Caprese Grilled Chicken Salad

Caprese Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe

Caprese Grilled Chicken Salad – Creamy mozzarella balls, bold, juicy and bright tomatoes, fresh basil, and that hit of acidic and sweet balsamic vinegar, pair together so beautifully in this recipe.

Caprese salad is an Italian salad made of sliced fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and sweet basil, seasoned with salt, and olive oil. It is usually arranged on a plate in restaurant practice. The salad is named after the island of Capri, but it is not derived from the culinary traditions of the island. The salad is topped with fresh basil leaves, drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and sprinkled with salt and pepper

How to make this Caprese Grilled Chicken Salad

For this Caprese Grilled Chicken, the sweet red onions are left to pickle in the balsamic vinegar while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.  To make this recipe super simple, the chicken is roasted in the air-fryer to get that perfectly cooked succulent chicken breast – golden on the outside and juicy on the inside – chicken always comes out perfectly cooked in the air-fryer and it’s my favourite way to roast it!

While the chicken is roasting in the air-fryer and the onions are pickling in the balsamic vinegar, you can begin making the basil pesto by simply adding all of the pesto ingredients into a mini chopper and blitzing them together for a few pulses, and hey pesto! It’s done!

Next, get the chopping board out and start slicing through those juicy, ripe, red tomatoes – they add such a vibrancy to this dish, both in flavour and in visuals – with the pops of white from the mozzarella and the fresh green from the basil – this is what really makes this a show stopping meal which will look stunning on the dinner table.

Once the chicken is perfectly roasted, remove it from the air-fryer and allow it to rest on a clean chopping board to allow the protein to retract and the juices to flow.  It can then be sliced, ready to be added to the rest of the ingredients.

Start assembling the dish, starting with the sliced, roasted chicken – allowing any chargrilled, golden edges to show and then build the rest of the plate with the pickled shallots, all of those juicy chopped tomatoes, mozzarella balls and dots of basil pesto and fresh basil leaves.

To finish, you top with a sprinkling of sea salt flakes and ground black pepper.  This simple chicken, cherry tomato salad will add a burst of brightness and flavour to your meal time!

Ingredients

• 3 small red onions
• 2 TBSP Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 large Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
• Oregano
• Basil Pesto
  • Large handful fresh basil
  • 2 TBSP olive oil
  • Parmesan cheese to taste
  • ½ Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
  • Handful walnuts
  • A little water to loosen
• 250g Mozzarella Cheese balls
• 400g Cherry Tomatoes, halved
• Sea Salt
• Freshly Ground Black Pepper
• Optional extras for serving – basil leaves

Step-by-Step instructions

Step 1: Marinate the onions

Place the onions into a small bowl and cover with balsamic vinegar and set to one side to allow them to marinate.

Step 2: Cook the Chicken

Place the chicken breasts directly into the air-fryer basket on top of the crisper rack and cook for 15-20 minutes depending on how thick your chicken breasts are.  The chicken breasts I have used are 250g each and are quite thick, these cook perfectly in 20 minutes.  Adjust your cooking time to suit your size of chicken and ensure it is cooked through to the middle of the thickest part of the chicken.

Step 3: Make the pesto

Place the pesto ingredients into a mini chopper processor and pulse until you get to a grainy, coarse, pesto consistency.  Set the pesto to one-side while you continue with the recipe.

Step 4: Prepare the tomatoes and mozzarella balls

Chop all of the tomatoes in half and make mozzarella balls using a small melon ball scoop.  If you do not have this utensil, simply shred the mozzarella with your hands into small pieces.

Step 5: Assemble the dish

You are now ready to assemble the dish! Slice the chicken into strips width-ways and place it on the serving plate.  Add the tomatoes, mozzarella balls and drizzle the basil pesto on top.

Serve with extra basil leaves, slices of avocado and a drizzle of balsamic if desired.

Step 6: Serve and Enjoy!

Recipe FAQs

What should I serve this with?

This would be great served as it is but if you prefer an extra filling dish, add some cooked grains or steamed greens – both of these would work well with this dish!

If you like this recipe, you may also like to try Singapore Chicken and Chickpea Noodles with Green Beans or this Chicken Curry with only 5 steps