The Best Buffalo Chicken Chopped Salad
If you’re a fan of buffalo chicken, then this buffalo chicken chopped salad is for you! Crisp romaine lettuce, with juicy buffalo chicken tenders, crisp vegetables, tangy pickled red onions, and homemade chunky blue cheese dressing. Oh, and lots of flavorful buffalo sauce. This ones been known to win the hearts of those non-salad lovers out there.
The dressing definitely makes this recipe and in my book, buffalo is meant to be paired with blue cheese, and BBQ is meant to be paired with ranch. It’s a game-changer.
I have a large mason jar of pickled red onions always in my fridge for salad night. If you haven’t made these for salads, you’re really missing out, they take it to the next level. I love them in sweet salads too, like this pear & gorgonzola one here!
Layers in a buffalo chicken chopped salad
ROMAINE is our base lettuce because it’s a nice sturdy leaf to hold these heavier toppings. Plus, there’s nothing quite like the romaine crunch in a chopped salad.
VEGETABLES featured in this chopped salad are cucumbers, carrots, celery, and scallions. All the classic veggies that go well with buffalo sauce and blue cheese dressing. A mandoline makes slicing the veggies quick and easy! I love it especially for fresh julienned carrots, which taste so much sweeter than the precut carrots.
PICKLED RED ONIONS are my favorite salad topping, of all time. By pickling the onions, it really helps the sweetness of the red onion shine through, balanced with the tang from from the apple cider vinegar.
GORGONZOLA I prefer gorgonzola to blue cheese in salads, it’s flavor is sharper which adds depth to the salad. This cheese is strong and salty, and pairs amazingly with pickled red onions. You want to use a high-quality cheese, I go with Belgioioso.
BUFFALO CHICKEN is obviously key here. I like to marinate the breasts in the buffalo sauce and grill them, or slice the raw breasts up and pan fry them. Lately, I’ve been using Sweet Baby Rays buffalo sauce, I go back and forth with that and Frank’s. I feel like SBR has just a tad less bite to it.
BLUE CHEESE DRESSING made from scratch is incredibly easy and tastes so much better than the store bought kind. You want to use high quality blue cheese, I use Belgioioso.
How to make buffalo chicken chopped salad: 4 easy steps
1. Pickle the red onions
2. Make the blue cheese dressing
3. Prepare the vegetables
4. Cook the chicken
Note: Wondering what to do with leftovers? Use all of the same ingredients to make buffalo chicken wraps! I have a how-to video here!
Popular substitutions and additions to this recipe
BUTTERMILK in the dressing can be substituted with 1/2 cup of whole milk mixed with a half tsp of white vinegar. Mix well and let sit for 5 minutes.
SOUR CREAM in the dressing can be substituted with plain greek yogurt.
BACON goes great in this chopped salad!
TOMATOES are a popular topping in chopped salads, as well.
Handy tip: Prepare Ahead!
Make your pickled red onions in advance! They last for up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator and add so much flavor to salads, sandwiches and quesadillas. Needless to say, I always keep a jar in the fridge!
Make your blue cheese dressing in advance as well. Just keep it in a mason jar or container with a lid in the fridge for up to one week.
The Best Buffalo Chicken Chopped Salad
Ingredients
Method
- In a small saucepan, bring the vinegar, water, and sugar to a simmer. Meanwhile, slice your red onion and place it in a large mason jar, or bowl that has a lid.
- Pour simmering vinegar mixture into the jar with the red onions. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and shake vigorously. Let sit for 30 mins.
- Place blue cheese and buttermilk together in a medium bowl. Using a whisk, lightly mash the blue cheese so that it begins to break down. You want it to still be chunky, but slightly incorporated.
- Mix in remaining ingredients until incorporated. Cover and set in the fridge.
- Place chicken strips in a bowl with 1 cup of the buffalo sauce. Heat the oil in a large pan over medium high heat and cook the strips until they are done. Approxiately 6-8 minutes, depending on how thin you slice the chicken. Turn off the heat, and add the remaining cup of buffalo sauce to the pan and toss together.
- Assemble all chopped salad ingredients into serving bowls. Top with buffalo chicken and blue cheese dressing. Drizzle with more buffalo sauce.
