Buffalo Chicken Salad

This buffalo chicken salad recipe makes an easy, high-protein lunch with chicken, fresh vegetables, and creamy dressing with a little kick.

This buffalo chicken salad is a strong competitor to tuna salad for an easy lunch meal prep. Especially if you have some leftover chicken breasts you cooked the other night, you can quickly whip up a delicious salad with store-bought or homemade dressing.

My best tip to make the buffalo chicken salad recipe easy and delicious is to just stick to the simple classic ingredients: chicken, buffalo sauce, carrots, celery, and ranch dressing.

You can find more buffalo chicken recipes on my site, for example, this creamy Slow Cooker Buffalo chicken dip, my signature Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, and Buffalo Chicken Sliders that are a huge hit at family gatherings.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Minimal prep time and an easy recipe for meal prep – just assemble all the ingredients and chill until ready to serve.
• Just 7 salad ingredients – all affordable and easy to find.
• Perfect way to use leftover rotisserie chicken or simply cooked chicken.
• A complete meal for a light lunch at home or for work, you can make ahead, and it won’t require reheating.
• This healthy buffalo chicken salad recipe is packed with lean protein, low-carb, and gluten-free.
• Great for game nights, the Super Bowl, and summer gatherings.

Ingredients Notes

Refer to the printable recipe card for the exact quantities and nutritional information.

• Chicken. Use any leftover chicken you have or buy cooked chicken. Chicken breasts, chicken thighs, or chicken tenders work. I don’t recommend using canned chicken in this salad recipe. I make a batch of shredded chicken in my slow cooker or Instant Pot.
• Mayonnaise. I went with regular mayo, but avocado oil mayo is a great way to dress this buffalo salad, too.
• Mild buffalo sauce. You can buy or make your own. I have a recipe for delicious Buffalo sauce on my site that you can use in this salad.
• Veggies: celery and carrots are the basic setup, but you can use any fresh veggies you have in the fridge. I know not everyone likes celery.
• Dry ranch seasoning is the only seasoning I use. Feel free to add garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, or any dried herbs or seasoning you like.
• Ranch for drizzling. Store-bought or homemade ranch dressing.

As you can see, I don’t add extra salt and pepper – the sauces are all already quite salty to my liking.

Kitchen Equipment

• Mixing bowl
• Knife

How To Make Buffalo Chicken Salad Recipe

Combine the shredded chicken, mayonnaise, buffalo sauce, chopped celery, shredded carrots, and dry ranch seasoning in a large mixing bowl. Mix well.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Serving Suggestions

There are different ways you can serve buffalo chicken salad:

• Make a wrap with a tortilla or lettuce wraps
• Sandwich: on bread or croissants.
• Salad – top with a ranch dressing and hot sauce for garnish. Serve on the bed of greens or individual lettuce cups
• Dip. With crackers and tortilla chips, like a savory dip.

Storage

Refrigerate buffalo chicken salad leftovers for up to 3 days in an airtight container.

I don’t recommend freezing buffalo chicken salad.

Substitutions & Variations

• Use any hot sauce you like. I used Frank’s Wing Sauce in this recipe, but feel free to use your favorite brand of mild to extra hot sauce.
• In summer, make buffalo chicken salad with marinated grilled chicken – the flavors are out of this world! Grilled charred corn is also a great addition.
• Add-ons. Other veggies like crunchy cucumber, chopped romaine lettuce, bell peppers, red onion, roasted chickpeas, crispy bacon, or creamy avocado will work in this recipe too. Bulk it up and it will be a great dinner idea.
• Swap Ranch dressing with blue cheese dressing.
• Use plain Greek yogurt or sour cream instead of mayo.
• Use cheese. Add some crumbled blue cheese, feta cheese crumbles, or shredded cheddar on top of the salad.
• Herbs like fresh dill, cilantro, parsley, and chopped green onions are great for garnish, too
• Keep it low-carb and dairy-free. You can skip creamy ranch dressing and mayo and use a mix of olive oil and lime juice (or lemon juice).
• Homemade buffalo sauce: Combine melted butter and your favorite hot sauce in a small bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Expert Tips To Make The Best Buffalo Chicken Chopped Salad

• If cooking chicken from scratch, double-check its doneness with an instant-read thermometer. The internal temperature should be around 165°F.
• You can store this salad in a mason jar for weekly meal prep.
• It is ok to leave the salad chill for a few hours or even overnight. It tastes even better the next day.
• Use a food processor to help with chopping.

Popular Questions

What Pairs Well With Buffalo Chicken?

Buffalo chicken pairs well with Cheddar or Jack cheese, crunchy celery sticks, cool ranch or blue cheese dressing, crisp lettuce or romaine leaves for wraps, creamy coleslaw, tortilla chips, and fresh veggies like carrots and cucumber.

Plus, heavier sides like baked potatoes, corn on the cob, or a simple green salad work great to balance the heat of buffalo chicken.

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