This Herb Grilled Chicken Salad is perfect for an afternoon lunch or a light dinner. Full of veggies and with an adequate amount of protein, it’s perfect for Atkins Induction or any low carb keto lifestyle.
Embarking on a new way of eating is hard for some, especially those who think that salads are boring or “rabbit food”. Others don’t think that a good salad will fill them up or taste good. Still others, like my mother, don’t enjoy chopping the vegetables or putting a salad together. And, ordering a salad out can be tricky on a low carb diet. Luckily, knowing what to avoid is not hard.
How To Order a Low Carb Salad at Your Favorite Restaurant
- Avoid crunchy things like croutons, fried tortilla strips, wontons and Chinese noodles.
- Avoid dried fruit, sugary salad dressings, or breaded proteins.
- Avoid (or limit) starchy or overly sweet vegetables (carrots and corn come to mind) and legumes.
- Limit fresh fruit, especially watermelon or mandarin oranges.
- Order the salad with strawberries, blackberries or raspberries instead of figs, apples or oranges.
Every Sunday we try to grill some protein for our salads for the coming week. Our favorite is chicken, but we also grill sausages or turkey patties, and sometimes I will cook a tri-tip in the oven. Other things to have ready are hard boiled eggs, bacon, cubed cheese, or nuts & seeds as quick toppers. And of course, lots of low carb friendly salad vegetables. My husband now fixes his lunches the night before work so all he has to do is grab and go.
Prepare, prepare, prepare – is our motto.
With a little advanced planning, a beautiful and healthful salad can be yours any day of the week. It doesn’t take that long to prepare and think how good you will feel when you eat the rainbow while coworkers come back with their favorite super-sized value meal or treat from their favorite coffee shop.
Your low carb salad will look more appealing and your co-workers may silently kick themselves for not thinking of it first. Who knows, maybe your lunch salad will start an unspoken “my salad is prettier than your salad” competition.
Top Low Carb Salad Ideas.
- romaine, leaf lettuce, mixed salad blends
- low carb vegetables: celery, radish, green bell pepper, red/orange/yellow bell peppers, fennel, cucumber, tomatoes, mushrooms, zucchini, summer squash, bean sprouts, radish sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, olives, dill pickles
- nuts, seeds, cheese
- full fat dressings that have no more than 1-2 net carbs per serving
This salad for one uses one of my favorite homemade seasoning blends, Garlic & Herb Seasoning Blend, on both the chicken and the salad dressing. I originally came up with it to season my poultry soups, but have since also used it in herbed crackers, as a seasoning for a savory quiche crust, as a spice rub for chicken and salad dressing. I finally decided to give it it’s own post. It really helps boost the flavor in this low carb salad. Who said that salads were boring?
Grilled Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 70 grams arugula about 2 1/2 ounces
- 1 ounce fennel bulb sliced thinly
- 1 ounce cherry or grape tomatoes halved
- 1 ounce radish quartered
- 1 ounce cucumber sliced
- 1 ounce red bell pepper sliced
- 3 ounces Garlic Herb Grilled Chicken or grilled chicken breast
- 1 serving Garlic Herb Dressing or any 1 net carb dressing
Instructions
- Weigh and cut all of the ingredients.
- Toss the greens with the salad dressing.
- Arrange the protein first, then fill-in with the other ingredients. It only takes a minute to make it visually appealing.
Notes
Nutrition
Healthy Cobb Salad For One (low carb, keto)
Low Carb Cobb Salad Dressing Recipe
I’ve noticed that your nutritional information on the recipes doesn’t list the amount of sugar. Is it because there is no sugar?
Hi Colleen, I used a different nutritional calculator on older recipes – Master Cook Program. That program did not have a nutritional value for sugar! I know, go figure. For the last three years, I have used Fatsecret [dot] com to calculate nutritional values. I believe it is the most comprehensive and accurate calculator around and it is totally free to sign up. I used it 7 years ago as a way to track food, exercise and keep my recipes. Anyway, yes, this recipe will have a very small amount of natural sugars from the vegetables. You can find out by entering the ingredients into Fatsecret or any other nutritional calculator. Using ingredient weights is the very best way and ensures the most accurate numbers. I hope this helps. -Kim
Kim I love your recipes I am type 2 diabetic, I don’t like the taste of yellow in eggs but egg whites are my favorite. Glad I found your page.
Where is the dressing recipe. You cant click it on
I’m sorry the link didn’t work. I will fix it now. -Kim
That’s a beautiful salad. I think you’ve hit the nail on the head regarding low-carb eating. You have to make it fun and interesting. The colors and consistencies go a long way to help in that area. ~ I like a crouton as much as the next guy, but there are ‘crunchy’ ingredients that are healthier and delicious, such as almonds or sunflower seeds. Excellent work, Mom. ;-)
Thank you for your kind words, Adam. Also, thanks for alerting me that my comments section wasn’t working earlier. I would have never known. -Kim
This looks delicious!
Thank you! -Kim