Buffalo Chicken Salad
This easy Buffalo chicken salad is packed with flavor and delicious served in wraps, salads or sandwiches. You’re going to love this twist on a classic chicken salad.
Ingredients and Substitutions
This buffalo chicken salad recipe only requires a handful of ingredients. I used Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo sauce but feel free to use any hot sauce/wing sauce of your choice. To keep this recipe simple, I only added celery and red onion for flavor and texture but other fresh vegetables like bell peppers and deseeded cucumber will also be delicious.
For the salad
- Chicken. I always use rotisserie chicken for chicken salad but you can use cooked shredded chicken breasts too.
- Celery. I think celery is a non-negotiable for any chicken salad recipe. The creamy chicken needs the crunch.
- Red onion. Chives or spring onion/green onion/scallions can be substituted.
For the dressing
- Mayonnaise. I used a combination of Kewpie mayo and Hellman’s. Use any mayo of your choice.
- Sour cream. Greek yogurt is a good substitute.
- Hot sauce/buffalo sauce. Use any Buffalo wing sauce or fermented hot sauce of your choice. Tabasco, Valentina’s or Texas Pete are all good options.
- Fresh lemon juice.
- Salt and black pepper. Other seasonings like garlic powder, onion powder or herbs like fresh dill can also be added.
How to make buffalo chicken salad
This really is as simple as shredding the chicken, mixing up the dressing and stirring it together in a bowl with the chopped vegetables. The key to a good chicken salad is allowing it to chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Can I make this ahead?
Yes, chicken salad is a great recipe to make ahead and fantastic for meal prep. I make this recipe on a Sunday and keep in the fridge to snack on during the week. It can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Serving Suggestions
We love this recipe served with crudités like celery, cucumber slices and carrot sticks or with crackers as an appetizer or easy snack. It’s also delicious served in lettuce wraps (use big Romaine lettuce leaves), tortilla wraps, sandwiches or on a bed of greens for a delicious gluten-free meal. For the full buffalo experience, add some blue cheese dressing or ranch dressing to your buffalo chicken sandwich.
Easy Salad Recipes
Ingredients
- 1 rotisserie chicken
- ½ cup celery finely chopped
- ¼ cup red onion finely chopped
- ½ cup mayonnaise I used half kewpie mayo and half Hellmann's mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- 2-3 tbsp hot sauce
- 2-3 tsp lemon juice
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Combine the mayo, sour cream, hot sauce, lemon juice, salt and pepper and stir together.
- Remove the skin and bones from the rotisserie chicken then add the meat to the bowl of your stand mixer.
- Using the whisk attachment, mix on low until the chicken is shredded to your preference. You can also use two forks to shred the meat.
- Add the celery, red onion and dressing to the shredded chicken and mix well.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
- Chill the chicken salad for at least 30 minutes but ideally overnight then serve.