Cottage Cheese Avocado Herb Chicken (Printable)

Protein-rich chicken salad with cottage cheese, avocado, and fresh herbs in crisp lettuce cups

# List of ingredients:

→ Chicken

01 - 2 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded or diced

→ Dairy

02 - 1 cup cottage cheese

→ Vegetables & Fruit

03 - 1 ripe avocado, diced
04 - 1 small cucumber, finely diced
05 - 1 small red bell pepper, finely diced
06 - 2 green onions, thinly sliced
07 - 1 head butter lettuce or romaine, leaves separated and washed

→ Herbs & Flavorings

08 - 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
09 - 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
10 - 2 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
11 - Juice of 1 lemon
12 - 1 garlic clove, finely minced
13 - 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
14 - 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or to taste

→ Optional

15 - 1 tablespoon olive oil
16 - Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

# Steps:

01 - In a large mixing bowl, combine the shredded chicken, cottage cheese, diced avocado, cucumber, red bell pepper, and green onions.
02 - Add the chopped parsley, dill, chives, minced garlic, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. If desired, drizzle in olive oil and add red pepper flakes for extra flavor.
03 - Gently toss all ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
04 - Arrange lettuce leaves on a serving platter. Spoon a generous amount of the chicken salad mixture into each lettuce cup.
05 - Serve immediately, garnished with extra herbs if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The cottage cheese creates this incredible creamy texture without needing heavy mayo or yogurt
  • Everything comes together in 20 minutes with zero cooking required
  • Those fresh herbs make each bite taste like sunshine hit your lunch
02 -
  • The cottage cheese might look curdled when you first mix it in but give it a few minutes to meld with the lemon juice
  • Do not make this too far ahead or the avocado will start to brown and the lettuce will get sad and wilted
  • Keep the filling and lettuce cups separate until you are ready to serve for the best texture experience
03 -
  • Use room temperature ingredients so the flavors meld together more quickly
  • Let the mixture rest for 10 minutes before serving to let all those fresh herb flavors really develop

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