How many calories are in a chicken caesar salad?
A chicken caesar with grilled breast, dressed leaves and cheese comes to about 480 kcal. It is ordered as the light option and it usually is, but the dressing is doing more work than the name suggests: about 90 kcal of the bowl is oil, and swapping the dressed leaves for plain vegetables takes 55 off the plate.
The plate, as served
One grilled chicken breast sliced, about 100 g of dressed leaves, and a handful of cheese.
Where the calories come from
| Nutrient | Grams | Calories | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 54g | 216 | 47% |
| Carbs | 4g | 16 | 4% |
| Fat | 25g | 225 | 49% |
| Fibre | 2g | counted within carbs | |
The ring is sized by calories, not grams: protein and carbs are 4 kcal a gram, fat is 9. Drawn by grams, fat would look like a sliver of what it actually contributes.
What is on the plate
| Chicken breast, grilledOne medium breast, about 150 g cooked | 250 kcal |
| Cheddar, gratedA handful, about 30 g | 120 kcal |
| Green salad, dressedA side salad, about 100 g | 110 kcal |
The same dish, several ways
This is where the calories actually move. Not the ingredient, the cooking.
- With bread on the side575+95
Croutons, or a slice alongside. Either way it is bread.
- One grilled chicken breast sliced, about 100 g of dressed leaves, and a handful of cheese.As served480
- Dressing on the side, used sparingly425-55
A tablespoon of oil-based dressing is about 90 kcal on a bowl of leaves.
- Without the cheese360-120
A handful of hard cheese is 120 kcal and it is easy to add twice.
Where each number comes from
Composition tables list ingredients, not dinners. There is no row anywhere for this plate, so it is built from its parts, and the preparation assumed for each part is written next to it, because that assumption is usually worth more calories than the ingredient.
| Component | Portion and preparation | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken breast, grilled | One medium breast, about 150 g cookedSkinless, grilled or baked with a little oil. | 250 |
| Cheddar, grated | A handful, about 30 gFull-fat cheddar. | 120 |
| Green salad, dressed | A side salad, about 100 gLeaves with about a tablespoon of oil-based dressing. Undressed it is about 20 kcal, which is the whole point. | 110 |
| Total | 480 | |
Sources: USDA FoodData Central. Every figure is an estimate with a range around it, and is rounded to the nearest 5 kcal rather than pretending to a precision that does not exist.
Why you will see 350 to 1000 kcal quoted for this
Restaurant caesars are ladled with dressing and often come with croutons and a lot more cheese. That is where a salad quietly becomes a heavier meal than a sandwich.
Which is why this page shows the sum instead of asserting a total. Build the plate you actually eat and the number is yours rather than an average of strangers.
Build your own plateCommon questions
- How many calories are in a chicken caesar salad?
- About 480 kcal made at home with a grilled breast, dressed leaves and a handful of cheese. Restaurant versions frequently pass 800.
- Why is caesar dressing so high in calories?
- It is an oil emulsion, so it is mostly fat. About 90 kcal a tablespoon, and a dressed bowl usually has more than one in it.
- Is a caesar salad healthy?
- The chicken and the leaves are excellent. The dressing and the cheese are where it stops being a light lunch, which is worth knowing before you order it as one.
- How do I order a lighter caesar salad?
- Dressing on the side and use half of it, which is around 45 kcal back. Leaving the cheese off is worth more, at 120.
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