The Cobb is the salad that eats like a dinner, and it has been proving the point since a Hollywood restaurant owner chopped up his leftovers sometime in the 1930s. Grilled chicken, crisp bacon, hard-boiled eggs, avocado, tomato, blue cheese and greens, laid out in those famous stripes and chopped small enough that every forkful carries a little of everything. Nothing about it feels like a compromise, which is exactly why it anchors our Healthy & Low-Carb collection.
Our version keeps the classic line-up and the red wine vinaigrette the original was served with, and it is built for real weeknights: the eggs and bacon can cook while the chicken grills, and every component holds happily in the fridge for a couple of days, so assembly on the night takes five minutes. Like our Egg Roll in a Bowl, it is low-carb food that nobody at the table experiences as a diet.
The one rule of a good Cobb is the chop. Big, polite salad leaves do not work here — the greens get chopped, the toppings get cut small, and the whole plate gets tossed at the table so the cheese, egg and avocado coat everything instead of sitting in stripes for the photograph and nowhere else.
Why the rows matter (and then get tossed)
The stripes are not just presentation. Laying the toppings out in rows lets everyone see exactly what is on the plate and pick around the one thing they do not eat — the blue cheese, usually — and it keeps the avocado from browning against the dressing while the salad waits. Then, at the table, toss it properly. A Cobb that stays in stripes eats like five separate small salads; a tossed Cobb eats like one dish, with salty, creamy, smoky and sharp in every bite. If you are serving skeptics, present it striped, toss it in front of them, and watch it disappear.
Cook the components once, eat twice
Every element of this salad is make-ahead friendly, which makes the Cobb a genuinely good meal-prep lunch. Grill a double batch of chicken on Sunday, boil six eggs instead of four, and cook the whole pack of bacon in the oven — 400°F (200°C) for 15 to 18 minutes on a rack over a tray, no splattering. Stored separately in the fridge, the components hold for 3 to 4 days. Only the avocado must be cut fresh, and only the greens should meet the dressing at the last minute, or they wilt into the bowl.
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (450 g)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (15 ml)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (6 g), divided
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper (1.5 g)
- 4 large eggs
- 6 slices bacon (about 6 oz / 170 g)
- 8 cups chopped romaine and leaf lettuce (about 300 g)
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes (150 g), halved
- 1 medium avocado (about 150 g), diced
- 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese (60 g), or feta
- 1/4 cup finely diced red onion (40 g)
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (30 ml)
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (5 g)
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil (80 ml)
Amounts are for the yield below. US customary measures first, grams in brackets for scale users.
Step-by-step instructions
- Boil the eggs. Place the eggs in a pan, cover with cold water by 1 inch (2.5 cm), and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils, turn off the heat, cover, and leave for 10 minutes. Cool the eggs under cold running water, peel, and chop roughly. Starting in cold water and resting off the heat gives you firm whites and yolks without the grey-green ring.
- Cook the bacon until crisp. Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until deeply crisp — soft bacon disappears into a chopped salad, so take it a shade darker than breakfast bacon. Drain on paper towels and crumble or chop into small pieces.
- Grill the chicken. Rub the chicken with the olive oil, half the salt and the pepper. Grill over medium-high heat, or sear in the bacon pan wiped mostly clean, for 5 to 6 minutes per side, until it reads 165°F (74°C) at the thickest point. Rest for 5 minutes, then slice across the grain and cut into bite-size pieces.
- Whisk the vinaigrette. In a small bowl, whisk the red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard and the remaining salt until combined, then whisk in the extra-virgin olive oil in a slow stream until the dressing looks glossy and slightly thickened. Taste — it should be assertive, because it has a lot of rich toppings to cut through.
- Build the salad in rows. Spread the chopped greens over a wide platter or shallow bowl. Arrange the chicken, chopped egg, bacon, tomatoes, avocado, blue cheese and red onion in rows over the top, as in the photograph. Serve it striped so the table can admire it for exactly ten seconds.
- Dress, toss and serve. Drizzle about two-thirds of the vinaigrette over the salad, toss everything together until lightly coated, and serve the rest of the dressing at the table. Cobb waits for no one once dressed — eat it straight away, while the greens are still crisp and the bacon still crunches.
Nutrition estimate
| Nutrient | Per serving |
|---|---|
| Calories | 512 kcal |
| Protein | 38 g |
| Carbohydrates | 9 g |
| Fat | 36 g |
| Saturated fat | 10 g |
| Sodium | 890 mg |
| Fiber | 4 g |
| Sugar | 4 g |
Nutrition figures are estimates calculated from standard ingredient data for the yield stated. Your actual values will vary with brands, substitutions and portion sizes — treat them as a guide, not a guarantee.
Storage & reheating
Undressed components keep separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days; the vinaigrette keeps for a week in a jar. Once dressed and tossed, the salad should be eaten within a few hours. Cut avocado browns quickly even with dressing on it, so for make-ahead portions, add the avocado fresh each time. The assembled, undressed salad (minus avocado) holds for a day in the fridge, well covered.
Easy Cobb Salad with Grilled Chicken
Chicken, bacon, egg and avocado in neat rows — the diner classic, low-carb and loaded.
Ingredients
Tick ingredients off as you prep, and tap a step below to mark it done as you cook. Scaling adjusts the listed amounts - seasoning to taste stays your call.
Instructions
- Boil the eggs. Place the eggs in a pan, cover with cold water by 1 inch (2.5 cm), and bring to a boil. As soon as the water boils, turn off the heat, cover, and leave for 10 minutes. Cool the eggs under cold running water, peel, and chop roughly. Starting in cold water and resting off the heat gives you firm whites and yolks without the grey-green ring.
- Cook the bacon until crisp. Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until deeply crisp — soft bacon disappears into a chopped salad, so take it a shade darker than breakfast bacon. Drain on paper towels and crumble or chop into small pieces.
- Grill the chicken. Rub the chicken with the olive oil, half the salt and the pepper. Grill over medium-high heat, or sear in the bacon pan wiped mostly clean, for 5 to 6 minutes per side, until it reads 165°F (74°C) at the thickest point. Rest for 5 minutes, then slice across the grain and cut into bite-size pieces.
- Whisk the vinaigrette. In a small bowl, whisk the red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard and the remaining salt until combined, then whisk in the extra-virgin olive oil in a slow stream until the dressing looks glossy and slightly thickened. Taste — it should be assertive, because it has a lot of rich toppings to cut through.
- Build the salad in rows. Spread the chopped greens over a wide platter or shallow bowl. Arrange the chicken, chopped egg, bacon, tomatoes, avocado, blue cheese and red onion in rows over the top, as in the photograph. Serve it striped so the table can admire it for exactly ten seconds.
- Dress, toss and serve. Drizzle about two-thirds of the vinaigrette over the salad, toss everything together until lightly coated, and serve the rest of the dressing at the table. Cobb waits for no one once dressed — eat it straight away, while the greens are still crisp and the bacon still crunches.
Recipe by Ahsan ul Haq · FryDaily. Printing? This card is designed to print cleanly on its own.
