular marinade for fried chicken, but
for whatever reason, it isn’t often used with other chicken cooking methods.
Which is kind of surprising, especially when you taste just how effective it is
for something like this beautiful barbecued chicken.

Adding to the mystery is the fact that yogurt, a very
similar product, is quite popular in grilled chicken marinades. So, what do
people have against buttermilk? I remember my mother-in-law, Peggy, mentioning
one time that she hesitates to make recipes that call for it, since she never
knows what to do with the leftovers.

I guess people are used to having yogurt around, but
apparently they find the thought of a half carton of buttermilk in the fridge a
little disconcerting. I have two words for those people…buttermilk biscuits. Also,
buttermilk pie. Of course, you could just make a double recipe, and use it all,
but the point is, don’t be afraid.

Regardless of whether you’re going to have some leftover, or
how you’re going to use it, if you’re looking for an easy, and delicious
change-of-pace to the typical barbecue chicken recipes, then I really do hope you
give this a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 2 portions:

1 whole chicken (about 2 1/2 to 3 lbs.), cut in half as
shown

For the marinade:

2 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon cayenne

2 tablespoons kosher salt

–>

CHICKEN BLT SALAD – Butter with a Side of Bread by Gordon Ramsay

Grilled Chicken BLT Salad is an easy summer salad recipe filled with grilled marinated chicken, bacon, tomatoes, cheese and butter lettuce. Topped with a creamy pesto ranch dressing that’s easy and flavorful, this salad is a huge hit!

Chicken BLT Salad with avocados and a creamy Pesto Ranch Dressing is one of my favorite summer recipes. It can be made with just a few minutes of prep for the marinade and then grilled and put together in under 30 minutes. Bonus, it doesn’t heat up your kitchen!

This grilled chicken BLT salad is also a great family dinner recipe. It’s easily customizable. If you have picky eaters at your house, it’s still going to taste amazing if it’s missing a couple of salad toppings.

How to make Creamy Pesto Ranch

To make creamy Pesto Ranch you’ll need 1 cup mayo, 1 cup buttermilk, 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix, and 1/2 cup Pesto, prepared.

In a blender, combine the mayo, buttermilk, ranch dressing packet, the pesto. Pulse the blender a few times to mix all the ingredients.

How do you keep chicken moist on the grill?

There are a few things to keep in mind when trying to get really tender, juicy, grilled chicken breasts:

Tenderize the chicken breast.
Marinate the meat.
Don’t over cook the chicken! When it reaches 165º F, it’s done.

How do you tenderize chicken?

Tenderizing your chicken makes a big difference. It’s really easy to do and only takes a couple of minutes.

One way is to place the chicken between two sheets of parchment paper and whack it on the thickest part of the chicken breast with a rolling pin or mason jar.

Another way is to put it in a gallon Ziplock bag and use the flat side of a meat tenderizer.

Only hit the thickest part of the meat to help even it out. The chicken will cook a lot more evenly if the meat is the same thickness all the way through.

Make sure you don’t over-pound your meat. A few good whacks will do the trick.

How do you marinate chicken?

To marinate chicken, you need to need a rub. The rub I use to make Grilled Chicken BLT Salad is just oil, lemon juice, and a couple seasonings.

I use avocado oil because it has a high smoking point and doesn’t add a lot of flavors.

Good marinates call for some kind of acidic element, like lemon juice. White vinegar also works well. The acidity helps breaks down the muscle fibers and tenderizes the chicken as it cooks.

The seasoning and spices (I like to use Italian seasoning) just add that good flavor without adding the calories.

The easiest way to apply the rub to the chicken is to just combine everything and the chicken in a gallon Ziplock bag, and roll it around.

Let the chicken sit in the fridge and marinade for 2-24 hours. 24 hours is ideal, but 4 hours works too. The marinate will give the chicken so much flavor and it makes the most tender and juicy grilled chicken!

Ingredients in this delicious Chicken BLT Salad Recipe:

Chicken Marinade: Oil, lemon juice, seasoning
Avocados: You can use these sliced or in chunks. Be sure to cut up your avocados right before you serve them they are fresh and don’t brown.
Tomatoes: You can use your favorite tomato here. I used some halved cherry tomatoes but a large tomato, cut into chunks would work great too.
Bacon: Cut into 1/2″ chunks and cook until golden brown. Pre-cooked bacon bits work great for this recipe too. Just put them on a paper plate and microwave for 1 minute.
String Cheese: Or 1.5 oz of your favorite kind of cheese.
Lettuce: Romain lettuce, butter lettuce–use your favorite variety of lettuce!
Pesto Ranch Dressing: This is hardly a recipe but still worth sharing. We love this dressing on everything and even just a dip for fresh veggies. To make the pesto ranch dressing, use a 3/1 ratio. (1/3 cup pesto to 2/3 cup ranch dressing) Just mix it up and wa-lah! An incredible ranch dressing variation!

How to Make Chicken BLT Salad

This is how to make Chicken BLT Salad:

To start, tenderize your chicken breast in a Ziplock bag. Then add the marinade (oil, lemon juice, seasonings) to the Ziploc bag. Roll it around to mix. Refrigerate for 4-24 hours.

After the chicken breasts have marinated, put them on the grill on medium-high heat (350ºF). Wait 6-7 minutes and flip them. Keep cooking them until they reach an internal temperature of 165ºF.

When the chicken has cooled, slice it either into strips, or bite size pieces.

Combine the chicken with tomatoes, avocado, bacon, cheese, and lettuce.

In a blender, mix the buttermilk, mayo, pesto and ranch packet together to make the dressing. Drizzle that over your salad, and there you go! You’ve got yourself a tasty, healthy salad!

grilled chicken on a BLT salad with a side of creamy pesto ranch dressing

Chicken BLT Salad

Print Pin Rate

Course: chicken, Grilling, Salad

Cuisine: American

Keyword: BLT, chicken salad, green salad

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Marinade time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes

Servings: 8 people

Calories: 321kcal

Author: Jill

Ingredients

Easy Chicken Marinade

3-4 large Chicken Breasts Plan on 4-6 oz of chicken breasts per person
1 large Lemon Juice or 2T vinegar
3 Tablespoons oil Avocado oil, Canola Oil, or Olive OIl
1 package Good Seasonings Italian Dressing Spice Mix You can find this in the salad dressing isle by the ranch packets

Ingredients for Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Salad

1/2 lb Bacon
8 regular String Cheese Sticks
1.5 cups Cherry Tomatoes, halved
or just a large tomato cut into 1/2 ” chunks works great.
1 large Avocado Cut into 1/2″ chunks
10-12 cups Chopped Lettuce

Instructions

The Best Chicken Marinade

Tenderize your chicken. Put the chicken between two sheets of plastic wrap and use a rolling pin, mason jar, or the flat side of a meat tenderizer to pound the thickest part of the chicken breast. Pound until it about 3/4″ thick, similar to the rest of the chicken breast. (This should only take a few good whacks.)
Add the cooking oil and juice the lemon into the Ziplock bag. Add the Good Seasonings Italian packet and seal the ziplock bag. Roll the bag around gently to mix all the ingredients together.
Let the chicken marinate in the fridge for 2-24 hours. (If you can let the chicken marinate for up to 24 hours, that’s ideal. The marinate will give the chicken so much flavor and it makes the most tender and juicy grilled chicken.)
Grill the chicken. Use a digital thermometer to ensure the chicken breast is done. When the chicken is done, the internal temp of the chicken should be 165 degrees, place it on a platter with foil over it for 5 minutes to redistribute the juices and to keep the chicken warm and juicy. Slice the chicken into bite-sized strips.

Preparing Ingredients for the Grilled Chicken BLT Salad

Wash and cut the lettuce and slice cherry tomatoes in half. Cut the avocado into bite-sized pieces. Cube cheese sticks into bite-sized pieces and wash the lettuce. Cut the lettuce into bite-sized pieces.

To prepare the bacon, cut the bacon strips in to 1/2″ pieces. Sauté in a pan until all the bacon bits are golden brown and just a little crispy. If you are using pre-cooked bacon bits (the ones from Costco are the best) Just put a paper towel on a paper plate and add the bacon bits. Microwave for 1-2 minutes or until the bacon bits are barely crispy.

Assemble the salad by adding the Lettuce, tomatoes, sting cheese, bacon, and avocado. Add the sliced grilled chicken and drizzle with the prepared Creamy Pesto Ranch Dressing. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Chicken BLT Salad is the best summer salad recipe. You don’t even need to heat up your kitchen. It’s made with grilled chicken, with the best chicken marinade, bacon, and tomatoes on a bed of lettuce. It also comes with a creamy pesto ranch dressing. This is going to be a favorite grilled chicken summer salad recipe!

Air Fried Chicken Cordon Bleu Salad by Gordon Ramsay

All the flavor of chicken cordon bleu in a giant salad! The chicken is air fried, so it’s extra-crispy.

When I was a kid, I used to beg my mom to buy frozen chicken cordon bleu for dinner. I’d always pick it when I was allowed to choose a special dinner. When I got older, it was one of the very first meals that I made from scratch. I mostly wanted it because it was French and therefore “fancy” and that just about sums up who I’ve always been as a person.

Chicken cordon bleu is a little fussy to make, and it seems to have fallen out of style over the last few decades – but I think it’s making a comeback! I had an amazing chicken cordon bleu sandwich at a farm to table restaurant a few months ago, and I’ve seen it mentioned on menus a few times recently. It shouldn’t be surprising – the classic combination of chicken, ham, and creamy Swiss cheese is comfort food at it’s best. Plus we’re wearing “vintage” high waist jeans and scrunchies again so it only makes sense that 90s food is back in style, too.

Of course, these days I don’t really have the time or patience to painstakingly roll the chicken around the fillings or deep fry it. Plus with traditional cordon bleu there’s the matter of having to make sides at the same time.

Meh.

I’d rather dump everything on top of a giant salad, drizzle some honey mustard dressing over the top, and call it a day.

Ingredients for chicken cordon bleu salad

How to make air fried chicken cordon blue salad

The trickiest part of this salad is making the chicken. To start, dredge boneless chicken breasts in flour, then egg, Next, coat the chicken with panko breadcrumbs and spritz it with oil to help it brown. You can add regular oil to a spray bottle for this – that way it’s one less product to buy and you know exactly what kind of oil you’re using. Arrange the chicken in your air fryer and cook for 8-10 minutes at 400F until browned and crispy.

While the chicken cooks, you can chop your produce, roll ham and Swiss into cute little pinwheels, and make the honey mustard dressing.

Can I make this without an air fryer?

I cooked the chicken for this salad in the air fryer because I love how crispy it gets that way. Plus doesn’t heat up the house the way the oven does, so it’s perfect for summer. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can definitely bake it! Arrange the chicken in a single layer on a sheet pan and bake it at 450F, turning it once, until the breading is deep brown and crispy. If you’re feeling ambitious, you can also use my baked buttermilk chicken tenders recipe.

What is honey mustard dressing made of?

Honey mustard dressing is the perfect match for this chicken cordon bleu salad. I love how the tangy mustard cuts through the rich flavors of the meat and cheese. To make it, combine Dijon mustard with honey, Greek yogurt, white wine vinegar, and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Can’t get enough of the ham-Swiss-mustard combo? Give my cubano stuffed pork loin recipe a try!

two plates of chicken cordon bleu salad