Cottage Cheese Lemon Pepper Chicken (Printable)

Creamy chicken with cottage cheese, lemon, and pepper in crisp lettuce cups.

# List of ingredients:

→ Chicken & Dairy

01 - 2 cups cooked chicken breast, diced or shredded
02 - 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese

→ Vegetables & Aromatics

03 - 1 cup celery, finely diced
04 - 1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
05 - 2 green onions, thinly sliced
06 - 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
07 - 8 large butter lettuce leaves (or iceberg lettuce cups)
08 - Zest of 1 lemon
09 - Juice of 1 lemon

→ Seasonings

10 - 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
11 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
12 - 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

→ Optional Additions

13 - 1/4 cup chopped walnuts or sliced almonds
14 - 1/4 cup dried cranberries

# Steps:

01 - In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooked chicken, cottage cheese, celery, red bell pepper, green onions, and parsley.
02 - Add lemon zest, lemon juice, black pepper, sea salt, and garlic powder. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are evenly incorporated.
03 - If using, fold in chopped nuts and dried cranberries for added texture and flavor.
04 - Taste the salad and adjust salt, pepper, or lemon juice as needed to suit your preference.
05 - Spoon the chicken salad mixture evenly among the 8 butter lettuce leaves, dividing it into 4 servings of 2 cups each.
06 - Serve immediately, garnished with extra parsley or a light sprinkle of black pepper if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The cottage cheese swaps out heavy mayo for something creamy but lighter, and you will not miss the mayo one bit once you taste it.
  • Lemon and cracked pepper wake up every single bite, making this feel like a real meal instead of sad desk lunch.
  • It comes together in fifteen minutes with zero cooking, which means you can make it even on your most exhausted days.
02 -
  • Do not assemble the lettuce cups until right before serving, because the moisture from the salad will wilt the leaves into sad soggy boats within an hour.
  • Letting the salad sit in the fridge for thirty minutes before serving actually improves the flavor, giving the lemon and pepper time to soak into the chicken.
03 -
  • Use chicken that was cooked within the last day or two, because leftover chicken that has been sitting too long will taste tired no matter how much lemon you add.
  • Zest the lemon before you juice it, which sounds obvious until you try juicing first and end up with a flat wet lemon that refuses to give up its zest.

Go back