This BBQ Chicken Salad is loaded with flavor and crunch! Juicy baked BBQ chicken and creamy ranch dressing tie together vegetables for a perfect summer entrée.
On a salad kick? Make my grilled chicken salad, healthy chicken salad or avocado chicken salad.
Filled with tender BBQ chicken, fresh veggies, black beans, sweet corn, crunchy tortilla strips, and drizzled with creamy healthy ranch dressing, this colorful BBQ chicken salad is a huge hit on a hot summer day!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Quick: You can toss it together a weeknight dinner or prep for a weekend gathering.
- Simple ingredients: It’s full of pantry staples and garden favorites.
- Complete meal: This BBQ chicken salad recipe is loaded with lean protein, complex carbs, healthy fats and fiber.
- Versatile: Make with grilled BBQ chicken breast or Instant Pot BBQ chicken breast. Add, omit, and change up any ingredients to your preferred taste.
Ingredients for BBQ Chicken Salad
To break it down, this salad recipe has 3 main parts – the chicken, the dressing, and the salad.
For the BBQ chicken:
- Chicken: You can use skinless boneless chicken breast or chicken thighs. I used my baked BBQ chicken recipe, but leftover cooked chicken, or Instant Pot shredded chicken tossed with BBQ sauce is great for those super busy nights.
- BBQ sauce: This healthy BBQ sauce recipe is my go-to. My favorite store-bought BBQ sauce is Stubb’s original because it has 2 times less sugar than its other flavors.
For the salad dressing:
- Dressing: I use my homemade healthy ranch made with plain yogurt, white vinegar, fresh dill, and simple seasonings. Or you can find healthier Greek yogurt based store-bought dressing like Hidden Valley, if short on time.
For the salad:
- Lettuce: I like romaine lettuce as the base for this salad, but any green leaf lettuce like iceberg lettuce is good too.
- Toppings: Black beans, frozen or grilled corn, juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumber, sharp red onions, crunchy tortilla strips, and fresh cilantro.
How to Make BBQ Chicken Salad
Here is a quick overview how to make it. Find full recipe card with measurements below.
- Cook chicken: Add all BBQ sauce ingredients to a large bowl and whisk. Then add chicken, toss to coat, and let marinate while oven preheats. Place chicken in a large baking dish, pour remaining BBQ sauce on top and bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Let rest for 5-10 minutes, then cut into bite-size pieces.
- Make salad dressing: In a separate small bowl, add all ranch dressing ingredients and stir.
- Assemble: In a large salad bowl, toss in the lettuce, black beans, corn, tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro and red onion.
- Finish and serve: Pour some dressing on top and gently mix. I like to lightly drizzle the dressing to make sure all the flavors stand out. You can always add more dressing later. Top salad with chicken and tortilla strips.
Tips for Best Results
- To save time on cooking chicken: Shred some store-bought rotisserie chicken and coat in BBQ sauce.
- Use what you have on hand: For toppings, get creative and use what you have and what your family likes. Feel free to omit the black beans, add creamy diced avocado or top with some shredded cheese.
- Make tortilla strips at home: Slice a few corn tortillas into thin strips and pan fry with a little bit of oil until crispy, stirring often.
- If you can’t find tortilla strips: Replace them with crushed tortilla chips.
- Add salty cheese: Crumbled feta cheese, shredded Tex-Mex cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, or Colby jack cheese will work great in this barbecue chicken salad.
How to Store
Store: Keep BBQ chicken salad ingredients separate from the dressing. Cover with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, and the dressing will keep in a mason jar for up to 2 weeks.
Do not freeze. It has a lot of fresh veggies that would go limp once thawed.
FAQs
Use store-bought barbecue sauce, store-bought ranch dressing, and store-bought rotisserie chicken. You can also get store-bought tortilla strips or tortilla chips.
Yes, it’s great for meal prep. Cooked chicken can be diced and stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, the dressing can be made up to 2 weeks in advance, and you can prep the lettuce and toppings the day before.
I always recommend serving salads right away for the best results. Adding the BBQ chicken and dressing just before serving will prevent a soggy salad. Also add tortilla strips right before enjoying. And eat it within the first few hours.
More Salad Recipes to Try
- Healthy cobb salad
- Classic chicken salad
- Thai chicken salad
- Curry chicken salad
- Cottage cheese chicken salad
BBQ Chicken Salad
Ingredients
For BBQ Chicken
- 2 large chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce, I used Stubb’s
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
For Ranch Dressing
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 3 tablespoon fresh dill or parsley, minced
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
For Salad
- 1 head of romaine lettuce, 8 cups chopped
- 15 ounces can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup corn, frozen or grilled
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 long English cucumber, chopped
- 1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1/2 cup tortilla strips
Instructions
Cook Chicken
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, add barbecue sauce, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, pepper and whisk. Add chicken breasts, stir with tongs to coat and let marinate while oven is preheating.
- In large 9 x 13 baking dish, add chicken breasts in a single layer and pour remaining sauce on top. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes.
- Remove chicken from the oven, cover with foil and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice.
Make Ranch Dressing
- In a small bowl, add yogurt, vinegar, dill, garlic, onion powder, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir with a fork and set aside.
Assemble the Salad
- In a large bowl, add lettuce, black beans, corn, tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro and red onion. Pour dressing on top and gently toss. Place BBQ chicken and tortilla strips on top and serve.
Notes
- Make ahead: Refrigerate salad ingredients separately from the dressing covered with plastic wrap for up to 2 days. Dressing in a jar can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
