Crispy Buffalo Chicken Salad {Paleo, Whole30, Keto}

This buffalo chicken salad is super addicting, easy to make, and filled with goodies!  Crispy pan fried chicken tenders are tossed in 2 ingredient buffalo sauce and mixed with greens, carrots, celery, avocado and topped with Whole30 compliant cilantro ranch dressing. Easy to prep ahead of time and great for weeknight dinners.

My crispy buffalo chicken wings are one of the most well-loved blog recipes and obviously that’s nothing to argue with.  The people want crispy buffalo chicken!

I mean, I also want crispy buffalo chicken.  I used to say way back when that the recipes I create for the blog are secretly (or maybe not so much!) MY favorite meals and honestly it really hasn’t changed much.

I crave, I create, I post.  And that’s exactly how this crispy buffalo chicken salad was born – I just needed that buffalo chicken fix and a huge salad sounded like heaven!

This salad is actually super simple to make.  Yes, I know I might say that a lot, but hey – my recipes usually ARE pretty dang simple only because it’s all around better that way, don’t you think?!

Not only is it simple, but you can prepare the salad itself and the dressing ahead of time.  The chicken is ready in about 20 minutes flat, so, there you go – a 20 minute dinner!

We start with the “salad” part of the salad, if that makes sense.  It’s a mix of greens (choose what you like) chopped celery, shredded red cabbage and carrots, and avocado.

For the chicken, I used tenderloins.  I dredged them in an almond flour/tapioca mix with some flavor added in, and pan fried in coconut oil.  You can also use avocado oil or ghee for frying with good results.

After the chicken is cooked, each tenderloin is dipped in the buffalo sauce which is just a mix of Whole30 compliant hot sauce and melted ghee – and it’s perfect!

After dipping the chicken, you can place it right on the salad to serve, or cut it into bite size pieces as I did.  Add in the avocado and drizzle all over with the cilantro ranch dressing, and you have an easy and seriously delicious dinner ready for action.

Oh, and if you happen to have a little bit of leftover buffalo sauce, you need to drizzle that on there too!

Add a little extra cilantro and you’re good to go.  And make sure you save a little of the leftovers for lunch the next day.  I guarantee you’ll want this crispy buffalo chicken salad for more than just one meal!

Are you ready?!  Because now I’m over here craving this big salad all over again!  So yeah, it’s time to grab our ingredients and a big skillet – let’s go!

Crispy Buffalo Chicken Salad {Paleo, Whole30, Keto}

Crispy Buffalo Chicken Salad with Cilantro Ranch {Paleo, Whole30, Keto}

This buffalo chicken salad is super addicting, easy to make, and filled with goodies! Crispy pan fried chicken tenders are tossed in 2 ingredient buffalo sauce and mixed with greens, carrots, celery, avocado and topped with Whole30 compliant cilantro ranch dressing. Easy to prep ahead of time and great for weeknight dinners.

Author: Michele

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Course: Dinner/Lunch

Cuisine: Paleo, Whole30

Keyword: salad

Servings: 8

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Ingredients

Salad:

• 3 cups chopped romaine or salad greens
• 3 Celery stalks chopped
• 1/2 cup shredded cabbage
• 1 cup Shredded carrots
• 1 large Avocado sliced
• Thinly sliced red onion optional

Chicken:

• 1 lb chicken tenderloins
• 1 large egg whisked
• 3/4 cup blanched almond flour
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour or arrowroot
• 1 and 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 cup coconut oil or avocado oil for frying
• 1/3 cup Franks original hot sauce
• 1/4 cup ghee melted
• Additional cilantro for garnish

Dressing:

• 1/2 cup homemade mayo or purchased paleo mayo
• 3 Tbsp coconut milk
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 2 Tbsp cilantro minced
• 1 tsp dried chives
• 1/4 tsp dried dill
• 1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1/8-1/4 tsp salt or to taste

Instructions

1. Whisk all the dressing ingredients together in a bowl until nice and smooth, then cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
2. In a large serving bowl, arrange the salad ingredients, except for the avocado, which should be sliced right before serving to avoid browning. Cover and refrigerate while you prepare the chicken.
3. Whisk the egg in a small shallow bowl and in another shallow bowl, add the almond flour, tapioca, salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.
4. Heat a large skillet over medium/med-hi heat (non-stick is preferreand add the oil for frying.
5. Once sizzling hot, (breading with soften and fall off if oil isn’t hot enougdip a piece of chicken in the egg, shaking off excess, coat with dry mixture, and place in the skillet. Repeat with all chicken pieces.
6. Cook on one side until golden brown, about 3 mins, adjusting the heat if necessary. Turn carefully using tongs so as not to lose the “breading”.
7. Cook on the second side until golden brown on the outside and cooked through inside - about 6 mins total depending on thickness.
8. Remove chicken to a paper towel lined plate and allow to cool a bit.
9. In a bowl, whisk together the hot sauce and melted ghee. Dip each piece of chicken in the sauce to coat and place on a cutting board. If you don’t want to cut the chicken before serving the salad, you can place the chicken right over the salad.
10. Cut chicken into pieces if desired, then arrange on the salad, drizzling any leftover sauce over the top. Arrange avocado around the chicken, and serve right away with the ranch dressing. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 417kcal

Fat: 35g

Saturated fat: 8g

Cholesterol: 77mg

Sodium: 524mg

Potassium: 478mg

Carbohydrates: 12g

Fiber: 4g

Sugar: 2g

Protein: 16g

Vitamin A: 95.9%

Vitamin C: 14.6%

Calcium: 5%

Iron: 8.3%

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Want More Whole30 Salad Recipes?  Try One of These!

Crispy Chicken Salad with “Honey” Mustard Dressing

Kale Salad with Chicken and Hot Bacon Dressing

Shrimp Cobb Salad with Lemon Garlic Vinaigrette

BLT Chicken Salad with Peppercorn Ranch 

Rainbow Veggie Salad 

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