This spicy buffalo chicken salad is a must if you’re a buffalo wing lover! Filled with sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, avocado and ranch for the ultimate delicious light bite. It’s an easy 25-minute lunch or dinner you’ll want on repeat.
Why You’ll Love This Buffalo Chicken Salad Recipe
This easy buffalo chicken salad with tangy Ranch dressing is a quick way to pack more veggies into your lunches and weeknights.
- Quick. This satisfying chicken salad with buffalo sauce is ready in half an hour.
- Tex-Mex. Grilled corn, juicy tomatoes, spicy red onions, and creamy avocado give this recipe a Tex-Mex flavor profile.
- Versatile. Turn it into a pasta salad, make it a vegetarian meal, or dress it with cilantro lime crema.
- Perfect for the summer. This salad is packed with fresh veggies and juicy buffalo chicken for a refreshing summer lunch.
What You’ll Need
Fresh tomatoes add a burst of juiciness, avocados add creaminess, and corn adds natural sweetness. Scroll to the recipe card at the bottom of the post for exact ingredient amounts.
- Chicken breast: It must be boneless and skinless.
- Frank’s red hot sauce: Feel free to use your favorite buffalo sauce for this.
- Corn: Use fresh, canned, or frozen (thawed).
- Cherry tomatoes: You can use Roma tomatoes if you remove the seeds and dice them.
- Red onion: White, yellow, and even green onions can be used instead.
- Avocado: Make sure it’s ripe and peeled. Feel free to add a dollop of Guacamole.
- Red leaf lettuce: Iceberg and romaine lettuce are great swaps.
- Ranch dressing: Caesar dressing works too.
How To Make Grilled Buffalo Chicken Salad
Cooking the chicken and veggies on the grill adds toasty, charred goodness to every bite. Scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe card.
- Grill the chicken. Preheat the grill to 400F. Add the chicken and cook it for 4-5 minutes. Remove it from the grill and toss it in a bowl with Frank’s hot sauce. Set it aside.
- Grill the veggies. Add the corn and red onion. Grill them for 4 minutes per side. Remove them from the heat. Slice the corn kernels from the cob with a sharp knife.
- Assemble the salad. Divide the lettuce, grilled veggies, cherry tomatoes, chicken, and avocado between the salad bowls. Drizzle with ranch dressing. Serve and enjoy!
Tips & Variations
Make this grilled buffalo chicken salad a vegetarian meal or turn it into a pasta salad!
- Swap the buffalo chicken. Swap the homemade buffalo chicken for Salsa Verde Carne Asada, Oven Roasted Turkey Breast, or Grilled Chimichurri Chicken.
- Use leftovers. Reduce food waste by using my Air Fryer Buffalo Chicken Wings or Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Meatballs to prepare this salad.
- Make it vegetarian. Add my Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower Wings to the recipe instead of chicken for a veggie-friendly meal.
- More veggies. Toss 1/2 cup chopped bell peppers, sliced mushrooms, and/or shredded carrots with the salad for a heartier bite.
- Change the dressing. You can swap the dressing for cilantro lime crema, avocado crema, or even chipotle crema. You’ll change the flavor profile slightly but still keep the same Tex-Mex vibes.
- Make it a pasta salad. Cook 1 cup of your favorite short pasta like fusilli or penne. Strain well and mix it into the salad.
Serving Suggestions
This buffalo chicken salad is a great main dish on its own. However, you can also serve it with tacos. I love my Shredded Chicken Tacos, Chicken Street Tacos with Street Corn, and Cilantro Lime Marinated Chicken Tacos. If you prefer a light appetizer with the salad, go for my Fresh Mango Salsa or Roasted Tomato Salsa with corn chips.
How To Store Leftovers
This salad is best assembled right before lunch to prevent the tomatoes from releasing moisture and the avocado from browning.
- Fridge: Store the chicken in an airtight container for up to 4 days. The lettuce and grilled veggies can be stored together for up to 3 days.
- To reheat it: Pop the chicken into the microwave in 15-second increments until warm.
More Easy Salad Recipes To Try
- Mexican Chopped Salad
- Classic Wedge Salad with Light Blue Cheese Dressing
- Cucumber Tomato Feta Salad
- Broccoli Salad With Bacon
- Classic Caesar Salad
Grilled Buffalo Chicken Salad
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: American
Description
This saucy buffalo chicken salad recipe with tomatoes, corn, and avocado is packed with fresh summer veggies for a light lunch.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes
- 1/3 cup franks red hot sauce
- 2 ears of corn, shucked
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 red onion, cut into thick slices (leave the skin on)
- 2 avocado, sliced
- 1 head red leaf lettuce, sliced
- 8 tablespoons ranch dressing
Instructions
- Preheat grill to 400 degrees.
- Add chicken cubes to a grill basket and grill for 4-5 minutes, until there is a slight char and the chicken is no longer pink.
- Remove the chicken from the grill and place in a bowl with franks red hot sauce. Toss to coat the chicken. Set aside.
- Add corn and red onion slices directly to the grill. Grill the corn for 4 minutes per side and remove. Grill the onion slices for 4 minutes per side until slight char marks appear.
- Slice the corn kernels off the cob.
- Assemble salads: evenly distribute red leaf lettuce, grilled onions, cherry tomatoes, corn kernels, buffalo chicken, and avocado slices among four salad bowls. Drizzle each salad with 2 tablespoons of ranch dressing.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 salad
- Calories: 472
- Sugar: 9 g
- Sodium: 1203 mg
- Fat: 28 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 31 g
- Fiber: 9 g
- Protein: 28 g
- Cholesterol: 58 mg
