Whole30 Southern Fried Chicken Salad

Strips of crispy but juicy fried chicken, tomatoes, pecans, and egg, all tossed in a Whole30-compliant ranch dressing.

Prep: 15

Cook: 15

Total: 30

Yield:2 salads

Equipment

2 shallow bowls or 1 shallow bowl and 1 food-safe plastic bag
whisk
Plate or wire cooling rack
Paper towels
Large skillet cast iron preferred
Tongs
Slotted spoon
salad bowls

Ingredients

For the Fried Chicken

2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts approximately 1 pound total, sliced into cutlets or pounded thin
1 large egg whisked until no longer streaky
⅓ cup fine almond flour
¼ cup coconut flour
1 tablespoon tapioca starch
½ teaspoon salt more or less to taste
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
refined coconut oil or avocado oil, for frying

For the Salad

8 cups chopped lettuce or chopped mixed greens, divided
2 large hard-boiled eggs sliced or chopped, divided
½ cup grape tomatoes divided
¼ cup chopped pecans preferably toasted, divided
¼ cup thinly sliced red onion divided
Whole30 ranch dressing made from this recipe

Instructions

Pour beaten egg into shallow bowl. Set aside.
Add almond flour, coconut flour, tapioca starch, salt, and garlic powder to second shallow bowl or food-safe sealable bag. Whisk or shake until dry ingredients are well blended. Set aside.
Line plate with paper towels. For crispier chicken, place wire cooling rack over paper towels. Set aside.
Lay chicken breasts in shallow bowl with beaten egg. Cover all sides of chicken with egg and let any excess drip back into bowl, then transfer chicken to bowl or bag with "breading" mixture. Repeat with remaining chicken breast. Coat chicken with "breading" pressing gently to make sure dry ingredients stick well. If using food-safe bag, seal bag and shake until chicken breasts are well coated in dry mixture. Set aside.
Heat large cast iron skillet over medium heat. When skillet is warm, add thin layer of refined coconut oil or avocado oil and continue warming until oil is hot and shimmery.
When oil is hot, place chicken breasts in skillet. Fry chicken 3 minutes, then flip chicken over and fry 3 to 4 minutes more, until "breading" is golden brown and chicken is cooked through. Note: if chicken is not cooked through after 7 minutes total, reduce heat under skillet to low and cover skillet with lid. Cook chicken 2 minutes covered, then check doneness again. Repeat until cooked through.
When chicken is cooked through, use slotted spoon or tongs to transfer chicken from skillet to plate or wire cooling rack. Let excess oil drip onto paper towels while assembling salad.
Divide lettuce evenly between salad bowls. Top each bed of lettuce with equal amounts of hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, pecans, and red onion. Slice chicken breasts crosswise into strips and divide between salads, then drizzle ranch dressing over and serve.

Notes

Chicken Breasts: Thinner chicken breasts are ideal for this recipe, because they won't take as much time to cook, which reduces the chance of the "breading" burning. If you're using very large or thick chicken breasts, pound them thin or halve them into cutlets before coating them in egg wash and flour mixture.
Flours: It's important to use this ratio of almond flour to coconut flour for the grain-free breading. Coconut flour is thirstier than almond flour, so using more coconut flour would require more liquid.
Frying: Be very mindful of the temperature of your oil and skillet when you're frying the chicken. This "breading" blend can burn easily, so don't let the temperature get too high.
Homemade Ranch Dressing: I recommend my recipe for Whole30 dump ranch, but you're welcome to use your favorite store-bought compliant dressing instead.

Recipe yields 2 large salads or 4 smaller salads. Nutrition information reflects estimates for 1 salad out of 2.

Nutrition

Recipe By:Cheryl Malik