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This single serving Cobb salad is made with crisp romaine, juicy chicken, crispy bacon, hard-boiled egg, avocado, blue cheese, and a homemade vinaigrette. It’s a classic, protein-packed salad for one that comes together quickly and delivers bold, balanced flavor in every bite.
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“Love this salad.”
– Maureen
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Quick to Assemble: This single serving Cobb salad comes together fast.
- Classic Cobb Salad Ingredients: Crisp lettuce, chicken, bacon, blue cheese, egg, avocado, and tomatoes in every bite.
- High in Protein: Chicken, egg, and bacon make this a filling, satisfying meal for one.
- Easy to Customize: Swap cheeses, change the protein, or use your favorite homemade or store-bought dressing.
- Perfectly Portioned: A small Cobb salad made just for one, with no waste and no extra servings.
A good Cobb salad feels complete the moment it hits the table, with crisp lettuce, tender chicken, smoky bacon, creamy avocado, blue cheese, and a bright vinaigrette layered together. This is my single serving version of the classic, arranged on one plate so you can enjoy every bold, balanced flavor in a fresh and satisfying meal made just for one.
Looking for more single serving salad recipes? Try my classic Caesar salad, single serving chicken salad, Italian chopped salad, and small batch macaroni salad.
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this classic Cobb salad recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
For the Salad
- Salad Greens: Use 2 cups of chopped romaine or iceberg lettuce for a crisp base. Romaine adds structure while iceberg gives extra crunch, both classic Cobb salad ingredients.
- Blue Cheese: Traditional Cobb salad includes blue cheese for its bold, creamy flavor. You can substitute gorgonzola or Roquefort if preferred. Use extra to make a small batch of blue cheese dressing or add it to buffalo cauliflower tacos.
- Bacon: Cook until crisp and crumble before adding to the salad. You can cook the bacon ahead and refrigerate. Extra bacon works well in crack chicken casserole, a single serve frittata, or our pasta carbonara for one.
- Hard-Boiled Egg: A classic Cobb salad ingredient that adds richness and protein. Cook up to several days in advance and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Tomatoes: Use 1 small chopped tomato or a handful of halved cherry or grape tomatoes for freshness and color.
- Chicken: Cooked, cooled, and chopped chicken breast works best for a chopped Cobb salad. You can use rotisserie chicken or cook your own. To cook quickly, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium heat, season the chicken with salt and pepper, and cook 4 to 5 minutes per side until fully cooked and no longer pink in the center.
- Avocado: Slice just before assembling to prevent browning. Avocado adds creaminess that balances the crisp lettuce and savory toppings.
Optional: Add homemade croutons for extra crunch.
For the Cobb Salad Dressing
- Olive Oil: Use extra virgin olive oil for a rich, full flavor in this homemade Cobb dressing. A lighter olive oil may be used for a milder taste.
- Red Wine Vinegar and Lemon Juice: These provide the bright, tangy base typical of a classic red wine vinaigrette.
- Worcestershire Sauce and Garlic Powder: These add depth and savory flavor that complement the bacon, chicken, and blue cheese.
Recipe Variations
You can easily customize this single serving Cobb salad with these popular variations.
- Southwest Cobb Salad: Season the chicken with chili powder and cumin. Top with chopped cilantro and spoon salsa over the salad in place of the vinaigrette.
- Mediterranean Cobb Salad: Swap the blue cheese for crumbled feta. Add Kalamata olives and chopped sun dried tomatoes, then drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
- BBQ Chicken Cobb: Toss the cooked chicken with our small batch BBQ sauce. Add shredded Cheddar and small batch pickled onions for smoky, bold flavor.
- California Cobb Salad: Omit the blue cheese and bacon. Add extra avocado and top with a single serving of baked shrimp or baked salmon.
- Turkey Cobb Salad: Replace the chicken with chopped roasted turkey for a simple change that works well with the classic Cobb toppings.
How To Make A Cobb Salad
See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
Start by arranging chopped romaine or iceberg lettuce on a large plate to create a crisp base.
Top the greens in rows with chopped chicken, crumbled blue cheese, crispy bacon, sliced hard-boiled egg, tomatoes, and fresh avocado.
In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder to make a simple homemade Cobb dressing.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad and serve immediately.
Expert Tips
- Prep Ingredients Ahead: Cook the bacon and hard-boiled egg in advance and refrigerate until ready to assemble.
- Cool the Chicken: Let the cooked chicken cool completely before adding it to the salad so the lettuce stays crisp.
- Slice Avocado Last: Cut the avocado just before assembling to prevent browning.
- Keep Greens Dry: Make sure the lettuce is washed and thoroughly dried to avoid a watery salad.
- Dress Just Before Serving: Drizzle the homemade vinaigrette over the salad right before serving to maintain texture.
- Classic Presentation: Arrange the toppings in rows over the lettuce for the traditional Cobb salad look.
Frequently Asked Questions
A traditional Cobb salad includes chopped lettuce, cooked chicken, crispy bacon, hard-boiled eggs, tomatoes, avocado, blue cheese, and a red wine vinaigrette.
Yes. Cook the chicken, bacon, and egg in advance and refrigerate. Assemble and add the dressing just before serving to keep the lettuce crisp.
Yes. Rotisserie chicken works well and makes this single serving Cobb salad even quicker to assemble.
Store undressed salad components separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Add avocado and dressing just before serving.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
RELATED: Best Soup Recipes For One
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Cobb Salad For One
Ingredients
- 2 cups chopped romaine or Iceberg lettuce
- 1 (4-ounce) cooked boneless skinless chicken breast -chopped
- 2 slices cooked bacon -crumbled
- 1 large hard boiled egg -peeled and chopped
- 1 small tomato -chopped
- ½ small avocado -chopped
- 2 tablespoons blue cheese crumbles
For the Vinaigrette
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- ⅛ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Arrange the chopped lettuce evenly on a large plate to create the base.
- Top with the chicken, bacon, hard-boiled egg, tomatoes, avocado, and blue cheese, arranging in rows if desired.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder until blended.
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad just before serving. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Prep Ingredients Ahead: Cook the bacon and hard-boiled egg in advance and refrigerate until ready to assemble.
- Cool the Chicken: Let the cooked chicken cool completely before adding it to the salad so the lettuce stays crisp.
- Slice Avocado Last: Cut the avocado just before assembling to prevent browning.
- Keep Greens Dry: Make sure the lettuce is washed and thoroughly dried to avoid a watery salad.
- Dress Just Before Serving: Drizzle the homemade vinaigrette over the salad right before serving to maintain texture.
- Classic Presentation: Arrange the toppings in rows over the lettuce for the traditional Cobb salad look.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Love this salad. Will double the dressing recipe. Actually it’s two salads for me.
Thanks 😊
A great light dinner although I leave out the avocado if there aren’t any good ones at the grocery and it is still very tasty.
This is fabulous. I live alone so I try to have my veggies cut up in the fridge, hard boiled eggs and shredded chicken and this would come together quickly. Air Fry the bacon and that would go within a week as well.
This looks so light, bright and yummy!
Thank you, Melissa!