BBQ Chicken Salad Recipe (2024)

Crunchy and creamy combine in this grill-inspired chicken salad recipe featuring homemade BBQ ranch dressing, avocado, and pan-fried chicken over a crisp bed of greens.

The red-and-white dressing adds a colorful touch, and the whole salad is ready in just a few minutes: all you really have to do is cook the chicken and mix everything up.

You’ll need some barbecue sauce and homemade mayo to make the dressing, but if you don’t have any handy, you can just take a few minutes to whip up a batch of each – and make extra while you’re at it.

Mayonnaise is delicious on almost anything, and barbecue sauce can jazz up meatballs, chicken wings, or ribs (or if you know you won’t use it for a while, just freeze it in an ice cube tray so you’ll always have some ready when you want it).

To make this into a full meal, you could add a little more chicken breast per person or just serve it with a hearty soup on the side. It’s perfect for lunch when you want something simple but flavorful or any time of day when you’re hankering for a bite of the Southwest.

BBQ Chicken Salad Recipe

SERVES: 4 PREP: 20 min COOK: 10 min

Ingredients

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced into strips;
• 6 cups romaine lettuce, chopped;
• 1 Roma tomato, diced;
• 1 bell pepper, cut into small pieces;
• ½ avocado, cut into cubes;
• ¼ cup red onion, diced;
• ¼ cup BBQ sauce;
• Cooking fat;
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper;

Ingredients for the ranch dressing

• 2 tbsp. homemade mayonnaise;
• 2 tbsp. coconut milk;
• ¼ tsp. raw garlic, minced;
• 1 tsp. fresh dill, minced;
• 1 tsp. fresh chives, minced;
• ¼ tsp. paprika;
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper;

Preparation

1. Add some cooking fat to a skillet placed over medium-high heat.
2. Season the chicken breasts with sea salt and black pepper to taste.
3. Add the chicken to the skillet and cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side until cooked through.
4. Wait until the chicken cools down; then dice it into bite-sized pieces.
5. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients for the ranch dressing and mix well.
6. Fill a salad bowl with romaine lettuce. Top with the chicken, tomato, pepper, onion, and avocado.
7. Pour the ranch dressing and BBQ sauce on top of the salad. Toss gently to combine and serve.

📖 Recipe

More Paleo Recipes