I love a good salad, but salad isn’t usually what comes to mind when I think of comfort food. Or super satisfying food. Or I’m-totes-craving-that food. This salad, though? Oh man, guys. This is the stuff.
This warm chicken salad with roasted potatoes and chives has everything you’d want in a meal: fresh ingredients, a good bit of protein, carbs (because carbs = mandatory), a pinch of salt, topped off with overall deliciousness. I think the fact that the vinaigrette is warm does something to trick your senses, too. Maybe that’s where the comfort factor comes in. Or maybe it’s the roasted potatoes. Because let’s face it: Crisp roasted potatoes are never a bad idea.
My take is a slightly adapted version of Merrill Stubbs’ recipe on Food52, and now I’m kicking myself for letting it sit on my Pinterest board for so long before giving it a try. I love that it puts leftover chicken to good use, and the other ingredients are things I usually have on hand. It really is one of those recipes that gets easier — and faster! — the more you make it. Add a little more of this, a little less of that. Really, as long as you toss it all together with the wonderfully warm dressing at the end, it’s sure to be amazing.
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- • ½ to ¾ pounds fingerling potatoes (I especially love the Teeny Tiny Potatoes from Trader Joe’s!), scrubbed clean and cut into ½-inch-thick wedges. For the teeny potatoes, I usually just quarter them. Larger fingerling potatoes might need a few more slices.
- • kosher salt
- • freshly ground black pepper
- • ⅔ cup olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
- • ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- • 8 cups Romaine lettuce (or another favorite), cut or torn into bite-size pieces
- • 2 cups shredded leftover roast chicken (rotisserie chicken works great, too)
- • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Toss the quartered potatoes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, a pinch of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper together on the baking sheet, until the potatoes are evenly coated in oil and spices. Spread them out on the baking sheet so they have plenty of space. Then roast them in the oven for about 15 minutes, until they’re soft in the middle and browned and crisp on the outside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil and a few big pinches of salt and pepper (or you can skip the whisking; just put it all in a jar with the lid screwed on tight, and then give it a good shake until it’s all mixed up).
- Put the vinaigrette in a medium saucepan over medium heat. When the vinaigrette is hot, add the chicken and potatoes. Cook, tossing the chicken and potatoes lightly in the vinaigrette every few minutes, until the chicken is heated through and the chicken and potatoes are both crisp around the edges.
- In a large serving bowl, toss together the lettuce, chicken, potatoes and warm vinaigrette. Add the chives, and give the salad another quick toss. Serve immediately.
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XO,
Katrina
Oh, I now understand that I have been LONGING for potatoes in a salad….Can’t wait to try this!!! And if you swap out the wine vinegar for another type…it’s Whole30 compliant [doing that this month, for better or for worse!]
Oh, I hope you love it as much as we do! I’ve made this at least four times since I posted the recipe, and even the kids eat it all up! The potatoes are the not-so-secret stars of the salad for sure. 🙂