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Super Cobb Salad

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on November 15, 2019

Time

1¼ hours

Yield

serves 6

Super Cobb Salad

Ingredients

8 ounces organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into ½-inch piecesSalt and pepper 2 teaspoons expeller-pressed canola oil 10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika ⅛ teaspoon chili powder 8 ounces kale, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (8 cups)⅓ cup finely chopped red onion 1 tablespoon lemon juice ¾ cup organic plain low-fat yogurt 3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese 1 garlic clove, minced½ small head radicchio (3 ounces), cored and cut into ½-inch pieces3 hard-cooked large organic eggs, quartered1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into ½-inch pieces6 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved

Instructions

  1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to plate and let cool.
  2. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add mushrooms and ¼ teaspoon salt, cover, and cook until mushrooms have released their liquid, 4 to 6 minutes. Uncover and increase heat to medium-high. Stir in paprika, chili powder, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper and cook until mushrooms are golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to second plate and let cool.
  3. Place kale in large bowl and cover with warm tap water (110 to 115 degrees). Swish kale around to remove grit. Let kale sit in warm water bath for 10 minutes. Remove kale from water and spin dry in salad spinner in multiple batches. Pat leaves dry with paper towels if still wet. Toss onion with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and set aside.
  4. Whisk yogurt, blue cheese, garlic, remaining 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and ¼ teaspoon salt together in bowl until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Toss kale and radicchio with ½ cup dressing to coat. Transfer to serving platter and mound in even layer. Arrange cooled mushrooms, onion, eggs, avocado, and tomatoes in single, even rows over greens, leaving space at either end. Arrange half of chicken in each open space at ends of platter. Drizzle remaining dressing over salad. Serve.
Super Cobb Salad
Photography by Keller + Keller.

Super Cobb Salad

Headshot of America's Test Kitchen
By America's Test Kitchen
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Time

1¼ hours

Yield

serves 6

Ingredients

8 ounces organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into ½-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons expeller-pressed canola oil
10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin
⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika
⅛ teaspoon chili powder
8 ounces kale, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (8 cups)
⅓ cup finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¾ cup organic plain low-fat yogurt
3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
½ small head radicchio (3 ounces), cored and cut into ½-inch pieces
3 hard-cooked large organic eggs, quartered
1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into ½-inch pieces
6 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

8 ounces organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into ½-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons expeller-pressed canola oil
10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin
⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika
⅛ teaspoon chili powder
8 ounces kale, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (8 cups)
⅓ cup finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¾ cup organic plain low-fat yogurt
3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
½ small head radicchio (3 ounces), cored and cut into ½-inch pieces
3 hard-cooked large organic eggs, quartered
1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into ½-inch pieces
6 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved

Test Kitchen Techniques

Ingredients

8 ounces organic boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of all visible fat and cut into ½-inch pieces
Salt and pepper
2 teaspoons expeller-pressed canola oil
10 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin
⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika
⅛ teaspoon chili powder
8 ounces kale, stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (8 cups)
⅓ cup finely chopped red onion
1 tablespoon lemon juice
¾ cup organic plain low-fat yogurt
3 tablespoons crumbled blue cheese
1 garlic clove, minced
½ small head radicchio (3 ounces), cored and cut into ½-inch pieces
3 hard-cooked large organic eggs, quartered
1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into ½-inch pieces
6 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved

Test Kitchen Techniques

Why This Recipe Works

We were sad to sacrifice bacon's smoky flavor until we tried sautéing shiitake mushrooms with smoked paprika and chili powder. Now we had smokiness and even some umami meatiness without the saturated fat and preservatives. Using kale in place of romaine upped the nutritional ante, and radicchio contributed beautiful color. For the dressing, just a bit of blue cheese whisked with yogurt, garlic, and lemon juice provided the tangy blue cheese flavor we expected. We tossed some with our greens and drizzled the rest over our still-classic, yet mindfully updated, Cobb salad.

Instructions

  1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to plate and let cool.
  2. Heat remaining 1 teaspoon oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add mushrooms and ¼ teaspoon salt, cover, and cook until mushrooms have released their liquid, 4 to 6 minutes. Uncover and increase heat to medium-high. Stir in paprika, chili powder, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper and cook until mushrooms are golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to second plate and let cool.
  3. Place kale in large bowl and cover with warm tap water (110 to 115 degrees). Swish kale around to remove grit. Let kale sit in warm water bath for 10 minutes. Remove kale from water and spin dry in salad spinner in multiple batches. Pat leaves dry with paper towels if still wet. Toss onion with 2 teaspoons lemon juice and set aside.
  4. Whisk yogurt, blue cheese, garlic, remaining 1 teaspoon lemon juice, and ¼ teaspoon salt together in bowl until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Toss kale and radicchio with ½ cup dressing to coat. Transfer to serving platter and mound in even layer. Arrange cooled mushrooms, onion, eggs, avocado, and tomatoes in single, even rows over greens, leaving space at either end. Arrange half of chicken in each open space at ends of platter. Drizzle remaining dressing over salad. Serve.

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