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Chicken, Spinach and Courgette Salad with Feta, Olives and Almonds

Juicy pan-cooked chicken breast sliced over baby spinach with golden courgette, cherry tomatoes, black olives, feta and toasted almonds, finished with a lemon and mustard dressing. 43g of protein and only 10g of carbs.

Lunch

30

Serves 2

A bowl of baby spinach salad with sliced chicken breast, cherry tomatoes, courgette, black olives, cubes of feta and flaked almonds, drizzled with a mustard dressing

Ingredients

  • 2 skinless chicken breasts (about 300g/10½oz in total)
  • 4 tsp (20ml) olive oil in total: 2 tsp for cooking, 2 tsp extra virgin for the dressing
  • 1 small courgette (zucchini, about 150g/5oz), cut into 1.5cm/½in cubes
  • 100g/3½oz baby spinach
  • 120g/4oz cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 30g/1oz (about 10) pitted black olives, halved
  • 60g/2oz feta, cut into small cubes
  • 15g/½oz/2 tbsp flaked almonds
  • Half a tsp dried oregano, a pinch of salt and black pepper
  • For the dressing
  • 1 tbsp (15ml) lemon juice
  • 1 tsp (5g) Dijon mustard (check the label if you need it gluten-free)
  • 1 tsp (7g) runny honey

Method

  1. Toast the almonds in a dry frying pan over a medium heat for 2 minutes, shaking the pan, until golden. Tip onto a plate.
  2. If the chicken breasts are thick, put them between two sheets of baking paper (parchment paper) and flatten with a rolling pin to an even thickness of about 2cm/¾in. Season with the oregano, salt and pepper.
  3. Heat 2 tsp of the oil in the pan over a medium-high heat. Cook the chicken for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until golden and cooked through: the juices should run clear, with no pink meat in the thickest part, or 75C/167F on a food thermometer. Rest on a board for 5 minutes, then slice.
  4. Add the courgette to the same pan and cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring now and then, until golden at the edges.
  5. Whisk the 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil with the lemon juice, mustard, honey and a pinch of salt and pepper.
  6. Divide the spinach between 2 bowls and top with the courgette, tomatoes, olives, feta, chicken and almonds. Spoon over the dressing and serve. Leftover chicken keeps in the fridge for up to 2 days; keep the dressing separate until you eat.

Why it works

A bowl gives you about 43g of protein and only 10g of carbohydrate for 455 calories. Lean chicken breast provides most of the protein, with a little more from the feta and almonds.

Flatten the chicken. Chicken breasts are thick at one end and thin at the other. Flattening them to an even thickness means they cook through in the same time, so the thin end does not dry out.

Healthy fats. Olives, almonds and extra virgin olive oil are rich in monounsaturated fat, the type at the heart of the Mediterranean diet.

Why it is tagged for blood sugar. With very little carbohydrate and lots of protein, this salad is a lunch unlikely to cause a sharp rise in blood sugar. Baby spinach and courgette add volume and fibre for very few calories.

Contains milk, tree nuts (almonds) and mustard. For other filling salads, try the grilled chicken salad with avocado and apple or the Greek salad with chickpeas and feta.