Classic Chef Salad

A good Classic Chef Salad has always been one of my favorite things to order at the old-fashioned diners we frequent. There’s almost always a version of this famous American dinner salad on the menu at any diner around.

I don’t think it’s very typical to think of a salad as comfort food, but in the case of a hearty chef salad, it is exactly that.

In my opinion, it’s a notable comfort food classic and it’s got everything a good dinner salad can offer: smoky meats, flavorful cheeses, a rich hard-cooked egg, sweet carrots, fragrant cucumbers, sharp red onion slices, and seasoned, crunchy croutons are a must here. Lest we forget that all of these flavorful, savory ingredients are served atop a bed of crisp, fresh lettuce.

It’s just such a great, satisfying dinner salad and it’s a real looker too.

How to make a classic chef salad

In general, a chef salad is a main dish salad that’s made by topping a bed of lettuce or mixed greens with a combination of roasted or smoked meats, cheeses, raw vegetables, and hard cooked eggs.

To prepare a single salad, a measure of lettuce, typically Romaine or iceberg, or a mix of greens is torn, shredded or chopped and transferred into a salad bowl or dinner plate. The bed of lettuce is then topped with an assortment of diced meats and raw vegetable such as carrots, cucumbers, tomato, and raw onion. This list of veggies may be the most common combo of veggies included on an old-school chef salad, but of course this element of the salad can vary widely between recipes and restaurants.

Versions of a chef salad featured on restaurant menus often include a choice of protein. Most commonly, the choice is between a measure of smoked turkey, roasted chicken or smoked ham, however a combination of those meats is usually not included in the menu price. (Yes, an additional serving of meat can usually be added to the salad for an extra charge! At least, this has been my experience when I’ve ordered a chef salad while dining out in my neck of the woods!)

Also, a chef salad should be presented as a composed salad as opposed to a Devil-may-care, carefree tossed salad; it’s meant to be a momentary feast for the eyes as well. The arrangement of the top layer of veggies and meat is typically done by design, and all of the ingredients are artfully compartmentalized on top of the greens in a symmetrical fashion.

When the craving for this salad strikes, I often prepare several servings worth of lettuce and all the salad toppings too and store them in air tight containers in the fridge. Just a little bit of meal prepping goes a long way with a multi- ingredient recipe like this one, and it makes putting together a nice, healthy chef salad for lunch an easy option through the week.

I use a food scale to measure out my portions for this salad, and it’s been a great help in keeping my health and weight loss goals on track. I recently purchased a new food scale from Amazon after going without one for several years. It’s compact, works great and it also comes in many colors. You can check it out here: https://amzn.to/4l9IoPY

I enjoy my homemade chef salads served with some Creamy Honey Mustard Salad Dressing, or some Buttermilk Ranch Dressing most often. Although at times, I have also been known to go with a rich blue cheese dressing, if it’s available. Even at home, I take my salad dressing served on the side. What about you?

I also choose to be a little bit extra when serving up this fantastic dinner salad to my family as I always include good quality, deli smoked turkey, and a small measure of smoked ham in this mix. It’s a deliciously flavorful combination of meats that we all enjoy. A chef salad just wouldn’t be right for me without a little bit of sweet, smoky ham!

Y’all, I’ll do the extra slicing and dicing, all in the name of joy. No tips or extra charges applied to the tab in my kitchen! Just do the dishes, would ya?? 😊

Happy eating, my friends! xo – M

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Classic Chef Salad

Recipe by Marcelle at A Little Fish in the Kitchen Course: Lunch, DinnerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

1

salad

Prep time

20

minutes

It’s hard to think of a more satisfying, or comforting dinner salad than a Chef Salad! This eye-catching, composed salad offers a rainbow of crisp fresh vegetables, measures of savory deli meats, a combination of flavorful cheeses, and a hard cooked egg. I enjoy this salad, as is, with a classic combo of ingredients, but of course you can add or subtract to this salad, as you prefer, to suit your preferences.
✨This recipe makes a single chef salad, please adjust the ingredients as necessary to meet your needs.

Ingredients

• For a single serving of chef salad

• 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce or chopped leafy greens of choice

• 1 ounce diced smoked turkey or chicken

• 1 ounce diced smoked ham

• 1/2 ounce Swiss cheese, small dice or grated

• 1/2 ounce diced cheddar or colby jack cheese, small dice or grated

• 1/3 cup diced English cucumber

• 4-6 sweet cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

• 1/3 cup shredded carrots

• 1 hard cooked egg, sliced in half

• 2-3 thin slices of red onion, if desired

• 5-6 prepared croutons, if desired

• Salad dressing of choice

Directions

• Place the prepared lettuce in a bowl or on a dinner plate *see notes below.
• Working in a symmetrical fashion, arrange the prepared ingredients around the top of the bed of lettuce, one at a time. Please refer to the photos in this post or the full tutorial video below if an example is needed.
• Garnish the composed chef salad with onion slices and croutons. Top with your favorite salad dressing or serve salad dressing in a small ramekin on the side.
• Enjoy!

Recipe Video

Notes

• It will be best to choose a larger personal size bowl such as a pasta bowl or use a regular a dinner plate.
• Recipe as published on A Little Fish in the Kitchen at www.alittlefishinthekitchen.com. All content is owned by Marcelle G. Bolton. Please contact the author for permission to republish.