Cobb Salad with Chicken and Bacon (Printable)

Hearty layered salad with chicken, bacon, eggs, avocado, tomatoes, and blue cheese over crisp lettuce with homemade vinaigrette.

# What You Need:

→ Salad Base

01 - 1 large head romaine lettuce, chopped
02 - 1 large head iceberg lettuce, chopped

→ Proteins

03 - 2 cooked chicken breasts (grilled or poached), diced
04 - 4 slices bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled
05 - 4 large eggs, hard-boiled, peeled, and quartered

→ Vegetables & Cheese

06 - 2 ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and sliced
07 - 2 medium ripe tomatoes, diced
08 - 3.5 oz blue cheese, crumbled
09 - 2 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped

→ Dressing

10 - 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
11 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
12 - 1 small garlic clove, minced
13 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
14 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
15 - 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

# Directions:

01 - Arrange the chopped romaine and iceberg lettuces in a large salad bowl or platter as the foundation.
02 - Neatly arrange the chicken, bacon, eggs, avocado, tomatoes, and blue cheese in rows on top of the lettuce for classic presentation.
03 - In a small bowl, whisk together red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, minced garlic, salt, and pepper. Gradually whisk in the olive oil until well emulsified.
04 - Drizzle the dressing evenly over the salad just before serving or serve on the side. Sprinkle with fresh chives for garnish.
05 - Serve immediately, allowing guests to toss the salad or enjoy the layered presentation.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • Its essentially a deconstructed meal that lets you customize every single bite to your exact preferences
  • The combination of warm crispy bacon and cool creamy avocado creates this incredible temperature contrast that keeps every forkful interesting
02 -
  • Never dress this salad ahead of time—the lettuce will wilt and those perfect rows will collapse into a sad, soggy heap
  • The secret restaurant technique is arranging rows by color, not ingredient type, which makes the whole thing look professional and thoughtful
03 -
  • Use a vegetable peeler to create long, elegant ribbons of chives instead of chopping them—the presentation looks infinitely more intentional
  • Toast your leftover bacon grease in the pan for thirty seconds before making your dressing for an extra layer of smoky depth
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