Buffalo Chicken Salad (2024)

The best Buffalo Chicken Salad Recipe! Easy to make and healthy, learn how to make buffalo chicken salad for a delicious, quick meal!

Buffalo Chicken Salad (1)

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For a quick, easy and healthy meal, you can’t go wrong with a buffalo chicken salad! Tender shredded chicken combined with a spicy kick of buffalo sauce and a healthy yogurt-based dressing, this spicy chicken salad recipe will put all others to shame.

It’s fantastic in sandwiches, as a snack, or even as a healthy party dip!

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It’s no secret we are obsessed with buffalo sauce and we love it in appetizers like Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, Buffalo Chicken Dip, Buffalo Chicken Soup, and Buffalo Chicken Casserole.

I have never liked chicken salad because I HATE mayo, however, once I perfected our Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad, I knew I had to make a recipe with buffalo sauce!

This is such a delicious lunch and I know you are going to LOVE it!

Why we love this buffalo chicken recipe:

There are so many things to love about this recipe and here are some of the reasons it’s a favorite for us:

  • No Mayo –Mayo is relatively high in fat and offers little to no nutrition value. Greek yogurt is higher in protein, low fat, and low calorie.
  • Low fat/high protein– Greek yogurt helps to make this chicken salad low in fat and high in protein. In 1.5 cups there is 40+ g of protein.
  • Light and fresh! – This chicken salad is super filling while tasting really light and fresh! If you love Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip you will totally enjoy this!

Is the buffalo chicken salad healthy? Yes, this is a healthy salad recipe! It’s a little bit high in sodium from the buffalo sauce but delicious!

How many calories in a buffalo chicken salad? In 1.5 cups, there are less than 300 calories and 40g+ of protein.

How long does it take to make buffalo chicken salad? It takes less than a half-hour to make . If you have cooked chicken on hand it should take only about 10 minutes.

Reasons to Make Buffalo Chicken Salad:

  1. Healthier than traditional mayo-based recipes.his fabulous lunch idea is inspired by our healthyHealthy Chicken Salad. The yogurt-based dressing adds protein while reducing fat and calories. In fact, there are over 40 grams of protein and less than 300 calories in a 1.5 cup serving. Even though it’s better for you, this Buffalo chicken salad doesn’t lack any flavor. It really is the spicy chicken sandwich of your dreams!!
  2. It’s versatile – Of course this recipe is great for sandwiches, wraps, and lettuce cups, but the creamy consistency of the shredded chicken mixture makes it spreadable. We love it on crackers and raw veggies. For a healthy party snack, check out our buffalo chicken dip recipe!
  3. NO mayo! If you typically avoid meals like egg salad and chicken salad because youHATEmayo, this recipe is everything you’ve been looking for.

Buffalo Chicken Salad Ingredients

To make this recipe you’ll need the following:

You can find substitutions for all of these ingredients below in the green shaded substitutions box.

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How to make Buffalo Chicken Salad

Making Buffalo Chicken Salad is super easy to do!

  1. Add all ingredients to a bowl (blue cheese is optional).
  2. Toss together using a spatula until all ingredients are thoroughly coated with yogurt.
  3. Serve on a sandwich, over a salad, or with crackers.
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SUBSTITUTIONS FOR BUFFALO CHICKEN SALAD

This chicken salad is SO versatile. You can easily customize it with whatever you like/don’t like or have on hand. Here are some ideas for you:

Chicken – You can sub chicken for tuna if you’d like. We also have a Greek Yogurt Tuna Salad recipe. I have not tried canned chicken in this recipe but I think it would work. We like to use our Instant Pot to cook the chicken breasts. If you want a hands-off recipe, our crockpot shredded chicken is a great option.

Cooked Chicken: To make things really simple, get a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. Just keep in mind that they tend to be high in sodium.

YogurtWe like to use like to use plain, unflavored, non-fat greek yogurt in our buffalo chicken salad. You can use 1%, 2%, or full-fat yogurt if you’d like. We don’t recommend using flavored/sweetened yogurt in this recipe. We have not tested this recipe without yogurt. Mayo will probably work, but we can’t be sure without trying it.

Parsley- If you don’t have fresh parsley, you can sub with 1/4 the amount of dried parsley. If you don’t care for parsley, you can substitute with some fresh dill, thyme, cilantro, or even basil!

Dairy Free – I have not tried this with dairy free yogurt, but I think it would work. Make sure that your yogurt is unsweetened, plain yogurt. For the best flavor, we recommend sticking with a full-fat version.

Buffalo Sauce – There are plenty of bottled, ready-to-use sauces available. I like Primal Kitchen or Frank’s Red Hot.

Grilled Chicken – This salad is great with leftover grilled chicken.

Celery– Feel free to omit this, or substitute it with scallions, onions, or even chopped bell peppers.

Lower Salt: Buffalo Sauce is a high sodium food and makes this recipe high in sodium. If you eat a low sodium diet, look for a low sodium buffalo sauce.

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How to serve Healthy Buffalo Chicken Salad

You can serve this chicken salad however you like (we love it with green onions on top)! If you’re wondering what to serve with Boneless Buffalo Chicken Salad here are some ideas:

  • on a sandwich or a strawberry salad
  • in lettuce wraps
  • as a healthy ‘dip’ with celery or carrot slices
  • spread on crackers
  • on a salad with one of these Healthy Dressing Recipes

Although most people prefer buffalo chicken salad sandwiches as a lunch option, you could easily add some sides to serve it for dinner.

We suggest some creamy cauliflower soup, or any of these other healthy soup recipes. Or, maybe a simple green salad or some cooked veggies like green beans almondine or garlic roasted brussel sprouts.

tips for the best buffalo chicken salad

  1. Mix the dressing before tossing it with the meat.- Yes, this means there’s an extra bowl to wash, but it also ensures that the dressing is fully incorporated with the shredded chicken.
  2. Shred the chicken well to avoid any large chunks. Pro Tip: Place your cooked chicken in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Turn the mixer on medium speed and you’ll have shredded buffalo chicken salad in less than 2 minutes. You can even pour the dressing into the mixer bowl after you shred the meat, and the mixer will do all of the work of combining the buffalo chicken salad for you!

How to store Buffalo Chicken Salad

This healthy salad is great for meal prep because it lasts for a while in the fridge!

Can Buffalo Chicken Salad be made ahead of time? Yes! You can make this ahead of time and eat it later.

How long does buffalo chicken chicken salad keep in the fridge?You can keep this chicken salad in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. After that, it will lose its freshness.

Can you freeze buffalo chicken salad? Wedo not recommend freezing this chicken salad. The yogurt will get funny after freezing.

Will it be okay out of the fridge in a lunch box/on the go?Because this has cooked chicken in it and dairy, we wouldn’t recommend leaving it out of the fridge for more than 2 hours.

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3 easy ways to make shredded chicken:

The only ‘cooking’ this recipe requires is for the chicken breast. You can cook your chicken in the instant pot, crockpot, or by boiling it on the stovetop. Even better – buy a rotisserie chicken to save time! Here are different methods for cooking your chicken:

Instant Pot: Cook 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs with ¼ cup water on manual for 14 minutes. You can also follow this instant pot shredded chicken recipe if you need help.

Crockpot: Cook 1 lb chicken breasts or chicken thighs with ¼ cup water on low for 6 hours. You can also follow this crock pot shredded chicken recipe if you need help.

Stovetop: Boil or poach 1 lb of chicken breasts in water until the internal temperature of the poultry reaches 165°F. at its thickest portion. This typically takes 10-15 minutes.

Rotisserie chicken: Simply buy a cooked chicken and pull the meat off with forks to save time! (Make sure to save the bones and make bone broth with it!)

Tip for shredding chicken: You can pull apart chicken with two forks – but if you want to save time – place your cooked chicken breasts in your kitchen aid mixer and give a few quick turns with the paddle attachment. You can also ‘mix’ them with the beaters of a hand mixer.

Other healthy lunch recipes:

Looking for other easy lunches? Check out these 40+ Easy Healthy Chicken Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy 30 minute dinners cookbook. Here are some of our other favorite healthy lunch recipes that use shredded chicken.

  • Healthy Buffalo Chicken Dip
  • Lemon Chicken Soup
  • Orange Chicken Recipe
  • Greek Chicken Spaghetti Squash Bake
  • Pineapple Mango Chicken Lettuce Wraps
  • Healthy Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

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Buffalo Chicken Salad

Recipe by: The Clean Eating Couple

5 from 16 votes

The best Buffalo Chicken Salad Recipe! Easy to make and healthy, learn how to make buffalo chicken salad for a delicious, quick meal!

WW Freestyle Points Zero

Prep Time : 11 minutes minutes

Cook Time : 15 minutes minutes

Total Time : 26 minutes minutes

Serves : 2 people

(hover over # to adjust)

PRINTPINRATE

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Cook chicken. Bring a pot of water to a boil and boil chicken for 10-14 minutes. You can also cook chicken in the instant pot, crockpot or buy a rotisserie chicken.

  • While chicken is cooking, chop parsley and celery.

  • Once chicken is cooked, shred the chicken by pulling apart with 2 forks.

  • Add chopped ingredients, spices, greek yogurt, buffalo sauce, cheese if using and shredded chicken in a bowl.

  • Toss together using a spatula until all ingredients are thoroughly coated with yogurt.

  • Serve on a sandwich or over a salad.

Video

Notes

Buffalo sauce is a high sodium food and makes this recipe high in sodium. If you eat a low sodium diet, look for a low sodium buffalo sauce.

Substitutions (See the green box above in post for more info!)

Chicken – You can sub chicken for tuna if you’d like.
Yogurt – You can use any % fat (1, 2 or 5%) We haven’t tried dairy free yogurt but I think it would work.

Grilled Chicken – This salad is great with leftover grilled chicken.

Celery– Feel free to omit this, or substitute it with scallions, onions, or even chopped bell peppers.

Nutrition Facts

Nutrition Facts

Buffalo Chicken Salad

Amount Per Serving (1.5 cups chicken salad)

Calories 258Calories from Fat 45

% Daily Value*

Fat 5g8%

Saturated Fat 1g6%

Trans Fat 1g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 1g

Cholesterol 124mg41%

Sodium 704mg31%

Potassium 800mg23%

Carbohydrates 3g1%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 47g94%

Vitamin A 59IU1%

Vitamin C 2mg2%

Calcium 92mg9%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. This is an estimate and can vary pending your ingredients

Tried this recipe?Share it! Make sure to tag @thecleaneatingcouple or use #thecleaneatingcouple!

Buffalo Chicken Salad (2024)
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