Festive Christmas Potato, Chicken and Green Bean Salad
Looking for a festive, delicious, and nourishing salad to bring to your Christmas lunch or dinner this summer? This Festive Christmas Potato, Chicken and Green Bean Salad from my eBook Eat, Drink, Be Merry is exactly what you need!
With tender poached chicken, soft yet firm potatoes, crisp al dente green beans, and a creamy herby garlic Greek yoghurt dressing, it’s a complete, protein-rich meal that everyone will love. A sprinkle of parmesan and a pop of pomegranate seeds adds that festive flair, making it not only tasty but visually stunning too.
Festive Christmas Potato, Chicken and Green Bean Salad
This salad is perfect for summer Christmas gatherings — light, fresh, and easy to prepare ahead of time. When someone asks you to bring a salad… bring this one!
If you're vegetarian or vegan, you can easily tailor this dish: swap the chicken for lightly pan-fried tofu or cubes of cheddar, both offering nourishing protein to support muscle strength, energy, and overall wellbeing. These substitutions still keep the meal balanced — combining quality protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats for steadier blood sugar and longer-lasting fullness.
Fresh herbs, shaved parmesan, and pomegranate seeds add colour, antioxidants, and festive brightness, making this a beautiful centrepiece for Christmas lunch that feels both wholesome and satisfying.
Make-Ahead Tip: You can prepare all the components a day in advance and simply assemble the salad the next day — saving time on Christmas morning while keeping everything fresh, vibrant, and bursting with flavour.
Serves 4-6
Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
1kg baby potatoes, washed and cut in half
2 x 300g (600g) chicken breasts
300g green beans, trimmed
200g Greek yoghurt
1 tsp minced garlic (can be pre-bought minced)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp pre-chopped chives
1 handful dill, roughly chopped
Sea salt and pepper
25g shaved parmesan
50g pomegranate seeds (can be store bought)
If vegan: sub in 400g tofu, cubed and lightly fried in salt and pepper
If vegetarian: sub in 300g, cheddar cubed (can be pre-cut), tossed through at the end
1. Prep all your ingredients
2. In a large pan, fill with potato and water to cover, bring to the boil then time for 10-12 minutes for hard boiled potatoes. Keep checking as it will vary with size of potatoes you have used. Once hard boiled drain water and set aside.
3. Whilst potatoes are boiling. In a medium pan, add chicken breasts, cover with 4 cups of water, add a good pinch of salt and pepper and bring to the boil, then time for 12-14 minutes. Leave to sit for 5 minutes in pan, then place on plate to cool. Shred with 2 forks. Tip* ensure that breasts are fully covered water before poaching commences.
4. In a small saucepan add water and green beans and bring to the boil for 4-5 minutes until al dente, drain hot water and place into a cold-water bath to stop them cooking further.
5. Re-use small bean pan and add 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat, once hot, add garlic and let it cook in oil for 1-2 minutes (Tip* do not cook too long as it will burn). Take garlic off heat and add cooked garlic and olive oil to yoghurt, add apple cider vinegar and herbs and stir well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. Carefully stir half of garlic herb yoghurt through hard boiled potatoes and poached chicken.
Served up by layering beans, potatoes and chicken, top with pomegranate seeds and shaved parmesan and pinch more salt and pepper and more yoghurt drizzled on top.
22 nourishing recipes to inspire you for the silly season.
The more people I have chatted with, we seem to all have common ground of getting stuck in a rut with new inspiration for the Christmas table that was offering something a little bit different and exciting. Christmas in Australia is all about being outside, cooking over fire, fresh seafood, throwing together a delicious side to accompany that hard earned Christmas ham and freshly caught prawns.
A recipe eBook that will hopefully inspire you with new nourishing recipes, which are all nutritionist approved. So you and your family will be able to make time and time again, not even just for Christmas!
So, fill up your glasses, load up your bellies and I hope you enjoy this book as much as I have enjoyed bringing it to the table. From my family to yours, wishing you Happy Christmas.
Eat, Drink and Be Merry!
Rosie x