1 serving
These directions can be used as guidelines for any mason jar salad. You can make it ahead and it will stay fresh for up to 5 days in the refrigerator unopened.
When stacking your salads, start with your dressing as the bottom layer and put your greens in the jar last (top layer) so they’ll stay dry and crispy until you’re ready to eat.
Start with 2-3 tablespoons of a good vinaigrette dressing. If using bottled dressing, I like Primal Kitchen. They make a delicious “paleo style” ranch dressing. It is, of course, dairy free – but it is creamy and delicious. www.primalkitchen/ranch.com
After the dressing, the next layer should be the crunchy veggies like carrots, celery, peppers or radishes. These keep the dressing from seeping into the rest of the salad and wilting the greens or saturating the protein.
Add your protein – for this salad use leftover grilled or baked chicken or rotisserie chicken (shrimp, beef, pork, hard boiled eggs, etc. are all good too) and then layer the softer veggies (tomatoes, cucumbers, artichokes, avocado, fruits, etc.).
Next you can layer your leafy greens. At the very top, add your “crunchies” – nuts and seeds so they don’t get soggy.
Don’t forget to include about 3-4 ounces of protein in each Mason jar salad for a really satisfying low carb, highly nutritious meal.
