Mason jar salad
Enjoy the perfect mix of flavour and convenience with our colourful mason jar salad. It starts with a creamy tahini dressing that brings a rich, nutty taste to each bite. Crunchy red cabbage and edamame add texture, while tender chicken and roasted sweet potatoes provide a comforting feel. Topped with fresh cucumber and cheese, this high protein recipe keeps especially well and is a meal prep favourite.
Ingredients
|
Chicken breasts
|
280 g |
|---|---|
|
Sweet potatoes
|
500 g |
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Edamame beans, thawed if frozen
|
300 g |
|
Red cabbages
|
250 g |
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Cucumber
|
1 |
|
Cheddar cheese
|
180 g |
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Spring onions
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6 - 8 |
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Olive oil
|
2 tbsp |
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Sweet paprika
|
1 tsp |
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Salt
|
1 tsp |
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Black pepper
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Tahini dressing
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Tahini
|
5 tbsp |
|---|---|
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Fresh lemon juice
|
50 ml |
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Honey
|
2 tsp |
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Garlic clove, pressed
|
1 |
|
Salt
|
1 tsp |
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Black pepper
|
|
|
Cold water
|
50 ml |
To assemble
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Mason jar with lids (approx. 600 ml each)
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4 |
|---|
Method
Tahini dressing
Assembly
Recipe tips
It’s often the small details that make the biggest impact in the kitchen, so we’re sharing the tips we rely on when cooking and creating recipes
Always start with the dressing at the bottom, followed by the heartiest ingredients that can sit in it without wilting, like the cabbage and edamame beans in this recipe. Then work your way up through the chunkier ingredients – chicken, cucumber, cheese, and sweet potatoes – and finish with anything light and delicate at the very top, like the spring onions.
Make sure the chicken and sweet potatoes are completely cool before assembling the jars. Adding warm ingredients traps steam, which creates condensation and makes the salad soggy. Once out of the oven, spread them out on a tray to speed up the cooling process.
These salads keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you're planning to store them for longer, leave out the more delicate ingredients – cucumber, cheese, and spring onions – and add them fresh when you're ready to eat; the jars will keep for up to 4 days without them.
It's also worth drying the edamame beans thoroughly with a clean towel before assembling. Every bit of excess moisture you can remove will help keep the salad fresh.
Questions about mason jar salad
Everything you need to know about making this mason jar salad. From getting the dressing just right to swapping ingredients and serving, here are the answers to the most common questions.
How thick or thin should the dressing be?
The tahini dressing will thicken as it chills, so don't worry if it looks a little thin when freshly made. Aim for a consistency similar to a light yoghurt: fluid enough to pour, but with enough body to coat the ingredients. This is ideal for a mason jar salad, as it sits at the bottom without soaking up through the layers until you're ready to toss and serve.
What can I use instead of red cabbage?
Red pointed cabbage can be swapped for green pointed cabbage for a similar texture and mild flavour. Regular white or red cabbage also work well, though both have a coarser texture. Kale is another great option: it stands up particularly well to the tahini dressing and holds up beautifully in the jar over several days. It’s an especially good choice if you're meal prepping for the week.
Just keep in mind that swapping ingredients may affect the nutritional values of this recipe, including its protein content.
How do you serve a mason jar salad?
When you're ready to eat, tip the jar into a bowl and toss everything together so the tahini dressing coats all the ingredients evenly. If you're on the go, give it a good shake and eat straight from the jar, just make sure the lid is on tight first.
Nutritional values
Energy:
2288 Kcal
| Energy distribution % | Nutritional values | |
|---|---|---|
| Fibre | - | 15.5 g |
| Protein | 29 % | 163.4 g |
| Fat | 57.7 % | 149.3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 13.3 % | 74.8 g |
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Is my chicken cooked through?
The most reliable way to check is with a meat thermometer: insert it into the thickest part of the chicken breast and make sure it reaches 74°C. If you don't have a thermometer, look for meat that is white and opaque all the way through, with juices that run clear when cut. After 20 minutes at 200°C (fan), the chicken should be perfectly cooked, but if in doubt, return it to the oven for a few more minutes and check again.
Can I keep the seeds in the cucumber?
Yes, but removing them is recommended for this recipe. Cucumber seeds hold a lot of moisture, which can make the salad watery over time, especially if you're making it ahead. Scooping them out with a spoon takes only a moment and helps keep the mason jar salad fresh for longer.
The secret to perfectly roasted sweet potatoes
Cut the sweet potatoes into evenly sized cubes so they roast at the same rate; if some pieces are larger than others, you'll end up with a mix of undercooked and overdone. Make sure they're spread out in a single layer on the baking tray with a little space between each piece; overcrowding traps steam and prevents them from caramelising properly.
A drizzle of olive oil and a good seasoning of paprika, salt, and pepper before they go in the oven will give you golden, flavourful pieces that are tender all the way through.
This recipe also roasts them at a higher temperature for a shorter time. This results in a golden, caramelised surface while keeping the inside tender enough to eat but firm enough to hold its shape in the jar.
Choosing the right jar size
This mason jar salad recommends 600 ml jars, which give you enough room to layer all the ingredients without packing them in too tightly. A wide-mouth jar is ideal; it makes filling and emptying much easier and ensures you get a good mix of every layer in each serving.
Fill the jars as close to the top as possible before sealing – the less air inside, the longer the contents will stay fresh.
Extra cheese on hand? Meal prep these next
Still got some cheddar cheese in the fridge? It's an easy way to keep meal prepping interesting through a busy week. Here's where to use it next:
Protein scones with cottage cheese: quick savoury bakes with jalapeño heat and pockets of cheese running through the crumb
Protein breakfast bagels: bagels loaded with a cheesy egg bake, spinach, and red pepper
