It's so easy to make the Chick-fil-A Cobb Salad at home with just a handful of ingredients. Perfect for meal prepping to eat throughout the week, this salad is the best lunch or dinner recipe that you can customize to anyone's liking!
We love a good drive-thru meal from time to time, but sometimes it's nice to recreate your favorites at home. Skip the line and save time and money with this easy, flavor-packed Chick-fil-A Cobb salad recipe. It's loaded with fresh ingredients and can be prepped ahead, so it's so-long to fast food and hello to this easy and delicious homemade salad!
A tasty version of the classic, this Chick-fil-A Cobb has all of the major players - juicy chicken? Check. Crispy bacon? Check. Cheese and hard boiled eggs? check, and check! It's loaded with texture and flavor, plus a creamy dressing to bring it together. Salad's never looked or tasted so good!
If you like this drive-thru inspired salad, try some of our other favorite crispy chicken and salad recipes: like this Spicy Chicken Salad, our Baked Fried Chicken, and these delicious Chic-fil-A Chicken Minis.
Table of Contents
Why You'll Love this Recipe
- Fresh and Simple Ingredients: Made with fresh greens and vegetables, flavorful cheeses, crispy chicken and bacon, and protein-rich hard-boiled eggs, this is a salad you can feel good about eating that's sure to fill you up, too.
- Quick and Easy Cobb: A classic cobb is one of a kind, but sometimes with so many ingredients, they can take a while to make. Not this one! With simple prep-ahead components and simple ingredients, this salad comes together in no time.
- Bang for your Buck: This is a delicious version of a drive-thru salad to save you time and money. Stretch these ingredients to make a few salad servings, and leftovers can be used in so many ways. This cobb is easy on your wallet and a great way to stretch your grocery store dollar.
- Customizable: Add in or omit any ingredients you'd like here. Use any additional veggies you have on hand, leave out any toppings your friends or families would rather skip, and change up the dressing if you'd like. This cobb can go in a variety of flavor directions.
What's In a Chick-fil-A Cobb Salad
The well-known Chic-fil-A Cobb has all of the classic cobb salad components. It's made with breaded, white meat chicken nuggets served over a bed of mixed greens.
The base is then topped with roasted corn, a blend of shredded Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses, crumbled bacon, sliced hard-boiled egg, and grape tomatoes. It's served with charred tomato and crispy red bell peppers and then tossed together with an avocado lime ranch dressing. You can't go wrong!
Ingredients
Scroll Down for Ingredient Amounts Listed in the Recipe Card Below
- Grilled or Fried Chicken: Crispy fried chicken or simply seasoned grilled chicken work great here - both are versatile, flavorful, and a great source of protein.
- Corn: Use fresh corn if you can. Otherwise frozen or canned work well, too. This adds a nice sweetness, crunch and color to the salad.
- Mixed Greens: The base layer of greens to build this salad. Mixed greens are tender, colorful, and have a nice earthy flavor.
- Grape Tomatoes: These are sweet and juice and flavor, and add a nice pop of color to the cobb.
- Monterey Jack Cheese: Savory and tangy in flavor, this adds a nice, rich bite to the salad.
- Cheddar Cheese: With a nice, sharp flavor and texture, this cheese is well-rounded and pairs perfectly with the other ingredients.
- Bacon: Rich, fatty and flavorful, bacon brings a delicious flavor punch to each bite.
- Hard-Boiled Eggs: Packed with protein, these are a classic cobb salad ingredient that can't be skipped.
- Crispy Red Peppers: These add a fun and delicious crunchy texture to the salad.
- Dressing of Choice: Anything works here - use your favorite variety! We recommend a Garden Ranch, Avocado Lime Ranch, Creamy Salsa, or Zesty Apple Cider Vinaigrette.
Tools You'll Need
HOW to Make Chick-fil-A Cobb Salad
- Prepare chicken per package directions, cutting into bite-sized pieces if necessary.
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Rub the corn with a little butter or olive oil to help it brown and add flavor, if desired.
- Add the corn into the hot skillet, and using tongs, rotate the corn to ensure all sides get evenly roasted. Once it's charred to your liking, transfer to a plate or cutting board and carefully cut the kernels off of the cob.
- To four individual salad containers or 1 large serving bowl, create the salad in this order: lettuce, corn, grape tomatoes, Monterey Jack cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, bacon, and egg.
- Add crispy red peppers and desired dressing when ready to serve.
Variations and Substitutions
- Add in Extra Veggies: Add in any extra veggies you have on hand, or any favorites you love. Red bell peppers, sliced cucumbers, red onion, or even briny olives would be delicious here. Cajun Crispy Fried Onions are also an excellent crunchy topping!
- Sub in Different Cheeses: Try a funky blue cheese, crumbled goat, or even feta to take the salad in different directions.
- Make it a Chopped Cobb: To give his salad a different texture and feel, try chopping all of the ingredients up so everything is almost uniform in size. You'll get every ingredient in each bite!
- Switch Up The Protein: Try topping this salad with simply seasoned seared or grilled shrimp or steak, or even add in some deli ham or turkey to change up the flavors. These Grilled Chicken Nuggets are an excellent protein topper!
- Try Different Dressings: Anything goes here! Try a creamy based dressing for a heartier salad, an oil and vinegar base for something lighter, a classic balsamic vinaigrette if you like the traditional route, or give our Blackened Ranch a try - it's zesty and pairs perfectly with fried or grilled chicken.
Helpful Recipe Tips
- Prep Ahead: Prep all of your vegetables and ingredients ahead of time. Wash and dry your greens, prep your veggies, cook and crumble the bacon, pre-cook the eggs, and shred your cheeses to save time.
- Store Ingredients Separately: Keep all of your ingredients in separate storage containers, and when you're ready to assemble, simply grab what you need, combine, and you've got a salad in minutes.
Storing and Make Ahead Instructions
- Store: Store this salad and all components in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-5 days. This will keep everything as fresh and crisp as possible.
- Assemble Individual Salads: Storing ingredients separately keeps everything fresh and is a great way to stay organized, but if you're tight on time and want to grab your salad and go, assemble individual salads with all components in storage containers. Portion out small jars of dressing, then grab both and you can assemble and toss when you're ready to eat!
- Make the Dressing Ahead of Time: Prep and make ahead dressing of your choice. Store in the fridge in an airtight jar or container, and simply dress your salad whenever you're ready to enjoy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Grilled chicken is a little lighter but just as tasty, and it's versatile so it pairs well with all of these cobb salad ingredients.
Making the at-home version will save you money and time. You won't have to wait in line at the drive-thru, and since you're buying whole ingredients, you'll be able to stretch each component and make multiple salads. Leftover ingredients can even be repurposed.
Definitely! Use anything you'd like or whatever you happen to have on hand. You can take your salad in any flavor direction - creamy, tangy, sweet, or classic.
The Chick-fil-A Cobb salad is made up of classic cobb ingredients: mixed greens, breaded chicken, corn, grape tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, Monterey jack and cheddar cheeses, and bacon. Whereas the Chick-fil-A Market salad is made with mixed greens and grilled chicken, blue cheese and a mix of fresh fruit like red and green apples, strawberries and blueberries.
More Delicious Salad Recipes
Chick-fil-A Cobb Salad (Copycat Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 pound grilled or fried chicken cut into cubes
- 1 fresh corn cob husk and silks removed
- 12 cups mixed salad greens such as romaine and green leaf lettuce
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- ¾ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- ¾ cup shredded medium or sharp cheddar cheese
- ⅓ cup cooked and crumbed bacon
- 4 hard-boiled eggs sliced
- ½ cup crispy red peppers
- Dressing Options: Garden Ranch. Avocado Lime Ranch, Creamy Salsa, or Zesty Apple Cider Vinaigrette
Instructions
- Prepare chicken per package directions, cutting into bite-sized pieces if necessary.
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Rub the corn with a little butter or olive oil to help it brown and add flavor, if desired. Once the skillet is hot, place the corn directly inside. Using tongs, rotate the corn to ensure all sides get evenly roasted. Once it's charred to your liking, transfer to a plate or cutting board. Carefully cut the kernels off of the cob.
- To 4 individual salad containers or 1 large serving bowl, create the salad in this order: lettuce, corn, grape tomatoes, Monterey Jack cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, bacon, and egg.
- Add crispy red peppers and desired dressing when ready to serve.
Video
Notes
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- Store: Store this salad and all components in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3-5 days. This will keep everything as fresh and crisp as possible.
-
- Assemble Individual Salads: Storing ingredients separately keeps everything fresh and is a great way to stay organized, but if you're tight on time and want to grab your salad and go, assemble individual salads with all components in storage containers. Portion out small jars of dressing, then grab both and you can assemble and toss when you're ready to eat!
-
- Make the Dressing Ahead of Time: Prep and make ahead dressing of your choice. Store in the fridge in an airtight jar or container, and simply dress your salad whenever you're ready to enjoy.
- Add in Extra Veggies: Add in any extra veggies you have on hand, or any favorites you love. Red bell peppers, sliced cucumbers, red onion, or even briny olives would be delicious here.
- Sub in Different Cheeses: Try a funky blue cheese, crumbled goat, or even feta to take the salad in different directions.
- Make it a Chopped Cobb: To give his salad a different texture and feel, try chopping all of the ingredients up so everything is almost uniform in size. You'll get every ingredient in each bite!
- Switch Up The Protein: Try topping this salad with simply seasoned seared or grilled shrimp or steak, or even add in some deli ham or turkey to change up the flavors.
- Try Different Dressings: Anything goes here! Try a creamy based dressing for a heartier salad, an oil and vinegar base for something lighter, a classic balsamic vinaigrette if you like the traditional route, or give our Blackened Ranch a try - it's zesty and pairs perfectly with fried or grilled chicken.
Nikki
Love that I can get my chick-fil-a fix at home! Delish!
Laura Ashley
Thank you so much!! I'm so happy you like it!
Jules
I loved making individual salads and grabbed one to eat every day for lunch. I loved not spending all of the extra money or waiting in line to buy my favorite salad too.
Laura Ashley
Thank you so much!! I'm so happy you liked it!
Mindy
OMG so good! I've been making this instead of ordering from Chick Fil-a!
Laura Ashley
Thank you so much!! I'm so happy you liked it!