Baby Romaine Salad with Spicy Chicken & Warm Chipotle Vinaigrette

By Heritage330

Ingredients

• 6 oz. baby romaine, washed and spun dry (about 8 loosely packed cups)
• 1/4 lb. iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced, washed and spun dry (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 chipotle chile (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce), chopped, plus 2 Tbs. adobo sauce
• 3 oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
• 2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp. light brown sugar
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup plus 3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbs. fine cornmeal (preferably white)
• 1 Tbs. chili powder
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1-1/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 3 small), cut crosswise into 1-inch-thick strips
• 1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced into half moons
• 1 ripe avocado, cut into 3/4-inch dice
• 1-1/2 cups cooked fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels (from about 2 ears)
• 1 lime, cut into quarters

Details

Servings 4
Adapted from finecooking.com

Preparation

Step 1

Toss the romaine, iceberg, and half of the cilantro in a large bowl. In a blender or food processor, purée the chipotle chile and adobo sauce, sun-dried tomatoes, vinegar, brown sugar, and mustard. With the machine running, slowly pour in 1/2 cup of the oil. Transfer to a measuring cup; season to taste with salt and pepper.

In a shallow dish, mix the flour, cornmeal, chili powder, and cumin with 1-1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. black pepper. Season the chicken with 1 tsp. salt and then dredge in the flour mixture.

Heat 2 Tbs. of the remaining oil in a heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it’s shimmering, about 1 minute. Add half of the chicken strips, evenly spaced, and cook without touching for 2 min. Flip and cook until the strips are just cooked through and firm to the touch, 1 to 2 min. Transfer to a large plate lined with ­paper towels and sprinkle with salt. Reduce the heat to medium, add the remaining 1 Tbs. oil, and cook the remaining strips in the same manner.

Discard the fat from the pan and wipe it clean with paper ­towels. Set the pan over low heat, add the vinaigrette, and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula, until warmed through, about 1 min. Return the vinaigrette to a liquid measuring cup and whisk to recombine.

Reviews

I gave this four stars for the dressing and the nice combination of ingredients that made for a pretty presentation. One bone to pick: I buy sun-dried tomatoes that are already chopped, so I haven't a clue what quantity makes up one tomato. I had to guess at the amount, but the dressing came out very tasty anyway. Only four stars because I don't think the chicken is very special this way. Next time, I'd omit the breading, marinate it in lime, garlic, red pepper flakes, and olive oil and do it on a ridged grill pan. Breading wasn't necessary, and the chili powder didn't add much. Plus, since I used a nonstick skillet to fry the chicken, there was a only a negligible amount of bits left in the pan in which to heat up the dressing.

I did the recipe as written but substituted Italian Parsley for Cilantro since I have Cilantro-phobes amongst my cooking audience. First, the chipotle flavor is dominant so you have to like that to start with. Second, prep time was extensive (for a salad anyway) ... it took me about 45 minutes of washing, spinning, chopping, breading, sauteing, etc. In the end, after all the work, it was highly OK. If I had it a restaurant I would eat 7/8 of it and say, "hmmm, that was interesting." Then order something else the next time I went there. In the unlikely event that I make this again, I would amend it with beans, chips ... whatever; but focus more on the tex-mex chile aspect of the dish that has been suggested by other commentators.

We absolutely loved this salad! The salad dressing is awesome. I added 1 clove of garlic and squirt of lime juice to the dressing as well. For the salad, I used mixed greens and added some iceberg for crunch, plus black beans and tomatoes in addition to the corn and avocado. I also used shredded rotisserie chicken to make a quick and delicious meal.

I absolutely LOVE this recipe! It is so delicious regardless of the kind of greens you use. I picked some fresh mix from my garden on my deck! I made half the recipe because there were only two of us ... and all the dressing and a couple days later used it to spice up another salad!! Thanks so much!! It is now one of my favorites!!

This is one of my favorite salad dressings ever. I usually add a clove of garlic and a squirt of lime to the dressing too. I have made this at home for my boyfriend and me and for groups of 30 at a cooking job I have. Everyone always raves about it. I use whatever salad ingrediants I have on hand-so the veggies vary everytime. Often I add black beans, homemade fried tortilla strips and cotija or feta cheese. Really though, it is the dressing that makes this salad.