This copycat Applebee’s salad brings the beloved restaurant favorite right to your kitchen in just 35 minutes. Packed with wholesome ingredients and boasting an impressive 37g of protein, this vibrant dish perfectly balances nutrition and flavor.
The fresh ingredients create a colorful medley that’s both satisfying and health-conscious, making it an excellent choice for a quick weekday lunch or a light dinner. Each forkful delivers a delightful mix of textures and tastes while keeping the calorie count at a reasonable 578 per serving.
Ingredients for Applebee’s Salad
For the Dressing:
- Honey: 6 tablespoons, adds natural sweetness
- Rice Wine Vinegar: 3 tablespoons, provides tangy balance
- Mayonnaise: 1/2 cup, creates creamy base
- Dijon Mustard: 2 teaspoons, adds zesty kick
- Sesame Oil: 1/4 teaspoon, brings nutty aroma
For the Chicken:
- Chicken Breasts: 1 pound, cut into thin strips
- Eggs & Milk: 2 eggs + 1 cup milk for coating mixture
- Flour: 1 cup, helps create crispy coating
- Cornflakes: 1 cup crushed, adds extra crunch
- Oil: 3 cups for frying
For the Salad:
- Romaine Lettuce: 6 cups, fresh and crispy
- Cabbage Mix: 1 cup each red and napa cabbage
- Carrots: 2 shredded, adds color and crunch
- Green Onions: 2 chopped, for sharp flavor
- Cucumber: 1/2 chopped, adds freshness
- Almonds: 1/4 cup slivered, for nutty crunch
Instructions
- Prepare Dressing: Mix honey, vinegar, mayo, mustard, and sesame oil until smooth. Chill until needed.
- Heat Oil: Warm to 350°F or until bread test sizzles nicely.
- Prepare Coating: Mix egg-milk in one bowl, flour-cornflakes in another.
- Coat Chicken: Dip strips first in egg mixture, then in flour mixture.
- Fry Chicken: Cook 3-4 minutes until golden brown and cooked through.
- Assemble: Toss greens, veggies, top with chicken and almonds.
- Serve: Drizzle with prepared dressing and enjoy immediately!
Cooking Techniques
Getting that perfect crispy chicken is all about temperature control! Keep your oil between 340-360°F for the best results. If you don’t have a thermometer, watch for gentle bubbling around a test piece of bread – too slow means the oil is too cool, too aggressive means it’s too hot.
The chicken strips should sizzle steadily when they hit the oil, giving you that beautiful golden-brown coating in about 3-4 minutes.
Make-Ahead Tips
The honey-sesame dressing is your best friend for meal prep! Mix it up to 3 days ahead and keep it in the fridge – it actually gets better as the flavors blend together. You can also prep all your veggies the day before.
Just store them separately in airtight containers with a paper towel to absorb extra moisture. The chicken is best cooked fresh, but if you have leftovers, they’ll stay crispy if you reheat them in the oven at 350°F for 5-7 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
This Asian-inspired salad really shines as a complete meal, but you might want to serve it with some warm bread on the side to soak up that amazing dressing! For a fun presentation, arrange the ingredients in rows instead of tossing them together – it looks beautiful and lets everyone mix their perfect bite.
Try warming the dressing slightly (just 10 seconds in the microwave) to bring out the honey flavor and help it coat the greens better.
Applebee’s Salad
Equipment
- Bowl
- Pot
Ingredients
Dressing
- 6 Tablespoons honey
- 3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
Salad
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup corn flakes cereal crushed into crumbs
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 cups oil vegetable or canola, for frying
- 6 cups Romaine lettuce chopped
- 1 cup red cabbage chopped
- 1 cup napa cabbage chopped
- 2 carrots shredded
- 2 green onions chopped
- 1/2 cucumber chopped
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds
Instructions
- Make dressing: Combine dressing ingredients in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use. (Dressing can be made a few days in advance).
- Heat oil: Preheat oil in a pot over medium heat. You want the oil at about 350 degrees F, (or test the oil by putting a small piece of torn bread into the pot and if the bread sizzles, it’s ready.)
- Coat chicken: In a small bowl beat the egg and milk together. In another bowl combine the flour, cornflake crumbs and salt and pepper. Cut chicken into several long thin strips. Dip the strips in the egg mixture, and then into the flour mixture, coating completely.
- Fry Chicken: Carefully add coated chicken to the hot oil and fry for 3-4 minutes or until cooked through and coating is dark golden brown.
- Assemble Salad: Combine the romaine, red cabbage, napa cabbage, carrots, onions and cucumber. Add chicken on top and then add almonds. Serve with dressing!
