BBQ Chicken Salad – with creamy BBQ Dressing

Name: BBQ Chicken Salad - With Creamy BBQ Dressing
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1.5 cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken; 1/4 cup BBQ sauce plus more for the dressing; 6-8 cups of sliced fresh romaine lettuce; 1 cup cooked black beans – I used store-bought canned black beans that I drained and rinsed; 1 cup canned, cooked corn; 1 cup sliced cherry tomatoes; 1 ripe avocado, peeled, seed removed and diced; 1/2 cup diced red onion; 1/4 cup chopped scallions; 1/4 cup chopped cashews; 1/4 cup mayo; 1/4 cup bbq sauce – I used Kevin’s Paleo BBQ Sauce; 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice; Salt and pepper to taste

August 3, 2021 by Amy Estes Leave a Comment

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A quick and easy BBQ Chicken Salad that is loaded with cherry tomatoes, corn, avocado, black beans, and purple onion covered in a tasty, creamy BBQ dressing. This quick chicken salad can be made in minutes and served as a complete meal that everyone will love!

BQ Chicken in a bowl with some chopped greens, corn, black beans, tomatoes and avocado topped with a drizzle of a creamy salad dressing with wood serving spoons in the bowl.

BBQ Chicken Salad is one of my favorites to order when we go out! Especially if we go to a sandwich and salad spot because here in NC they usually have a house BBQ sauce that is AMAZING!

It is just full of fresh veggies, and delicious BBQ chicken, and always covered in an incredible creamy dressing.

I love it so much that I decided to come up with my own homemade version like when I shared this chicken taco salad.

This chicken salad recipe is fresh, flavorful, creamy and so DELICIOUS! The BBQ dressing is a simple combination of avocado mayo, BBQ sauce, lime, salt, and pepper that is so tasty and the perfect topping for this salad.

If you are out of BBQ sauce then this salad is also amazing with this avocado ranch dressing.

Why you’ll love this recipe

Quick and easy – you can make it in 15 minutes, or less!
Fresh and healthy – loaded with healthy ingredients like fresh veggies and bbq chicken.
A complete meal – this bbq chicken salad is loaded with fiber and protein!
Family-friendly – this recipe makes a good amount and is a great salad for entertaining or for feeding the family.
So delicious – creamy, light, crunchy, and loaded with amazing flavor.

Shredded lettuce in a bowl, with a bowl of corn next to it and bowls of other salad ingredients infant of it with labels over each ingredient.

Ingredients you will need

Cooked chicken – I used cooked chicken breast but cooked chicken thighs would also be good in this recipe. For added bbq flavor, you could use this bbq chicken breast.
Romaine lettuce – makes a wonderful sturdy base for this bbq chicken salad that holds up well to all of the toppings and creamy dressing. Kale would also work!
Cherry tomatoes – any will work! You can also use regular heirlooms or Roma tomatoes.
Corn – I used corn on the cobb from the freezer section of the grocery store that I thawed and then cut off the cobb. You can also just use canned corn, or even frozen, thawed corn.
Red onion + scallions – to give this salad some color and nice punch of flavor.
Black beans – for added plant-based protein and fiber that makes this salad very filling.
Cashews + avocado – for some healthy fats.
Creamy BQ Dressing – avocado mayo, bbq sauce (of choice), lime juice, salt, and pepper.

How to make a BBQ Chicken Salad

Toss the chopped, cooked chicken with about ¼ cup of bbq sauce.
Assemble the salad ingredients in a large bowl.
Mix up the dressing by combining the mayo, barbecue sauce, lime juice, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Pour it over the salad and toss.
Serve cold and enjoy!

Glass bowl full of cubed, chopped chicken covered in bbq sauce. — Toss chicken in bbq sauce

Large white bowl filled with chopped chicken, lettuce, avocado, red onion, green onion, tomatoes, corn and black beans. With a bowl of orange creamy dressing and a bowl of scallions behind it and a sliced lemon and striped towel in front of it. — Toss chicken in bbq sauce

BBQ Chicken Salad Tips and Variations

Slice the lettuce into strips so it is easier to eat. Plus it looks so pretty. To do this, simply roll up a few lettuces leaves like a cigar and slice through them creating nice long strips of lettuce.
For the dressing, I like to use Kevin’s Paleo BBQ Sauce + Primal Kitchen Mayo to keep it a bit healthier. You can use whatever your favorite varieties are.
Any kind of cooked chicken will work in this bbq chicken salad. You can use store-bought or homemade rotisserie chicken, shredded chicken, Air Fryer Chicken Breast, Chicken Tenders, or any leftover cooked chicken that you have on hand.
Mix up the veggies in this salad. You could add shredded carrots, diced cucumber, diced bell peppers, or even chickpeas to this salad.
Cut the veggies in similar sizes and shapes so it is easier to toss and serve.

Expert tip: cube or shred the chicken and then toss it in the bbq sauce before adding it to the salad for the best results.

Make ahead and storage recommendations

Use precooked chicken. You can make a big batch of chicken breast to have it on hand for this BBQ chicken salad or use rotisserie chicken that you can buy at most grocery stores as a great shortcut.
Make the dressing in advance. Mix up the dressing 2 days in advance and keep it in an airtight container in the fridge. Although it only takes 1-2 minutes to mix it up.
Storage. BBQ chicken salad doesn’t store very well once you add the dressing, but you can store all of the ingredients separately in the refrigerator then assemble and dress the salad when you are ready to serve it.
Use premade ingredients. To make this salad even easier, you can use a premade black bean and corn salad and add that in. Similar to the Panera BBQ Chicken Salad.

Large white salad bowl filled with fresh chopped veggies and lettuce topped with cooked chicken breast and, covered in a creamy orange dressing with wooden salad spoons in the bowl.

What to serve with BBQ Chicken Salad

There are so many things that go with this chicken salad. Here are a few of my faves!

Fries – any fries like these air fryer fries, sweet potato fries, zucchini fries, or even eggplant fries.
Bread or biscuits – this salad would go great with some warm and fluffy naan bread or homemade biscuits!
Fruit – serve it with some fresh, chopped fruit or fruit salad!