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A hearty, delicious salad featuring a homemade ranch dressing, this chef salad is far from boring! It’s incredibly filling and full of exciting healthy ingredients such as avocado, smoked turkey, and fresh cherry tomatoes.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

It’s low-carb and easy to make! Don’t you just love when those two things come together in a recipe? I definitely do. In the 10 minutes it takes to boil the eggs, you’ll have all your veggies, meats, and cheese chopped and ready to go for this healthy lunch.
You can customize this recipe to make a chef salad you’ll definitely enjoy. Use as much or as little of each ingredient as you’d like – make it your own!
The homemade ranch dressing isn’t mandatory, but HIGHLY recommended. It’s shockingly easy to make too! But seriously, this ranch dressing will take your chef salad to a level you never thought it could go, like out of this world good.
I cannot emphasize enough how good you’ll feel after eating this chef salad. All of those crisp, fresh vegetables will give you the nutrients you need to feel your best. While protein from the meat, eggs, and cheese will curb your hunger all the way through to your next meal.

Key Ingredients

Romaine Lettuce – You could use iceberg lettuce if you’d like. We’re looking for crisp and crunchy lettuce to add to the overall texture of this chef salad. Romaine lettuce makes things easy, just wash and tear off pieces into your bowl.

Smoked Turkey – My personal favorite ingredient! You can purchase either smoked turkey slices or an entire smoked turkey breast. It’s the perfect lean protein for this filling salad.

Swiss or Cheddar Cheese – These taste the best in this salad. I prefer buying a block of cheese (as opposed to slices or shreds) then chopping it into 1/2 inch cubes and generously tossing it into my chef salad.

Dressing – A homemade ranch dressing is included in the recipe card, though you can use any homemade or store-bought dressing you’d like!

Chef’s Tips

If you decide to make the ranch dressing, assemble that first. Then, let it sit in the fridge while you prep the rest of your chef salad. This lets the flavors of your dressing develop and become even more delicious!
There is no right or wrong way to chop the vegetables, meats, and cheese for your salad. Any shape or size you want, it’s really up to you!
If you’re making this for a crowd, keep the ingredients separate and serve them on a platter. This way, guests can pick and choose what toppings they’d like!

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Sam Guarnieri

Sam is a travel, food, and fitness enthusiast from the New York metro area who loves creating new and inventive recipes. Her love of food goes all the way back to her early childhood, cooking alongside her mom and Nonna – the two best cooks she knows! She's a big believer that good-for-you food can still explode with flavor and (most importantly) be easy to make. When she's not in the kitchen, Sam can usually be found planning her next vacation, spending time outdoors, or bingeing the latest Netflix docu-series.