Ranch chicken jar salads are made with healthier ingredients including homemade ranch dressing, baked chicken breast, and tons of veggies! Low carb with 6 g net carbs, and GF.
Salads can get a rap as being 'boring' or 'not filling', but today's jar salads are anything but boring!
It all starts out with a batch of homemade ranch dressing (of course you can purchase store-bought if you are in a rush).
And it only gets better with baked chicken breast, tons of veggies, mozzarella and crunchy tortilla strips added just before serving.
This is my kinda salad!
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We love these ranch chicken jar salads because
- they stay so fresh, even on day 4, thanks to the layering of ingredients
- they are easy to store in the fridge and portable for carrying to work
- they taste DELICIOUS
How to make them
This is an easy meal prep recipe you can have ready in under 30 minutes!
- First, get your chicken cooking: sautee bite-sized pieces for 5-7 minutes in a non-stick pan. I kept seasoning minimal because RANCH DRESSING.
- Next, make your ranch dressing. Full directions are here!
- Chop your veggies: I used romaine lettuce, cucs, tomatoes and bell peppers
- Shred some cheese
- Get layering! Dressing at bottom, then chicken, and add your veggies. The only important thing is that the dressing is at the bottom and lettuce is at the top.
To serve: Shake your jars out into a bowl and enjoy! The dressing should evenly coat everything giving you perfectly dressed salad in seconds.
Do I eat these salads right out of the jar? You could, but it's awkward, so I recommend having a clean bowl or plate to shake it into. You can make these in 1 quart jars, and give a good shake before eating, but you're also going to need a really long fork 😉
Are these jar salads low carb? Yes, with only 6 g net carbs per serving, these can fit into the keto diet.
Which other veggies could I use in this recipe? Think of this as a great base recipe that you can easily swap out for what you have in your fridge:
- swap the lettuce for kale or spinach
- swap the tomatoes, cucs and bell peppers for carrots, snap peas, red onions, cabbage, celery, roasted sweet potato, roasted cauliflower and so many more things
- swap the mozzarella for cheddar, feta, or just leave it out!
- swap the ranch dressing for one of these 7 Basic Vinaigrette Recipes
Tips & equipment
- I use 1 pint jars
, then shake out into a clean bowl to serve, but you could also portion out into these quart-sized jars (and eat right out of the jar) - I recommend a good chef’s knife
to make chopping a breeze
- I love this salad spinner to get the lettuce nice and dry (you want to make sure your veggies are as dry as possible before storing!
- Looking for more jar salads? Try this Taco Salad, these Thai Chickpea Mason Jar Salads, and these Southwestern Sweet Potato Jar Salads
, then shake out into a clean bowl to serve, but you could also portion out into these 
Ranch Chicken Jar Salads
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into bite-sized pieces; roughly 2 large chicken breasts)
- salt & pepper
- ½ cup homemade ranch dressing
- 4 cups romaine lettuce (washed, dried, and cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup cucumbers (cut into rounds)
- 1 bell pepper (chopped into small pieces)
- 1 cup mozarella (shredded)
To serve (optional)
- 1 cup tortilla strips
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick pan.
- Add the chicken, season with salt & pepper, and cook for 5-7 minutes, until cooked though and no pink remains. Set aside to cool.
- While chicken is cooking, stir together homemade ranch dressing.
- Portion: Add 2 tablespoons of ranch dressing to the bottom of four 1-pint mason jars. Add cooled chicken on top, then bell peppers, cheese, tomatoes and cucumbers. Press the romaine lettuce into the top of the jar, then seal.
Storage
- Store for up to 4 days in the fridge.
- To serve: shake jars out into a clean jar. OR if you prepare in 1-quart jars, you can shake the jar up and eat right out of the jar.
