Tarragon Roast Chicken Cobb Salad
A delicious twist on a classic cobb salad! There’s juicy roast chicken, a tangy tarragon & mustard dressing, crisp lettuce, salty bacon, fudgy boiled eggs, fresh veg, bacon fat croutons & crumbled feta cheese.
Look away cobb salad purists! This is my version that’s made with a whole roasted chicken, a seriously tasty tarragon & mustard dressing and feta cheese, instead of blue cheese. It’s not entirely traditional but it’s delicious & that’s all that matters right?!
This cobb salad contains all the components that you’d find in a classic one, including torn lettuce, crispy fried bacon, fresh veg, fudgy boiled eggs & a tangy homemade dressing. I’ve thrown some homemade croutons into the mix as well, which are cooked in the fat from the bacon, for some added crunch!
This is a sharing style salad, which is plated up on a large serving platter. It’s perfect for sharing family style & all the components can be prepared ahead of time which means that it’s also good for packed lunches & meal prep. In this post, I’ve done a deep dive on each component of a cobb salad & included any substitutions & additions that can be made. This includes different cheeses, lettuce & other mix ins that can be used.
If you’re looking for more lunch inspiration, take a look at our ever growing collection of lunch recipes. There’s something for everyone here, from vibrant salads, to next level sandwiches & homemade scotch eggs.
Components Of A Roast Chicken Cobb Salad
This is chicken cobb salad isn’t entirely traditional as it uses a tarragon salad dressing & feta instead of blue cheese. There’s all the classic components in there though, plus some croutons for extra crunch! We’re talking chicken, crispy bacon, soft boiled eggs, lettuce, tomatoes & cucumber. All arranged neatly on a platter with a jug of tangy homemade salad dressing on the side.
Roast Chicken
As this is a large, sharing style salad, we’re going to be cooking a whole roast chicken then pulling the meat to serve! If you want to cook the juiciest, most flavourful chicken to use for your cobb salad, roasting a whole one is definitely the best way forward. You could even scale the recipe down slightly & use up leftover roast chicken instead! Once shredded, I like to mix some of our tarragon salad dressing through the meat, for even more flavour.
I’ve included my full roast chicken method in the recipe card below but it’s the same way that I make my fool proof roast chicken recipe. Another great thing about using a roast chicken instead of say just breasts or thighs, is that you can prepare the rest of your salad whilst it rests, so there’s no rushing around!
Tarragon Dressing
Fresh tarragon & roast chicken work incredibly well together so adding it to a classic cobb salad dressing just seems to make sense! The dressing itself is made the same way as most dressings, by mixing dijon mustard with something acidic (in this case vinegar & lemon juice) then slowly whisking in olive oil to emulsify & thicken. There’s some honey in there as well, just to cut through all of that acidity. The key to success here is to gradually whisk in the oil, so that everything emulsifies properly & doesn’t split!
Once the dressing is made, it’s just a case of seasoning it to taste with salt & pepper then stirring in a finely diced shallot & plenty of finely chopped tarragon. I like to make my dressing just before using, as chopped herbs tend to discolour over time but this dressing will keep in the fridge for a day or two if you did want to make it ahead of time.
Crispy Bacon
You can’t make a cobb salad with crispy bacon! I like to use smoked streaky bacon but unsmoked will work as well, so use whatever type you like best. To cook the crispiest bacon, I’ve found that it’s best to fry the rashers whole in a frying pan until crisp & golden then chop it up roughly to serve.
Bacon Fat Croutons
We’re using the bacon fat from cooking the crispy bacon, for our croutons! To make them, we mix bacon fat with garlic granules, dried oregano, salt & paper then toss chunks of bread in this. The croutons are then baked in the oven until they’re golden brown & crunchy. This will take 15-20 minutes at 180°c/356°f & it’s best to give the croutons a stir halfway through the cooking time, so that they colour evenly.
Fudgy Soft Boiled Eggs
A classic chicken cobb salad contains hard boiled eggs but I prefer mine to have fudgy, soft boiled yolks. It’s up to you how to cook your eggs! For perfectly set soft boiled eggs, you’ll need to cook room temperature eggs (large ones!) for exactly 7½ minutes in boiling water then cool them down immediately in a bowl of ice & cold water. For hard boiled eggs, you’ll need to cook them for 10 minutes.
Once cool, the eggs will need to be peeled then cut into quarters or in half. A pinch of sea salt & some freshly cracked black pepper on the yolks is a must here!
Fresh Lettuce & Veg
The classic choice of lettuce for this style of salad would be either iceberg or romaine lettuce, so I’ve used both! This gives a good balance of texture & flavour. Other good lettuces to use would be watercress, little gem & endive.
I also used cherry tomatoes & chopped cucumber for my salad but there’s no rules here, so add in whatever you like! Some other good additions would be sliced avocado (or smashed), sliced red onion & finely chopped chives. You could even add in some pickled beetroot, sliced celery or chickpeas…
Feta Cheese
A classic chicken cobb salad is topped with crumbled up blue cheese. However, I know some people aren’t really a fan of this (most of my family included) so I went with feta cheese instead. This adds a salty, creamy flavour that works really well with the other components. As our cobb salad contains feta & bacon (both salty ingredients), we don’t need to add any extra seasoning, like you would with other salads.
If you’d prefer to use blue cheese instead of feta, I’d go with a Stilton, Roquefort, Gorgonzola Dolce or Shropshire Blue.
How To Assemble Cobb Salad The Classic Way
The classic way to assemble a chicken cobb salad is by laying each component in neat rows on top of a bed of lettuce, on a large serving platter. The cobb salad dressing is usually served on the side then everyone can dress their own portion of salad! This style of presentation looks impressive but also means that you don’t have to dress every single salad component. You’d end up using loads of dressing if you did & everything will start to wilt pretty quickly…
Frequently Asked Questions
To make a cobb salad on an Aga, follow my best Aga roast chicken recipe to cook the chicken. Use the boiling plate to cook the bacon & boiled eggs and the second from bottom set of runners in the baking oven for the croutons.
Cobb salad can be prepared in advance, as it’s designed to be served cold but it’s best to assemble & dress the salad just before serving. I’d also recommend tearing the lettuce just before serving as well, as it will start to discolour fairly quickly if you do it ahead of time.
Leftover cobb salad should be stored in the fridge & is best eaten within 2 days. The lettuce & veg will start to wilt & soften quite quickly if they’ve been dressed though, which is why I like to let everyone drizzle the dressing over their own salad!
Yes, you can absolutely serve cobb salad as smaller, individual portions! I’d recommend drizzling the dressing over each salad, so that you don’t have to mix loads of portions separately.
More Salad Recipes To Try!
- Tomato, Peach & Crispy Prosciutto Salad
- Everything Bagel Salad With A Cream Cheese Schmear
- Za’atar Lamb Salad With Hummus & Green Tahini Dressing
- Smashed Cucumber & Cashew Salad
- Watermelon, Honey Glazed Halloumi & Za’atar Salad
- Tuna & Sun Dried Tomato Pasta Salad
If you have enjoyed this cobb salad recipe, it would mean a lot if you could leave a review & rating. And if you’d like to stay up to date with future recipes, follow us on Instagram & TikTok or subscribe to our newsletter!
Tarragon Roast Chicken Cobb Salad
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- Frying Pan
- Baking Tray
Ingredients
Roast Chicken
- 1½ kg Whole Chicken (See Notes)
- 1 Bulb Of Garlic
- 1 Lemon
- 10 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
- 10 Sprigs Fresh Thyme
- 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Crispy Bacon
- 250 g Streaky Bacon (Smoked Or Unsmoked)
- 1 tbsp Vegetable Oil
Croutons
- 200 g Bread (See Notes)
- 2 tbsp Bacon Fat (From Frying The Bacon)
- 1 tsp Garlic Granules
- 1 tsp Dried Oregano
Boiled Eggs
- 6 Large Eggs (At Room Temperature)
Tarragon Dressing
- 50 g Dijon Mustard
- 20 g Honey
- 15 g White Wine Vinegar
- 15 g Fresh Lemon Juice
- 150 g Olive Oil
- 1 Echalion Shallot (Banana Shallot)
- 2 tbsp Finely Chopped Tarragon (You'll Need a 25g Bunch)
Salad Components
- 1 Head Of Romaine Lettuce
- 1 Head Of Iceberg Lettuce
- 1 Whole Cucumber
- 200 g Cherry Tomatoes
- 100 g Feta
Instructions
Roast Chicken
- Place the chicken onto a rack set inside a roasting tin. Pat the skin dry then let the chicken sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.If your chicken is trussed, untie it first.
- In the meantime, preheat an oven to 160°c/140°c fan (320°f/284°f).
- Next, cut the bulb of garlic in half & the lemon into thick slices. Stuff into the chicken’s cavity along with the fresh herbs.
- Drizzle the veg oil over the chicken then use your hands (or a pastry brush) to massage into the skin. Generously season the chicken all over with sea salt & freshly cracked black pepper then place the chicken into the preheated oven.
- Cook the chicken until it reaches an internal temperature of 65°c/150°f. This will take around 1-1½ hours. Start checking the chicken after 1 hour.Probe the chicken in the thickest part of the breasts & thighs.
- Next, turn your oven up to 220°c/428°f then continue cooking until the chicken's skin is crispy & the internal temperature has reached 73°c/163°f. This will take another 10-15 minutes.Chicken is fully cooked when it reaches 75°c/167°f but to avoid drying the meat out, we take it out of the oven a few degrees lower than this then let the chicken rest. The internal temperature will rise to 75°c/167°f as the chicken rests.
- Once cooked, loosely cover the chicken with foil & leave to rest for 30-45 minutes. Turn your oven back down to 180°c/356°f once the chicken's cooked (for the croutons!).
Crispy Bacon
- Cook the bacon whilst the chicken is in the oven. To do this, set a large frying pan over a medium heat then add in the vegetable oil.
- Next, lay bacon rashers into the pan then fry for 3-4 minutes on each side until crisp & golden. Use a pair of tongs to flip the bacon over.You'll need to cook the bacon in batches, to avoid over crowding the pan.
- Once cooked, transfer the bacon to a plate lined with kitchen paper then repeat the cooking process with the rest of the bacon. Don't get rid of the bacon fat, we'll be using this for the croutons!
- Once cool, roughly chop the bacon then place into an airtight container & store in the fridge until needed.
Croutons
- Cut the bread into 1 cm thick slices then cut/tear into rough chunks. I like to leave the crusts on by trim them off if you like!You'll need to cook the croutons once the chicken is out of the oven, as they cook at different temperatures. Or make them ahead of time & store in an airtight container.
- Next, add the bacon fat, garlic & oregano into a large mixing bowl then season with salt & pepper & stir to combine. If you haven't got enough bacon fat, use olive oil to make it up.
- Add the chunks of bread into the bowl then toss, to coat each piece in fat. Transfer the croutons to a large baking tray then bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown & crunchy. Once cooked, let the croutons cool before using.Give the croutons a stir/shake halfway through so that they colour evenly.
Boiled Eggs
- Fill a large saucepan with water, add in a splash of white wine vinegar then cover with a lid & set over a high heat & bring to the boil.Adding the vinegar is optional but it makes peeling the boiled eggs easier.
- Once the water is boiling, use a slotted spoon to carefully lower the eggs into the water then cover the pan with a lid & cook for exactly 7½ minutes.Make sure to keep the water at a rolling boil at all times!
- As soon as the eggs are cooked, transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice & cold water then leave to cool completely. The eggs will take around 10 minutes to cool.
- Once cool, peel the boiled eggs then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper. I like to cook the eggs whilst the chicken is resting but if you've cooked them ahead of time, you'll need to store them covered in the fridge.
- Just before serving, cut each boiled egg into quarters.
Tarragon Dressing
- Add the dijon mustard, honey, vinegar & lemon juice into a mixing bowl then whisk to combine.
- Slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mustard, whilst whisking constantly by hand. Make sure to add the oil in gradually, so that the dressing emulsifies properly.
- Next, peel the shallot then finely dice. Add this into the dressing, along with the chopped tarragon. Stir to combine then season the dressing to taste, with salt & pepper.The dressing can be used straight away or stored in the fridge for up to a day.
Cobb Salad
- Cut the cores off the bottom of each lettuce then separate the leaves. Wash in a bowl of a cold water then drain well before using (in a colander/salad spinner).
- Next, trim the ends off the cucumber then cut in half down the length then in half again. Chop the cucumber quarters in half cm slices.This is how I like to cut my cucumber but cut yours however you like! If you'd find it easier, you could cut the cucumber in half widthways first.
- The last component is the cherry tomatoes. I like to cut mine in half but quarters will work as well!
Assembly
- Use a sharp knife to cut the breasts, legs, thighs & wings off the chicken. Then you can either chop the meat into chunks or pull the meat by hand (wear gloves!). I like to pull the meat by hand then chop the skin up!You could save the chicken carcass for stock! Make sure not to mix any bones through the meat.
- Add the chicken into a large mixing bowl then spoon over 3 tbsp of the tarragon dressing, mixing to combine.
- Next, tear the lettuce into bitesize pieces then lay them onto a large serving platter, to make a base for the rest of the salad to sit on.
- Now it's up to you how to lay the rest of the cobb salad on top of the lettuce. For a classic cobb salad presentation, lay each salad component (chicken, bacon, croutons, eggs & veg) in neat rows.
- To finish the cobb salad, crumble up the feta over the top. Pour the remaining dressing into a jug then serve!
