Crispy Hen Salad (With Maple Mustard Dressing)

This crispy hen salad is a fall favourite in my home! It options air-fried crispy hen, honey crisp apples, a tremendous selfmade maple mustard dressing, and candied pecans. It’s a flavorful and protein-rich lunch or dinner that I completely can’t get sufficient of.

A Few Featured Elements

• Apples: right here within the midwest, we’re all about honey crisp apples! The flavour is texture is simply the very best. Be at liberty to thinly slice any apple of your alternative ❤️.
• Pecans: the candied pecans add deliciously candy taste and somewhat crunch. it’s an important complement to the savory hen and maple mustard dressing.
• Hen: air fryer hen bbs! I like air frying hen as a result of it will get it further crispy with out frying + it requires minimal prepare dinner time. My toddler at all times steals a hen nugget or two once I’m making this recipe.
• Dijon mustard: mustard is the bottom of the salad dressing for this recipe! It’s a selfmade dressing that does require just a few elements, however all the things might be poured in a mason jar and shaken up earlier than dressing. I prefer to make a double batch to maintain further dressing available within the fridge.
• Maple syrup: you’ll use maple within the salad dressing and likewise within the candied pecans. It’s my go-to pure sweetener of alternative.
• Spring combine greens: technically any lettuce or area greens will work for this salad, so select your personal journey right here. The crunch of romaine could be delish, and so would a softer butter lettuce.

Discover the checklist of full elements within the recipe card under. 

Make Stovetop Candied Pecans

Making your personal candied pecans is tremendous fast and straightforward. All it’s essential to do is warmth a big skillet over medium/low warmth. Add the pecans, maple syrup, and cinnamon to the skillet. Toss the pecans till they’re coated, and toast them till they start to brown.

Switch the pecans to a plate and allow them to cool — be happy to style check just a few 😋😋.

Making ready and Air-Frying the Hen

Dredge a chunk of hen by the flour, then egg, after which the panko, ensuring the hen items are totally coated. The flour –> egg –> panko order for dredging the hen helps make every bit tremendous crispy and evenly coated within the breading.

Then, switch the hen to the air fryer, ensuring the hen items usually are not touching. Prepare dinner at 400º for 5-8 minutes (depends upon what sort of air fryer you’re utilizing) or till the hen is golden brown and crispy. You’re searching for an inside temperature of 165ºF.

Professional tip: It’s possible you’ll have to prepare dinner the hen in batches relying on the scale of your air fryer.

Need to make a non-breaded hen for this recipe? I like to recommend my juicy air fryer hen breast recipe. Alternatively, you possibly can press the straightforward button and simply carry dwelling a rotisserie hen from the grocery retailer (I’ve achieved this extra instances than I can rely!).

Discover the complete recipe directions within the recipe card under.

Add the Dressing and Serve

My #1 tip for this salad is to WAIT to decorate it till proper earlier than serving. Why? Spring combine is a fragile area inexperienced and might get soggy fairly rapidly. Plus, you don’t need your tremendous crispy hen nuggets to get soggy both 😅😅.

Greatest Solution to Retailer Leftovers

One of the simplest ways to retailer leftover servings of this salad is to maintain the dressing and hen separate from all the things else. Then, if you’re able to serve, you possibly can reheat the hen (both within the air fryer for a couple of minutes or within the microwave) and toss with the dressing to freshen issues up.



Extra Hearty Salad Recipes

• Start by making candied pecans. Warmth a big skillet over medium/low warmth. Add the pecans, maple syrup, and cinnamon to the skillet. Toss the pecans till they’re coated. Toast the pecans till they start to brown. Switch the pecans to a plate and allow them to cool.

• Add all the elements for the dressing to a bowl and whisk to mix. Put aside.

• Subsequent, put together the hen. In three separate bowls, add the flour to 1, whisked eggs, maple syrup, and Dijon to the second, and panko bread crumbs and salt to the third bowl.

• Dredge a chunk of hen by the flour, then egg, after which the panko. Be certain it’s totally coated. Put aside and repeat till all of the hen has been coated.

• Switch the hen to the air fryer and spray with avocado oil. Be certain the hen items usually are not overcrowded. Prepare dinner at 400º for 5-8 minutes (depends upon what sort of air fryer you’re utilizing) or till the hen is golden brown and crispy. It’s possible you’ll have to prepare dinner the hen in batches. We’re searching for an inside temperature of 165ºF.

• Add the blended greens, cranberries, feta, and apples to a big salad bowl. Prime with hen and candied pecans.

• Costume the salad proper earlier than serving and revel in instantly.

• For those who don’t have an air fryer, be happy to interchange the air fryer hen with rotisserie hen.

Energy: 574 kcal, Carbohydrates: 65 g, Protein: 35 g, Fats: 31 g, Fiber: 5 g, Sugar: 28 g

Vitamin info is robotically calculated, so ought to solely be used as an approximation.