Gluten-free Crispy Chicken Tender Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing & Shiitake Bacon

The nice thing about this salad is that it has a bit of a comfort food feel, so would be great any time of the year.

Thanks to the combination of the crispy chicken tenders (gluten-free, of course) and the creamy honey mustard dressing, I promise this salad will be well-loved, even among your typical non-salad lovers!

Gluten-free Crispy Chicken Tender Salad with Honey Mustard Dressing & Shiitake Bacon

The crispy chicken, the dressing and the shiitake bacon are great recipes to keep on hand and enjoy on their own too. Shiitake bacon is simply a lighter, plant-based alternative for those who don't eat bacon. It does add a few extra steps and you could simply use regular bacon for this, but don't knock the shiitake version until you try it! If you want to save time but still want a crunch, you could also sub for pumpkin seeds.

If you try this recipe, leave us a comment to let us know what you think. If you like this recipe, be sure to check out the Weekly Meal Planning Program, which includes more recipes like this one.

Prep Time:

4 minutes

Cook Time:

36 minutes

Total Time:

40 minutes

Serves:

Ingredients:

100g shiitake mushrooms (about 1.5 cups), stems removed
1.5 lb chicken boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into strips
1 cup almond flour (or grind up raw almonds in a food processor)
2 eggs
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
¼ tsp cayenne
½ tsp kosher salt and black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
6 cups arugula
1.5 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 large avocado, diced

Honey Mustard Dressing:

1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp tahini
1 tbsp Dijon mustard (a grainy Dijon is best)
¼ tsp sea salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375° F. Cover a baking sheet with olive oil (about 1 tbsp) and another with parchment paper.
Place the mushroom caps flat and slice into ¼ inch thick pieces. Spread them out on the baking sheet and cover in sea salt and oil. You want them to be nicely coated so they get crispy. Toss with your hands and spread them out so none of them are overlapping. Bake for 10 minutes.
While the mushrooms are cooking, whisk the eggs in a bowl. Add the chicken & toss to coat.
In a separate bowl, combine the almond flour and spices.
Coat each piece of chicken in the almond flour mixture so they are well covered, and lay them out on the baking sheet with parchment paper. Either spray or drizzle the chicken strips with olive oil. This helps make them nice and crispy.
After 10 minutes are up, flip each of the mushrooms and bake them for another 6 minutes. When done, remove them from the oven and let them cool on the sheet.
Now, set the oven to 425° F.
Bake the chicken strips for 15-20 mins, flipping half-way.
Next, make the salad by combining the arugula, tomatoes, avocado, and mushroom “bacon” in a salad bowl.
To make the dressing, either combine everything in a blender or use a glass jar and shake it until smooth.
Top the salad with the chicken. Add a little of the dressing. Enjoy!