Grilled Chicken and Spinach Salad with Spicy Pineapple Dressing

13 Reviews
ADD YOUR REVIEW
Photo: John Autry; Styling: Leigh Ann Ross
Total Time
20 Mins
Yield
4 servings
By Ivy Manning
July 2010
RECIPE BY Cooking Light

Ingredients

  • 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • Cooking spray
  • 1 1/4 cups (1-inch) cubed fresh pineapple (about 8 ounces), divided
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  • 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
  • 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon minced habanero pepper
  • 1 large garlic clove
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3/4 cup julienne-cut peeled jicama
  • 2/3 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper
  • 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
  • 1 (5-ounce) package fresh baby spinach (about 8 cups)

Nutritional Information

  • Calories 313
  • Fat 15.2g
  • Satfat 2.3g
  • Monofat 10.2g
  • Polyfat 1.8g
  • Protein 28g
  • Carbohydrate 16.8g
  • Fiber 4.3g
  • Cholesterol 66mg
  • Iron 2.6mg
  • Sodium 444mg
  • Calcium 58mg

How to Make It

Step 1

Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Place chicken between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, and pound to an even thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Sprinkle both sides of chicken evenly with chili powder and salt. Lightly coat chicken with cooking spray. Add chicken to pan; cook for 3 minutes on each side or until done. Remove from pan; set aside.

Step 2

Combine half of pineapple, cilantro, orange juice, vinegar, habanero, and garlic in a blender; process until smooth. With blender on, gradually add olive oil until blended.

Step 3

Combine remaining pineapple, jicama, and the remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle with 3/4 cup dressing, and toss gently to coat. Divide salad evenly among 4 plates. Cut chicken across the grain into thin slices; divide chicken evenly over salads. Drizzle salads evenly with remaining 1/4 cup dressing.

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Ratings & Reviews

ATeenageGourmet's Review

ATeenageGourmet
June 27, 2010
I disagree with the first comment because this salad was easy! I made it in 20 minutes after getting home from school. It's really beautiful and the onion and jicama are the best parts. Since pineapple leaves a weird taste in my mouth, my taste buds were impaired by the time I got to the dressing (I snacked on some fruit before hand). However, I'm willing to bet that the dressing is great! I recommend adding something creamy to the salad, like avocado or goat cheese.

StceceMD's Review

mangiapeach
September 12, 2010
The dressing was outstanding - perfect balance of heat, olive oil, and pineapple. Good combination of flavors - can't wait to have the leftovers!

Laurie18's Review

Laurie18
July 05, 2010
This salad was wonderful and easy once you have all the componets sliced. The dressing I had one day of a hot taste but the other days I didn't not sure if if the pepper didn't get really blended. I would make this again very flavorful.

SarahTrevino's Review

maggie8276
July 27, 2010
I added more habanero, and spiced my chicken differently, but all in all the recipe was great. And the dressing is wonderful This is scheduled on my Dinner TONIGHT recipes http://chefwife.com

JillyBurke's Review

magillesipe
June 24, 2010
This is fantastic. Packed with flavor and contrasts. Very gourmet. Presentation is lovely. Not easy to make but worth the effort.

Jessie123's Review

AlexaMN
July 13, 2010
I thought the salad and dressing themselves were nice and fresh, but the added chicken dried it out. The chicken by itself was moist and tasty but the combination seemed to detract from the tastiness of the salad and chicken independently. I followed the recipe exactly except I used a jalapeno instead of a habanero pepper.

AlexaMN's Review

JillyBurke
July 13, 2010
This was fantastic. Light, tons of flavor and the dressing is great if used separately on chicken or fish. Cooked the chicken in a skillet on the stove, since I didn't have a grilling pan. I added goat cheese to it, for a creamy texture and it fit the salad perfectly. Also added some romaine since my husband doesn't like all spinach salads. The dressing, as made per the recipe was enough for the two of us (NOT 4). Husband likes a lot of dressing! Warning: if you've never worked with habaneros before, make sure to wear gloves or hold the pepper with a fork when you slice them.

mangiapeach's Review

carolfitz
July 24, 2011
Dressing is fantastic! Added extra pineapple so we had leftover dressing and used it the next day, too. Used romaine instead of spinach, since that's what I had. The chicken pounded thin was too dry, will try the chicken without pounding it next time on the grill.

carolfitz's Review

SarahTrevino
June 28, 2010
Fresh flavors and very appealing presentation. Grilled the chicken the day before so it was even quicker to assemble for supper.

maggie8276's Review

lizardstew
March 19, 2014
Not sure what I did wrong but thought I followed directions exactly but it was WAY WAY too spicy. Weather it was too much chili powder on the chicken or the habanero pepper. But it is a very pretty salad and the dressing was great but something was off and made it too spicy for my family.