Pesto Chicken and White Bean Salad

This vibrant pesto chicken and white bean salad is fresh, hearty, and packed with flavor. Tender chicken—cooked in a pan, the oven, or the air fryer—is tossed with creamy white beans and a zesty lemon mustard vinaigrette and topped with parmesan. It’s a perfect make-ahead lunch or light dinner that feels both satisfying and refreshing.

I love dinners like this in the summer when it is too hot to eat a big heavy meal. You can make your own pesto if you like, it is super easy to do. I often do in the summer if I have a lot of basil growing. My local grocery store has a great freshly made pesto though, so I used that here. A good fresh pesto really makes this salad stand out, so if you can get or make it fresh, use that as opposed to a shelf stable one.

This salad is super versatile in that you can cook the chicken however you prefer. The grill, pan on the stove, oven, or even the air fryer. I used to think air fryers were just for college kids eating frozen food, but one of my kids brought one home with him for the summer and it has really changed my mind. I love the way this chicken comes out in the air fryer. It is tender and juicy, but with a nice bit of crispy edges. Definitely try it if you have one.

You could add additional veggies to this as well if you like. Cucumber or tomato would go super well in it. I love salads as a meal and I have a ton of them on this site, so check out some of my others here.

Pesto Chicken and White Bean Salad

Tender pesto chicken served on arugula with creamy white beans and a mustard lemon dressing

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Course Lunch, Main Course, Salad

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup Pesto store bought or homemade
• 1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts each breast cut into 3 pieces, thinner end and then thicker end cut in half horizontally
• 6 cups arugula
• 1 15oz can white beans drained and rinsed
• shredded parmesan

For the dressing:

• 5 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp sugar or honey to taste
• 1/2 tsp salt to taste
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 3 tbsp minced shallot

Instructions

 

For the dressing:

• Combine the ingredients and mix well. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.

For the chicken:

• Cut the chicken breasts across the breast to make 2 equal pieces, one thick and one thinner. Cut the thicker end in half horizontally so you have 3 relatively equal thickness pieces. Combine 3/4 cup pesto with the chicken and marinate for 15 minutes up to a few hours. Save 1/4 cup of pesto for drizzling on the cooked chicken.
• If cooking your chicken on the grill or in a pan, oil the grill or the pan and heat over medium high heat. Add the chicken and get some nice browning, then reduce heat and cook until it is cooked through.
• If using the oven, heat the broiler on high and place chicken on a greased piece of foil on a sheet pan. Place on the middle rack and broil, keeping a close eye on it, until it has some nice browning, then flip and do the other side. Switch the oven to bake at 350 and cook until 165 inside.
• To use the air fryer, spray the basket with oil and add the chicken. Air fry at 390 for 10 minutes, then switch to broil for another 5-8 minutes to get nice crispy edges.
• Place some arugula on your plates and scatter the white beans around the plate. Top with your chicken. Drizzle some pesto on the chicken and then drizzle dressing all over the whole thing. Top with shredded parm and serve.

Keyword Chicken, Lunch, Main Dish, Salad

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