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4.6 from 372 votes

Portillo's Chopped Salad

This Portillo's Chopped Salad is a knock off from the famous salad recipe at Portillo's in Chicago. It's hearty and topped with the tastiest dressing.

Prep Time
15 mins
Total Time
15 mins
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Salad
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 1 cup uncooked ditalini pasta (2 cups cooked)
  • 1 lb Bacon (about 1 cup cooked and crumbled)
  • 3 cups chopped romaine lettuce
  • 2 cups chopped iceberg lettuce
  • 2 cups chopped red cabbage
  • 1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
  • 1 cup sliced green onions
  • 4 ounces crumbled gorgonzola cheese (about 1 cup)
  • (optional) (optional) 2 cups cooked and diced chicken
Sweet Italian Dressing:
  • 1/2 /2 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 /4 cup white balsamic vinegar (see note)
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 /2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 /4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 /4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Cook Ditalini pasta according to package instructions. Make sure you salt the pasta water while cooking to give it some flavor. Drain and cool. Set aside.
  2. Cook bacon in a skillet until done. Let bacon cool, then crumble it.
  3. Combine romaine, iceberg, red cabbage, tomatoes and green onions in large salad bowl.
  4. Add cooled pasta, bacon and gorgonzola cheese to salad. Add chicken if desired.
  5. Add dressing to taste right before serving so that it doesn't get soggy.
  6. For the Dressing: Whisk together olive oil, vinegar, garlic, Dijon mustard, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper.

Notes

  • White balsamic can be found right next to the regular balsamic vinegar at the store.Some readers have used apple cider or red wine vinegar instead of regular balsamic (when white can't be found) so that the color is lighter and more appealing when drizzled on the salad.