Field Fresh Chopped Salad with Chicken

I’ve always loved the idea of eating a great big luscious crunchy salad for dinner. But I’ve never been very good at coming up with creative ideas for main dish salads. I tend to get stuck at lettuce and carrots. And my basic vinaigrette is great, but it can get a bit monotonous. But there is a prepared salad from Trader Joe’s that I love: the Field Fresh Chopped Salad. It’s sweet and savory and fresh and crunchy, and I got in the habit of buying it for solitary dinners and occasional lunches. Then I looked at the ingredients. The poor chicken in this salad is full of so many preservatives, and I know the vegetables could be fresher and more full of flavor. So I decided to make this salad myself.

I’ll be the first to admit the photos are kind of lackluster. But the salad was not. It was everything I hoped it would be: bright and crunchy, with a nice balance of textures and flavors. I thought the sweet basil dressing would be the hardest part to get right, but I managed to hit it nearly spot on. This will definitely be making additional appearances in our kitchen.

I love a salad like this for dinner because it’s light, but not so light that you feel like you have yet to actually eat dinner. I served it with some toasty whole grain sourdough, and we both went to bed satisfied. If you’re looking for a healthy dinner (maybe you had too much beer and corned beef last weekend?), this salad is just right.

The dressing is really the cornerstone of this salad. I didn’t do a lot of precise measuring, so I suggest tasting as you go, and adding more of whatever you think will make you happy. The dressing should be a little sweet, a little tangy, and a little herby.

The other trick is to cut the vegetables into small, evenly sized bits. This is a chopped salad, so you don’t want huge chunks of vegetables you have to gnaw your way through. Likewise, give the lettuce a thorough run through with a knife, so you’re not trying to skewer huge leaves with your fork. The cabbage should be sliced into ribbons, and then into inch-long bits. The nuts should be nicely chopped. This isn’t a salad that should feel like a bowl full of separate ingredients, but rather, as though everything is melded into a seamless whole.

Field Fresh Chopped Salad with Chicken

Adapted from Trader Joe’s

We had half a leftover rotisserie chicken in refrigerator which was perfect for this salad. If you don’t, you can just poach, roast, or grill a boneless, skinless chicken breast.

This salad is open to a lot of variation. I actually forgot the corn and green onion, and it was still awesome. Try quinoa instead of the couscous for more protein, or perhaps even substitute tuna for the chicken, if you like that kind of thing. Let me know about your variations in the comments!

For the dressing:

• about 1 loosely packed cup of chopped basil
• about 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1-2 teaspoons agave nectar
• juice from half a Meyer lemon (a regular lemon is fine)
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• a pinch of salt
• a few grindings of black pepper
• about 1 tablespoon water

For the salad:

• about 2-3 cups mixed greens or romaine
• 1 quarter of a large cabbage (any kind you prefer)
• 1 medium chicken breast, cooked
• about 1/2 cup Israeli couscous, cooked and cooled
• 1/2 of a large red pepper, diced
• 2-3 tablespoons finely chopped pecans
• 1 tablespoon dried currants
• about 3 tablespoons grated Asiago or Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup cold cooked corn (if it’s very fresh, you can use raw)
• about 2-3 tablespoons chopped green onion

Put the chopped basil, mayonnaise, 1 teaspoon of the agave nectar, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a food processor or blender. Blend well and taste. Add more lemon juice, salt, or agave nectar to adjust the flavor. Thin with water, or thicken with more mayonnaise as needed. Remember that the dressing will thicken a little in the refrigerator, too, if you refrigerate it.

Chop the lettuce and cabbage in to small pieces. Mix all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. Dress with about half the salad dressing, adding more if needed. You can add a bit more cheese to the top if you like.