This Chicken Salad with Strawberries is a PCOS-friendly recipe with 265 calories, 25g protein, and 16g carbs per serving. Ready in 12 minutes. High in fiber (3g), which supports insulin sensitivity.
Nutrition per Serving
Ingredients
Instructions
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In a salad bowl, mix together all salad ingredients
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Pour dressing over salad and toss to coat.
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Dietitian Tip: To make salads deliciously chewy and crunchy, add lean protein with chicken, tuna, or shrimp and some crunch from nuts. Use a cooked deli-rotisserie chicken to save time.
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MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE: Confirm ingredients are gluten-free and this recipe can be made gluten-free.
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Choices: 1/2 Carbohydrate, 1/2 Fruit, 3 Lean Protein, 1 1/2 Fat
How This Recipe Supports PCOS Management
Understanding the nutritional profile of what you eat is a powerful step in managing PCOS. Here is how the key ingredients in this Chicken Salad with Strawberries contribute to your health goals:
- Chicken: Protein-rich meals help manage insulin resistance common in PCOS
- Spinach: Magnesium may help improve insulin sensitivity in women with PCOS
- Almond: Magnesium helps improve insulin sensitivity and reduce PCOS symptoms
- Berr: Their low glycemic index makes them ideal for PCOS-friendly desserts
PCOS Diet Principles in This Recipe
The PCOS diet focuses on three core principles: reducing inflammation, managing insulin resistance, and supporting hormonal balance. Every recipe in our collection is evaluated against these principles. This recipe excels in providing protein-rich ingredients that help regulate appetite hormones (ghrelin and leptin), and healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that support cell membrane health and hormone synthesis. As part of a balanced PCOS meal plan, we recommend pairing recipes like this with a variety of nutrient-dense foods throughout the week to ensure you are meeting all your micronutrient needs.
Meal Prep Tip: This Chicken Salad with Strawberries can be prepared ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Meal prepping is one of the most effective strategies for sticking to a PCOS-friendly diet, as it removes the temptation to reach for processed convenience foods when time is short.
Why this Chicken Salad with Strawberries works for PCOS
With 25g of protein per serving (about 38% of calories), this Chicken Salad with Strawberries sits at the top end of the 25-35g per-meal range that the 2023 International PCOS Guideline recommends for managing insulin resistance and supporting lean mass. Higher-protein meals also blunt the glucose response when carbohydrates are included, which matters for women with PCOS because chronic insulin elevation drives androgen excess and irregular cycles.
At 16g of carbohydrates per serving, this Chicken Salad with Strawberries is on the lower-carb end, which suits women with PCOS who have confirmed insulin resistance or who notice strong post-meal energy crashes. Pair lower-carb meals like this with a generous portion of non-starchy vegetables to keep fibre intake up.
Lunch is where most PCOS meal plans either succeed or collapse. A meal like this Chicken Salad with Strawberries that combines adequate protein, fibre-rich carbs, and fat keeps blood sugar stable for the rest of the workday and reduces the late-afternoon energy crash that drives sugar cravings around 3-4pm.
At 190mg of sodium per serving, this Chicken Salad with Strawberries fits comfortably within the 1500-2300mg daily target most cardiology and PCOS guidance agrees on. Lower-sodium meals are useful for women with PCOS who also experience bloating or who are managing blood pressure alongside metabolic concerns.
PCOS-Friendly Foods in This Recipe
This recipe contains the following foods that may benefit PCOS management: Chicken Breast, Spinach.
Skinless chicken breast, often heralded for its lean nutritional profile, is undeniably a powerhouse when it comes to protein content. With an impressive 21 grams of protein packed into every 100 grams of the breast, it emerges as a preferred choice for those conscious about their protein intake. Delving deeper into the nutritional matrix of chicken, one can't overlook the copious amounts of vitamin B6 it houses. This particular vitamin plays an indispensable role in our body, especially when di...
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, this Chicken Salad with Strawberries recipe is designed to be PCOS-friendly. At 265 calories per serving with 25g of protein, it supports balanced blood sugar and hormonal health. It also provides 3g of fiber, which helps with insulin sensitivity.
This recipe takes about 12 minutes total. Prep time is 12 minutes. It makes 4 servings, so you can meal prep for multiple days.
Per serving: 265 calories, 25g protein (38%), 16g carbs, 10.5g fat. Plus 3g fiber. PCOS meal plans typically aim for 30% protein, 35% fat, 35% carbs to support insulin sensitivity.
Yes, this recipe works well as a PCOS-friendly Lunch. At 265 calories, it fits within typical PCOS meal plan targets for Lunch. Pair it with other PCOS-friendly foods throughout the day for balanced nutrition.
This recipe can be part of a structured PCOS meal plan. It makes 4 servings, making it great for meal prep. For a complete weekly plan tailored to your PCOS type, take our free 60-second quiz at pcosmealplanner.com/pcos-quiz to get a personalized 7-day meal plan.
Cook Another PCOS-Friendly Lunch
Each recipe you add to your rotation makes PCOS management easier. Variety keeps you from getting bored and quitting.
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