This hearty and delicious Greek Chicken Salad includes roasted chicken, creamy butter beans, fresh vegetables and herbs, and feta cheese in a tangy dressing. I guarantee that you’ll be adding it to your recipe rotation! Best of all, it comes together in under 30 minutes.
Perfect for an easy lunch, meal prep or even as a light dinner. Serve it with a light Greek Cheese Pie or Spanakopita.
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Why This Recipe Works
- This salad has it all. Protein, crunchy cucumbers, tart cherry tomatoes, cheese, herbs and beans.
- Perfect for lunch or meal prep. Because there’s no lettuce in this salad, it holds up really well. So you can pack it for your work lunch. It’s also great for meal prep.
- Customizable. Not a fan of olives? No problem. Keep them out or toss in artichoke hearts instead. Use this recipe as a guide and change it up to suit your preferences.
- Potluck wonder! I will often make this recipe for large gatherings, potlucks or picnics. Trust me, once you make it, you’ll be putting it on repeat! Check out some of my other hearty salads like my Asparagus Potato Salad (with Peas and Herbs), Lebanese Fattoush, Bean Antipasto Salad and Fiesta Salad.
Ingredients
A no-fuss, uncomplicated recipe with standard pantry and fridge ingredients. Who doesn’t love that?
- Chicken: I am using boneless skinless chicken breasts in this recipe. But you can use juicy chicken thighs. I recommend using deboned, skinless chicken as it’ll cook faster. You can also skip the chicken cooking step altogether and use store-bought roast chicken, rotisserie chicken or even thick-cut chicken slices from the deli. If you have leftover chicken shish tawook or chicken souvlaki, use that!
- Beans: I love taking a well-known salad (in this case, a classic Greek Salad) and upping the heartiness and protein with beans. Butter beans (also known as lima beans) are perfect. They are large and creamy. Try them in my Greek Butter Bean Salad. You can also use white navy beans or white kidney beans. Chickpeas work too.
- Cheese: Creamy Feta is the only option! This is a Greek-style salad after all! If you’re a fan of tangy feta cheese, try my Maroulosalata (Classic Greek Lettuce Salad).
- Fresh Herbs: You can customize the herbs to suit your preferences, but for me, the trifecta of fresh dill, fresh parsley and fresh mint is what takes this salad to the next level. You can also throw in some fresh oregano if you have it.
Refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for a complete list of ingredients and quantities.
How to Make this Easy Greek Chicken Salad Recipe
This tasty salad comes together pretty quickly and easily.
Step 1. Roast the chicken. Preheat your oven to 400F/205C. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Season your chicken breasts with olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper. Roast until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through to an internal temperature of 170F. Let the chicken cool slightly before mixing the salad.
Step 2. Make dressing. While the chicken roasts, prepare the dressing by whisking olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.
Step 3. Prepare the salad. In a large bowl, add sliced cherry tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, drained beans, sliced onion, chopped olives, crumbled feta, chopped herbs and the cooked chicken (cut in cubes). Try to keep the side of all the ingredients consistent.
Step 4. Toss and adjust seasoning. Add the lemon and olive oil dressing to the salad bowl, toss to coat, taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve right away at room temperature or cool in the fridge before serving. Garnish with fresh dill fronds.
Experts Tips
- Grill the chicken instead. The chicken can be baked, as outlined in this recipe, but you can also grill it on an outdoor or indoor grill or pan-fry it in a skillet on medium-high heat until cooked through.
- Rinse the beans: Make sure to run the canned beans under cold water to get rid of any excess residue and drain them really well before adding them to the salad bowl.
- Consistent bites: Try to cut your ingredients as evenly as possible, into bite-size pieces. It’ll make for a more enjoyable eating experience.
- Change it up: not a fan of beans, use cooked pasta, faro or your grain of choice instead. Feel free to add fresh bell peppers, roasted red bell pepper, sundried tomatoes, or artichoke hearts. Use red wine vinegar in the dressing if you prefer it over lemon juice. You could also add some romaine lettuce if you want to bulk up the salad and make it stretch for a crowd. Add garlic powder to the chicken.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely. This is a great make-ahead recipe. Keep the dressing on the side and mix before serving. I would recommend making it no more than 2-3 days ahead of time.
I would suggest dividing your dressing equally into several deli containers or large mason jars, then filling with your salad mixture. This way, when you’re ready to enjoy, just mix it up or turn the mason jar over into a bowl.
After the salad has been mixed, it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Keep it in an airtight container.
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Recipe Card
Greek Chicken Salad (with Butter Beans, Feta and Fresh herbs)
Ingredients
Roasted Chicken
- 2 Chicken breasts - Skinless and boneless
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black pepper
Salad Dressing
- 4 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon Lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon Dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon Black pepper
Salad Ingredients
- 1 can Butter Beans (drained and rinsed) - 14oz (400ml) can
- 1 pint Cherry tomatoes (sliced in half)
- 3 Persian cucumbers (Diced)
- ½ Red onion (thinly sliced) - Use less or more depending on preference
- ¼ cup Pitted kalamata olives (roughly chopped)
- 1 cup Greek feta cheese (crumbled)
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Dill (chopped)
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Parsley (chopped)
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Mint (chopped)
- Garnish with extra herbs
Instructions
- Roast the chicken. Preheat your oven to 400F/205C. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Season 2 Chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon Olive oil, 1 teaspoon Dried oregano, ½ teaspoon Kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon Black pepper. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until the chicken is golden and cooked through to an internal temperature of 170F. Let the chicken cool slightly before mixing the salad.
- Make dressing. While the chicken roasts, prepare the dressing by whisking 4 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoon Lemon juice, 1 teaspoon Lemon zest, 1 teaspoon Dried oregano, 1 teaspoon Kosher salt and ½ teaspoon Black pepper in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Prepare the salad. In a large mixing bowl, add 1 can Butter Beans (drained and rinsed), 1 pint Cherry tomatoes (sliced in half), 3 Persian cucumbers (Diced), ½ Red onion (thinly sliced), ¼ cup Pitted kalamata olives (roughly chopped), 1 cup Greek feta cheese (crumbled), 2 tablespoon Fresh Dill (chopped), 2 tablespoon Fresh Parsley (chopped), 2 tablespoon Fresh Mint (chopped) and the cooked chicken (cut in cubes). Try to keep the size of all the ingredients consistent.
- Toss and adjust seasoning. Add the dressing to the salad bowl, toss to coat, taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve right away at room temperature or cool in the fridge before serving. Garnish with fresh dill fronds.
Notes
- Chicken: I am using boneless, skinless chicken breasts in this recipe. But you can use chicken thighs. I recommend using deboned, skinless chicken as it’ll cook faster. You can also skip the chicken cooking step altogether and use store-bought roast chicken, rotisserie chicken or even thick-cut chicken slices from the deli.
- Beans: I love taking a well-known salad (in this case, a classic Greek Salad) and upping the heartiness and protein with beans. Butter beans (also known as lima beans) are perfect. They are large and creamy. You can also use white navy beans or white kidney beans. Chickpeas work too.
Amy says
Delicious! We have some vegetarians in my house, so I made this both with and without chicken, and both were enjoyed equally by my family. I would say that fresh herbs are a must for this. I've made a second batch to enjoy for lunch this week, and I can already tell this is going to be a repeat recipe in my house.