Pretzel Crusted Chicken Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette.
Hereβs how to make dinner better: pretzel crusted chicken salad.
Oh oh yes. !!!! This pretzel crusted chicken salad is going to make an appearance in our house at least once a week for the foreseeable future.
One of my favorite chicken recipes EVER is my pretzel crusted chicken with hot honey and house sauce. Oh my word. They chicken fingers are absolutely to die for – we love them!
I make the chicken fingers often for dinner and Eddie and I throw them on a salad. Itβs seriously one of the best salads Iβve ever eaten. The chicken is so flavorful because the pretzels are so crunchy and salty, obviously! And it just adds so much more than youβd even expect.
So! Here we are with an ACTUAL pretzel crusted chicken salad.
Can I make this one of my faux oktoberfest recipes?!Β
Itβs no secret Iβm already a fan of this combo. Remember a few years ago when I made a hot pretzel panzanella with mustard dressing? Yes, actually chunks of soft pretzel in the salad, drizzled with mustardy vinaigrette.
I die just thinking about it. Itβs SO GOOD.
This is like that, just different. Crunchy pretzel bites, hearty chicken, still the same briney and tangy dressing that I could practically drink!Β
Iβm using full chicken breasts here instead of the tenders. I like to pound them out a bit so they are even all over in size, then coat them in the pretzels and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The result is the most flavorful, tender, crunchy chicken youβve ever had.Β
You wonβt be able to stop eating it!!
P.S. you can find me on instagram today showing you how to make this step-by-step.
In celebration of all things fall, I added some extra goods to this salad. Apples, because hello! βTis the season. You can chop, slice or grate them. White cheddar, because itβs delicious with the pretzel flavor. Pickled onions for tanginess, cucumbers for a refreshing crunch.Β
And itβs all drizzled with a mustard vinaigrette. I make many mustard-y vinaigrettes, sometimes even multiple times per week! But this one is extra good because it complements the pretzels so well.
I used to live for a soft pretzel with yellow mustard when I was a kid. It has been about a million years since Iβve had one, so this combo is allowing me to relive all of that over again.Β
Crunchy pretzel chicken, creamy cheddar, crisp apples and tangy dressing. Literally makes the best pretzel crusted chicken salad ever.
I am so there!
Pretzel Crusted Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 3 cups mini pretzel twists, (traditional salted ones)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- salt and pepper
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 8 to 10 cups spring greens or your favorite lettuce
- 1 honeycrisp apple, chopped
- 4 ounces cheddar cheese, chopped or grated
- 4 baby cucumbers, sliced
- ΒΌ cup pickled onions
mustard vinaigrette
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Note: if you haven't made the pickled onions yet, make those to start. They can sit for 45 mins at room temp while you make the rest of the salad. I highly suggest making them ahead and storing in the fridge for weekly use!
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray the rack with nonstick spray.
- Pound the chicken breasts so they are evenly thick all over. Season the chicken breasts with the salt and pepper. Place the pretzels in a food processor and blend until mostly fine crumbs remain. Place the pretzels in a bowl. Stir in the garlic powder.
- In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
- Take each chicken breast and coat it in the beaten egg. Dredge it through the pretzel crumbs, pressing gently so the crumbs adhere. Place the chicken on the rack and repeat with remaining chicken. Once all the chicken is finished, spray it with avocado or olive oil spray. This is important and really helps things get crispy and golden!
- Bake the chicken for 12 to 15 minutes. Flip it gently and spray the other side with the oil spray. Bake for another 12 to 15 minutes.
- While the chicken is baking, assemble the salad. Place the greens in a large bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper. Add in the chopped apples, cheddar, cucumbers and pickled onions.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and slice it. Add it to the salad and drizzle on the dressing. Enjoy!
mustard vinaigrette
- In a bowl, whisk together the vinegar, honey, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper. Continue to whisk while streaming in the olive oil. This dressing stays great in the fridge in a sealed container for about a week.
Did you make this recipe?
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21 Comments on “Pretzel Crusted Chicken Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette.”
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Jess- I made this salad for dinner tonight and it was totally one of those meals where you keep saying βthis is so goodβ after every bite. I added sunflower seeds too for a bit more crunch. Great flavor combo- awesome job with this recipe! Thank you!
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AMAZING. Though no one should be surprised. Every recipe of yours is nothing short of incredible!!
This salad is SO GOOD. The chopped cheddar compliments the dressing so well. Everything just goes so nicely together. I wish I could get my pretzel crusted chicken to look as good as yours. Whatβs the secret? π€£ Delicious, Jess. Thanks for always sharing such great dressing recipes, too.
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Really delicious! I put the pretzels in a big zip-loc and crushed them with a rolling pin. Maybe for that reason, it was a huge mess when I went to flip them so I un-flipped them, tried to reassemble the crust, and kept cooking for just under the recommended time. Juicy and evenly cooked, and still looked pretty when plated like shown here.
Hi there! Thanks for this recipe- it looks amazing!! Any chance you know how long to cook the chicken in a pressure cooker or air fryer (I have the Ninja foodi)? Canβt wait to try this tonight for dinner!
Love this salad and chicken recipe. Β Even my two toddlers love the chicken, so they get a deconstructed meal of pretzel chicken bites, cheese and apple cubes, and cucumbers when my husband and I eat this salad. Β Delicious – donβt skip an ingredient!
The chicken came out super delicious, nice crunchy and moist, and the dressing really went well with everything, very very good. Totally recommend this. I used mozzarella instead mozzarella instead of cheddar (I forgot to buy some π ) and I used my homemade whole pickled onions instead.
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Weird question, but how mustardy is the dressing? I really don’t like dijon or mustard, but the rest of the salad (and dressing ingredients) sound delicious! And I have made the pretzel crusted chicken with the hot honey dipping sauce before and it was DELISH! So hoping to try this salad, but a little wary of the dressing!
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PLEASE include nutritional information!
hi helen! you can easily find the nutritional information by plugging in the exact ingredients you use in an online calculator. it will be 100% accurate this way.
This was a fantastic meal!!! The chicken was the star of the show – we couldn’t stop commenting on how perfect it was paired with the salad. Thanks for the recipe!
This was a fantastic meal!!! The chicken was the star of the show β we couldnβt stop commenting on how perfect it was paired with the salad. Thanks for the recipe!
made this tonight for dinner…it was amazing!!!! I left out the pretzel crust and used Italian breadcrumb instead as my family would find the pretzel crust too salty. Other then that I made it exactly the same. Def would make this at least 1 time every 2 weeks.
This was absolutely delicious! My husband and I plan on making it all of the time in the summer!Β
Iβm wondering how this crust would hold up on the grill. I hate turning on the oven in the summer, but this looks so delicious! Any thoughts?Β