Before I even get started telling you how this salad came to be, please rest assured I’m well aware of the fact that it’s not exactly healthy. However, I do consider it a healthier alternative to wing night with the guys. If the man of your house is a fan of Buffalo chicken wings, then he will absolutely love this salad.
I made this on an evening when I wasn’t sure what dinner was going to look like. I knew we had the fixings for salad and the chicken in the freezer, so I just started cooking the chicken and somehow this is what resulted that night in the kitchen.
I made this on an evening when I wasn’t sure what dinner was going to look like. I knew we had the fixings for salad and the chicken in the freezer, so I just started cooking the chicken and somehow this is what resulted that night in the kitchen.
I like this recipe because there is lots of room for you to get fancy by making your own Buffalo wing sauce and blue cheese dressing. You can even bread your own chicken breasts if you’re feeling industrious. If you’re looking for a quick meal without a lot of fuss, however, ready-made sauces will do just fine. I’ve made a few suggestions in case you get stuck in the grocery aisle.
Ingredients for Buffalo Chicken Salad
Building the Buffalo Chicken Salad
Add blue cheese dressing and salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste. I served the salad with garlic ciabatta bread. Yum!
Ingredients for Buffalo Chicken Salad
- Iceberg lettuce or other greens of your choice (I like the crunchiness of iceberg lettuce in this salad)
- Celery, sliced
- Carrots, peeled and sliced
- An avocado, diced (avocado is in everything lately, isn’t it?)
- Two frozen, breaded chicken breasts—I prefer to buy the kind that are white breast meat such as Jane’s Garlic & Pepper Chicken Breast Fillets
- Buffalo wing sauce: you can use a bottled sauce such as Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce or President’s Choice Buffalo Wing Sauce OR make your own using a recipe of your choice
- Blue Cheese salad dressing, either bottled or homemade, your choice
Building the Buffalo Chicken Salad
- Place chicken breasts in oven and cook according to package instructions.
- Meanwhile, wash and tear lettuce and place it into a large salad bowl.
- Slice veggies and throw them into the bowl with the lettuce. Don’t worry about making the salad pretty at this point; you’re going to toss everything in a little while, anyway.
- If you’re making your own Buffalo wing sauce and salad dressing, this is a good time to make them. If you’re using a bottled sauce and dressing, you can skip this step.
- Take chicken breasts out of the oven and allow them to cool slightly. I like to use this time to pour a glass of Pinot Grigio. Using a sharp knife, slice the breasts into strips or cut into cubes and place into a medium-sized bowl.
- Pour Buffalo wing sauce over the chicken and toss to coat.
- Cube avocado and add to the salad bowl.
- Add coated chicken to the salad bowl and toss with other ingredients.
Add blue cheese dressing and salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste. I served the salad with garlic ciabatta bread. Yum!
This is the second in my series of Salads for Men. Check out the first one, The Carpenter’s Salad.