When I was in college I used to go to a certain chain restaurant and order a buffalo chicken tender ranch salad when I wanted to eat “healthy”. My roommate’s parents would send us a gift card once a month to this particular restaurant and we’d allow ourselves to indulge in the all-you-can-eat queso as well as a lava cake since we were eating a “salad” for dinner. You only live once right? While we don’t eat at that restaurant anymore, my love for buffalo chicken tenders with ranch will probably never go away so it only made sense to re-create the salad of my youth.

This salad is incredibly easy to make. We cook chicken thighs but if you want an even easier version you can get a rotisserie chicken at the store and use that instead. We always make our bacon in the oven because it’s more hands off and less of a mess. If you haven’t tried oven bacon then you are missing out. We use our ranch recipe but feel free to use whatever you have in the fridge. We tend to get Franks Buffalo Sauce but, again, use whatever brand is your favorite.

Happy Cooking!

Print

Chicken Buffalo Ranch Salad

If you want a salad that is healthy, satisfying, delicious, and incredibly easy to make then this is the salad for you! It's got chicken, bacon, veggies, buffalo sauce, and ranch. It comes together in under 30 minutes and makes for great leftovers.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword bacon, buffalo sauce, Chicken, salad, weeknight meal

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Calories 537kcal

Ingredients

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 lb thick cut bacon
• 2 heads romaine lettuce
• 1 package shredded carrots
• 1 large cucumber
• 3 cups cauliflower florets (about 1 package or 1/2 an uncut head)
• ranch for serving
• buffalo sauce for serving
• 1 tsp granulated garlic
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper and spread bacon strips out evenly across the pan doing your best to ensure they do not overlap. Put the bacon in the oven as it heats up and cook for 14-20 minutes or until it reaches your desired doneness.
• Preheat a gas grill to medium high heat and spray grates with cooking oil. Alternatively you can preheat a large cast iron pan over medium high heat and add 1 TBSP avocado oil to the pan.
• Season the chicken with the granulated garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper.
• Add the chicken to the grill or pan and cook for 6-8 minutes per side, or until the outsides are crispy and they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees. If you are cooking with a cast iron pan you may need to work in 2 batches.
• Meanwhile, prepare your salad vegetables. Chop your romaine heads into bite sized pieces and then wash and dry them. We recommend doing this in a salad spinner but if you don't have one then it will be easier to wash and dry the leaves on paper towels BEFORE you cut them.
• Dice your cucumber into 1/2" quartered pieces or you can cut into thinly julienned matchsticks. We like the matchsticks but the quartered pieces take less time to prep
• Cut your cauliflower florets into bite sized pieces
• When the bacon is done remove from pan to a paper towel lined plate to soak up the excess grease.
• Allow your chicken to cool for 3-5 minutes and then dice into bite sized pieces
• Assemble your salad and dress with ranch and buffalo sauce. If you plan on using this as leftovers then we'd recommend storing the lettuce in a separate container that is lined with a paper towel.

Nutrition

Calories: 537kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 41g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g