30 Minute Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage & Avocado

Try this easy and fresh chopped tomato mozzarella salad with chicken sausage on a hot summer’s night, when you don’t feel like cooking a heavy meal!

Today’s quick weeknight dinner idea celebrates multiple things:

1. The fact that romaine lettuce is safe to eat again,
2. The fact that these versatile fresh mozzarella balls are again seasonally stocked at ALDI, and
3. The fact that spring has fully sprung, making dinner salads a super attractive option right now!

In addition to the seasonal fresh mozzarella, today’s Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage & Avocado features a couple of my perennial favorite ALDI finds: Never Any chicken apple sausage, and… well… (it goes without saying): Avocado.

As simple as this seems, sometimes it pays to go back to the basics and see what you can throw together with just a few simple ingredients — here, they work harmoniously together to elevate the finished product into something special and new. The apple chicken sausage helps make your traditional tomato/mozzarella pairing into a more filling meal, the avocado adds creaminess and good fats, and the crunchy romaine brings it all together into one hearty dinner salad.

Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage & Avocado

Ingredients

– for the balsamic dressing

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp olive oil
Sea salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste

– for the salad

12 oz smoked chicken sausage (I used chicken apple)
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
8 oz fresh mozzarella balls in water, halved
1 avocado, chopped
2 hearts of romaine, chopped
Fresh chopped basil, optional garnish

Directions

Combine all dressing ingredients and set aside.

Slice the sausage into coins and saute these in a large skillet over medium heat until nicely browned. While the sausage is browning, halve your tomatoes and mozzarella, chop your avocado, and chop the romaine.

Divide the chopped romaine among four dinner plates and top the salads evenly with the sausage, tomatoes, mozzarella, and avocado. Shake your balsamic dressing to recombine it before drizzling it over the finished salads, which you can serve garnished with chopped fresh basil, if desired/available.

Notes: I just threw together a basic balsamic vinaigrette for today’s salad, but you can use bottled dressing if you prefer. I also added fresh basil from my garden because: Yay, it’s finally spring — but the basil just kicks things up a notch and is optional, if you don’t happen to have on hand. You can of course always add more veggies or otherwise jazz up this simple dinner salad base; make it your own! 

A fresh and easy 30 minute dinner salad recipe

This easy 30 minute weeknight chopped salad recipe is naturally low carb and gluten free, and is the perfect option for a busy summer evening when you don’t feel like heating up the house with the oven. While today’s chopped tomato mozzarella salad with chicken sausage doesn’t sport a lot of ingredients, it nonetheless packs in a lot of flavor — as well as a lot of protein, helping to make it a filling dinner salad choice.

More chopped salad recipes?

I love using these little balls of mozzarella in chopped salad recipes, such as in this chicken avocado mozzarella chopped salad. Mix up your own protein packed dinner salads with different proteins and veggies, depending on what you have on hand and what is seasonally on sale.

More chicken sausage recipes?

Or if you’re looking for more recipe ideas using ALDI’s Never Any chicken apple sausage, I have you covered there, too. You can take traditional sausage, peppers, and onions in all sorts of directions: This sausage, peppers, and onions frittata has become a staple in our house — or try these smashed potatoes with sausage, peppers, and onions. (Or just grill them up and eat them on a bun!)

Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage & Avocado, printable recipe

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Chopped Tomato Mozzarella Salad with Chicken Sausage & Avocado

Total Time

30 mins

 

The apple chicken sausage helps make your traditional tomato/mozzarella pairing into a more filling meal, the avocado adds creaminess and good fats, and the crunchy romaine brings it all together into one hearty dinner salad.

Course: dinner

Servings: 4

Author: Rachel Singer Gordon

Ingredients

- for the balsamic dressing

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• Sea salt to taste
• Black pepper to taste

- for the salad

• 12 oz smoked chicken sausage (I used chicken apple)
• 1 pint grape tomatoes halved
• 8 oz fresh mozzarella balls in water halved
• 1 avocado chopped
• 2 hearts of romaine chopped
• Fresh chopped basil (optional garnish)

Instructions

1. Slice the sausage into coins and saute these in a large skillet over medium heat until nicely browned. 

2. While the sausage is browning, halve your tomatoes and mozzarella, chop your avocado, and chop the romaine.

3. Divide the chopped romaine among four dinner plates and top the salads evenly with the sausage, tomatoes, mozzarella, and avocado. 

4. Shake your balsamic dressing to recombine it before drizzling it over the finished salads, which you can serve garnished with chopped fresh basil, if desired/available.
   

Recipe Notes

I just threw together a basic balsamic vinaigrette for today's salad, but you can use bottled dressing if you prefer. I also added fresh basil from my garden because: Yay, it's finally spring -- but the basil just kicks things up a notch and is optional, if you don't happen to have on hand. You can of course always add more veggies or otherwise jazz up this simple dinner salad base; make it your own!

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And don’t miss the free weekly ALDI meal plans that show you how to use these recipes to meal plan affordably and realistically for your family!