This bbq chicken salad brings all the flavors of summer. A bed of leafy greens, topped with crunchy veggies, salty bacon, and tangy BBQ chicken. Did we mention the creamy and dairy free ranch dressing?
Summer is here! You can tell by the large variety of produce hitting your grocery store. One of the best ways to have a healthy summer is by having a diverse diet of all the colorful fruits and veggies available. And during this time of year is a great chance to give new things a try. With our BBQ chicken salad, we wanted to take advantage of some of the produce you will find at peak season with a cheaper price.
Some of the veggies you will find are:
- Leafy greens of your choice
- Red onion
- Sweet corn
- Avocado
- Cherry tomatoes
With these kind of veggies present we guarantee something satisfying that won’t leave you hungry within 30 minutes.
The dairy free BBQ ranch has a base of cashews and non-dairy buttermilk. The buttermilk is created by adding almond milk and lemon juice together. This makes the sauce creamy and tangy. Mix that will a Paleo BBQ sauce and some spices and you have yourself a paleo ranch dressing.
Another thing we do to amp up this recipe is by cooking the chicken breast a little differently. This cooking process leaves it flavorful and moist. Simply brown each side for 5 minutes and then throw into a 425 degree oven for 10-15 minutes until cooked all the way through. And you have perfectly cooked chicken breast every time.
This recipe is a simple throw together recipe that has plenty of veggies and protein to satisfy anyone at the dinner table.
We hoped you like this salad recipe we brought you this week. Let us know how you like it on instagram by tagging us with @vegiventurer or using the hashtag #vegiventurer. We will see you next week.
BBQ chicken salad
Ingredients
Dressing
- 1 cup cashews soaked overnight or in boiling water for 30 minutes
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
- 1/2 cup paleo friendly barbecue sauce
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dill
- salt and pepper to taste
BBQ Chicken
- 2 lbs chicken breast
- 1/2 cup paleo friendly barbecue sauce
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- salt and pepper
Salad
- 6 cups chopped greens or salad mix or your choice
- 1/2 small red onion thinly sliced
- 1 medium corn on the cobb kernels removed omit of on Whole30
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes quartered
- 4 strips paleo friendly bacon cooked
- 1 avocado sliced
- 2 lbs cooked barbecue chicken thinkly sliced
Instructions
To Make the Dressing
- Discard cashew soaking liquid and rinse cashews. Add to a blender.
- In a small bowl, add almond milk and lemon juice and let set on for 5 minutes to curdle and create dairy free buttermilk. Once the 5 minutes have passed, add your buttermilk, chipotle pepper, BBQ sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, and dill to the blender with the cashews and blend until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste and place in a mason jar in the fridge until ready to use.
To Make the Chicken
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Take chicken out of packaging and pat dry with a paper towel, removing any excess liquid from the surface. Add salt and pepper and let rest while you heat a skillet with 1 tbsp of olive oil. If your chicken breasts are very thick we recommend butterfly cutting them to reduce cooking time.
- Heat the skillet to a medium high heat. Add chicken and cook on each side for 5 minutes or until each side takes on some color. Once your oven has been preheated, place chicken on a parchment line baking sheet. Baste with 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce on one side. Sprinkle with smoked paprika and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
- Let chicken cool before assembling salad
To Make the Salad
- Place your bed of greens down. Add your corn (if using), tomatoes, red onion, bacon, avocado, and barbecue chicken to the top of the salad. Drizzle desired amount of dressing and enjoy.
