Introducing The Ultimate Fattoush Salad with Chicken: a healthy, delicious, protein-packed twist on the classic Lebanese recipe. This salad comes together with a base of crisp and tender veggies, crunchy pita chips (that are baked, not fried), perfectly-cooked chicken, and a tangy sumac dressing that ties it all together. Whether you’re looking for a hearty side salad or a filling main course, this salad is full of different flavors, textures, and ingredients, which means it’s anything but boring.
What is Fattoush Salad?
Friends, if you’ve never had a Fattoush salad before, then let me introduce you to one of my favorite Middle Eastern recipes. Hailing from Lebanon and a staple of Lebanese culture, Fattoush salads are made from a blend of fresh veggies, crunchy fried pita bread, and a tangy sumac dressing. Growing up, my dad made this recipe all of the time, as an alternative to the traditional Armenian tabouleh (which was another staple in our household). We often enjoyed it alongside Dolmas or Kofta Kebabs for a delicious, well-rounded meal. But luckily for you, this Fattoush salad on its own is the perfect well-rounded meal that covers all of your nutritional bases.
Why? For starters, my version is packed with protein, thanks to the chicken. While traditional Fattoush salad doesn’t include the protein, I love the addition that the chicken brings. You can use either chicken breast or chicken thighs, which are seasoned to perfection with a perfect blend of olive oil, mashed garlic, date syrup, cumin, sea salt, and ground black pepper. The end result? A salad that is delicious when served as a side dish, or is filling enough to be served on its own!
Oh, and before you ask… yes, it can absolutely be made ahead of time. Simply prepare all of the elements individually – the salad, the pita chips, the chicken, and the dressing. Then, once you’re ready to serve this salad, put them all together, and you’ve got a delicious meal that’s ready-to-go in seconds.
What You Need to Make This Lebanese-Style Salad
- Romaine Lettuce: Of course, the base of any salad starts with lettuce, and this recipe calls for one of my favorites – romaine!
- Persian Cucumbers: Persian cucumbers are smaller and crunchier than English cucumbers, making them the perfect addition to this salad.
- Baby Tomatoes: Bright, sweet, and bursting with flavor, baby tomatoes are the perfect addition to this salad.
- Radishes: Radishes are crisp and refreshing, which adds a delightful twist to this salad.
- Orange Bell Pepper: While I love the pop of color and Vitamin C that orange bell peppers add to this salad, you can really use any variety of bell pepper. Just don’t skip it – the crunch that it adds to this salad is truly unbeatable!
- Fresh Mint & Parsley: The combination of fresh mint and parsley adds a delicious, herby flavor to this salad, and is a quintessential part of Middle Eastern cuisine.
- Feta Cheese: This is optional, and can absolutely be omitted if you want to keep this recipe dairy-free. However, I love the tangy, cheesy flavor that crumbled feta cheese adds to this recipe.
- Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs OR chicken breast taste perfect in this recipe. You can use either one – and as always, I recommend using what you already have!
- Olive Oil: Olive oil is full of healthy fats and is the perfect base for the salad dressing.
- Garlic: I recommend using fresh garlic, if possible. It adds the best flavor to the dressing that garlic powder just can’t replicate.
- Date Syrup: This is optional, but I love adding a little bit of date syrup to the chicken to give it the perfect sweet and savory flavor. If you don’t have date syrup, you can just skip it!
- Seasonings: To season the salad, pita chips, chicken, and dressing, you’ll need a combination of cumin, sea salt, sumac, and ground black pepper. Yum!
- Pita Bread: Of course, you’ll need pita bread in order to make the pita chips! You’ll need three whole pita rounds – and you can definitely substitute gluten-free ones, if you prefer.
- Honey: Honey adds just the right amount of sweetness that helps this dressing shine.
- Lemon: I love using fresh lemon juice for that bright and refreshing flavor.
How to Make This Loaded Fattoush Salad
To make this fattoush salad, start by preparing the dressing. Add all of the dressing ingredients (the olive oil, honey, garlic, lemon, sumac, sea salt, and ground black pepper) to a blender. Blend until the ingredients are smooth, then set the dressing aside.
Next, preheat your oven to 425 F. Prepare the pita chips by cutting the pita breads into small pieces and adding them to a baking sheet. Toss the pita bread slices in the olive oil, sumac, and sea salt. Then, transfer them into the oven and allow them to bake for 5-10 minutes, until they’re golden brown and crispy. Watch them carefully, so that they don’t burn! Once the pita breads are done, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
Next, prepare the chicken. Heat a skillet, on the stove, over medium heat. Cut the chicken breast or thighs (depending on what you’re using) into bite-sized pieces and toss them in the olive oil, mashed garlic, date syrup (if using), cumin, sea salt, and ground black pepper. Once the pan is hot, add the chicken to the pan and sauté it until it’s cooked through. Then, remove it from the heat.
Finally, prepare the salad. Wash and chop the romaine lettuces, Persian cucumbers, baby tomatoes, radishes, bell pepper, fresh mint, and fresh parsley, and add them to a large bowl. Then, add the pita chips, cooked chicken, and crumbled feta cheese (if using) to the bowl.
Pour the dressing on top, then toss to fully combine. Once the salad is done, serve it immediately and enjoy!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a review and rating below! To see more recipes and behind the scenes, follow along on Instagram, TikTok, and Youtube! I’m also now on Pinterest, so stop by and take a look at what’s new.
** Photography by Tanya Pilgrim
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet I love using a cast iron skillet to prepare the chicken.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 2 Heads Romaine Lettuce, finely chopped
- 3 Persian Cucumbers, finely diced
- ½ Cup Baby Tomatoes, halved
- 4 Radishes, finely diced
- 1 Orange Bell Pepper, finely diced
- ¼ Cup Fresh Mint, finely chopped (or substitute 2 tablespoons dried mint)
- ¼ Cup Fresh Parsley, finely chopped
- Feta Cheese, crumbled – this is optional
For the Chicken:
For the Pita Chips:
- 3 Pita Breads, cut into small pieces
- 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Sumac
- ½ Teaspoon Sea Salt
For the Dressing:
- ½ Cup Olive Oil
- 3 Tablespoons Honey
- 3 Cloves Garlic
- 1 Lemon, juiced
- 1 Tablespoon Sumac
- ½ Teaspoon Sea Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
Instructions
- To make this fattoush salad, start by preparing the dressing. Add all of the dressing ingredients (the olive oil, honey, garlic, lemon, sumac, sea salt, and ground black pepper) to a blender. Blend until the ingredients are smooth, then set the dressing aside.
- Next, preheat your oven to 425 F.
- Prepare the pita chips by cutting the pita breads into small pieces and adding them to a baking sheet.
- Toss the pita bread slices in the olive oil, sumac, and sea salt.
- Then, transfer them into the oven and allow them to bake for 5-10 minutes, until they're golden brown and crispy. Watch them carefully, so that they don't burn!
- Once the pita breads are done, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
- Next, prepare the chicken. Heat a skillet, on the stove, over medium heat.
- Cut the chicken breast or thighs (depending on what you're using) into bite-sized pieces and toss them in the olive oil, mashed garlic, date syrup (if using), cumin, sea salt, and ground black pepper.
- Once the pan is hot, add the chicken to the pan and sauté it until it's cooked through. Then, remove it from the heat.
- Finally, prepare the salad. Wash and chop the romaine lettuces, Persian cucumbers, baby tomatoes, radishes, bell pepper, fresh mint, and fresh parsley, and add them to a large bowl.
- Then, add the pita chips, cooked chicken, and crumbled feta cheese (if using) to the bowl.
- Pour the dressing on top, then toss to fully combine.
- Once the salad is done, serve it immediately and enjoy!
Rate & review
SELECT A RATING and tell me what you think!
Response
I had all the ingredients for the recipe so there were no substitutions required. I baked the chicken instead of frying just because I didn’t want to deal with the oil splatter. 😆
This is definitely on our dinner rotation.