portillo’s chopped salad;
One time in Chicago, I had this Portillo’s Chopped Salad, and I never forgot it. Shoutout to the friend I was visiting that hyped it up and convinced me to try it! This salad has it all—soft pasta, crisp and refreshing veggies, tangy blue cheese, and spicy chicken. It’s a hearty salad that makes me super excited to eat it—and that’s the whole point of a salad! To find something healthy you look forward to eating.
So there’s something about the ditalini pasta that makes it the perfect pasta for Portillo’s chopped salad. Ditalini is a petit pasta, kind of like a very short macaroni with straight sides. Could you use another pasta cut? Sure. But I won’t because these little rings are the literal perfect size in this salad. It makes the pasta the same size as your other chopped ingredients so it really bridges the gap between pasta salad and salad. If I had to pick a substitute, I’d probably go with small shells or elbows in a pinch, but I really stand by the ditalini pasta.
(Unimportant side story on the ditalini pasta—my phone autocorrected it to Stalin pasta one time. 😳 Not ok, phone. )
The second ingredient that makes Portillo’s chipped salad is the gorgonzola or blue cheese. When I went to make this salad from memory, I thought it was more of an Italian chopped salad. Italian chopped salads are great, don’t get me wrong. But it was definitely missing the exact addicting flavors of the Portillo’s chopped salad. Turns out the missing link was the tangy blue cheese. I tend to opt for Gorgonzola because I like the milder and sweeter flavor profile, but choose your own adventure! Just make sure you don’t leave it out, because it’s my absolute favorite part of the salad.
I tend to opt for a milder sweeter Gorgonzola but if you’re a blue cheese lover, commit to a tangy blue cheese. Just don’t leave it out because it ties the whole salad together.
Secret to success
Since I was struggling to recreate the flavors of this salad, luckily my friend who originally introduced me to this salad pointed out their website literally says what’s in the salad. Can’t believe I missed something so obvious!
Which let me recreate this salad and guys—it was so satisfying. I did make a few swaps but nothing that impedes the flavor profiles and textures were going for here. Instead of red cabbage, I prefer raddichio lettuce. It still adds a purple leafy green, but is more lettuce crisp than crunchy cabbage. But if you’re a fan of texture, go for the cabbage since it adds that extra bite. Or heck, add both. You can’t go wrong with more vegetables. But the color really looks so pretty throughout the salad.
I’ve also come around to mild raw onions in salads over the years. I used to hate them with a passion and pick them out of anything but so think the key is in the word ‘mild’. I always felt the onion overpowered most everything. Not sure if that was my childhood palette or I just had wrong ratios. Probably a bit of both.
Thinly sliced onions will give you so much flavor without overpowering this salad.
Secret to success
But the key in my opinion is very thinly sliced onions. I use the full scallion, slicing both whites and greens of the green onion (discarding the roots). Again I think it ties the flavors together nicely to get a subtle spice of onion throughout. A small bit goes a long way though, so I make it a point to slice thinly. Red onion also works in a pinch.
When it comes to the dressing, I honestly find the textures and flavors satisfying enough that I don’t need a dressing. The punch of the gorgonzola and fattiness from the bacon do enough to get tons of flavor packed into every forkful. But if you do prefer a dressing, then mix up a quick slurry of olive oil, red wine vinegar, and season to taste with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
If you like a little spicy kick to your salad, serve with spicy breaded chicken or a drizzle of hot honey, and slice up a few spicy pepperoncinis to add a kick!
secret to success
I think you can stop here and still have a mighty fine salad. However, if you like a little bit of a heartier meal, add some chopped breaded chicken to the salad! Not gonna lie, I very often just use frozen chicken cutlets or tenders. It makes the salad easy and accessible. If I don’t have specifically spicy breaded chicken to use, then sometimes I’ll do a drizzle of hot honey. If I’m feeling extra spicy, I’ll cut up some pepperoncini’s and toss them into the mix too.
secrets to success;
Want all the best tips and tricks to make this recipe a success? Check out the blog post above to find out more!
more recipes;
Looking for other healthful sides and salads? Best with Chocolate’s got you covered!
- Serve your Portillo’s chopped salad with some homemade biscuits! Quick and easy, these sour cream and chive biscuits are a family favorite, or if you like some funkier flavors opt for a miso biscuit!
- If you love a good blue cheese in your salad, then head on over to this raspberry california salad. Sweet and tangy, the bold flavors of blue cheese, candied nuts, and bright raspberry dressing is so refreshing on a hot day.
- Lock in on a soup and salad combo, and pair Portillo’s chopped salad with a homemade zuppa toscana!
portillio’s chopped salad;
Ingredients
chopped salad;
- 1 cup ditalini pasta (dry)
- 1 head radicchio lettuce (small head, roughly 2 cups)
- 2 heads romaine lettuce (roughly 5 cups)
- 6 oz cherry tomatoes chopped
- 1 bunch scallions sliced or ¼ cup diced red onion
- 4 oz gorgonzola
- ½ lb bacon cooked and crumbled
- breaded chicken cutlets (optional)
- 4-5 pepperoncini peppers (optional) sliced
italian dressing;
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp italian seasoning crushed
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Boil a pot of salted water. Once it comes to a rolling boil, add 1 cup dry ditalini pasta. Allow to boil 8-10 minutes or until al dente. Remove and strain from the pot and set aside. Allow to cool fully before adding to the salad. Recommend refrigerating ahead of time.
- Heat a large pan and add strips of bacon to the pan. Cook on both sides until crisp, roughly 2-4 minutes. Once desired crispness achieved, remove to a paper-towel lined plate and allow to cool.
- Wash and chop radiccio lettuce and romaine lettuce into small chunks, roughly 1" pieces. Add to a large bowl.
- Slice cherry tomatoes into quarters and add to the lettuce.
- Thinly slice whites and greens of the scallions (or dice red onion) and add to the salad mixture.
- Add in the gorgonzola cheese, crumbled bacon, and cooled ditalini pasta. Mix everything together and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Optionally, cook a breaded chicken cutlet and serve warm with the cold salad. Optionally slice a few spicy pepperoncini peppers and toss into the salad.
italian dressing;
- Honestly, I don't think this salad needs a dressing. But if you want to add a little tang, mix together olive oil, red wine vinegar, and italian seasoning. Season with salt and pepper to taste. I prefer to store the dressing separately and then add it when serving.
