Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad Meal Prep

The world needs more simple yet delicious cold lunch options! My Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad Meal Prep has shredded chicken, diced veggies, ranch and buffalo sauce. Make-ahead friendly, easy to transport and Whole30 compatible.

I’m a sucker for buffalo chicken anything on a menu, so it only fits that I add more of these kinds of recipes to Project Meal Plan! This is my favorite buffalo chicken salad that can be served in so many ways – pita, wrap, crackers, lettuce wrap, you name it.

Frank’s Red Hot is my go-to. I just keep it on hand because buffalo chicken is such a staple around here. But this recipe is the to-go, make-ahead, confetti cousin of buffalo chicken. If I randomly find myself with carrots, celery and red onion, this is what I make!

What are this ingredients in this Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad?

What I love most about this recipe is I usually have all the ingredients on hand already. These ingredients should be simple to find at your local grocery store. For the sauce, you can stick with Whole30 by making sure your ranch and mayo don’t have any sugar. Otherwise, use whatever ranch and mayonnaise you have on hand for a simple, low maintenance meal prep.

Here are the ingredients in this recipe I used and a little info on each:

• shredded chicken breast – You can use either leftover shredded chicken, or cook up 2 chicken breasts (about 1 pound) and shred those up for this recipe. I have lots of info on How to Cook Chicken for Meal Prep!
• diced carrots & celery – These veggies are a staple combo with buffalo chicken! But they also work well in this chicken salad, making it nice and crunchy.
• diced red onion – I am the kind of person who doesn’t particularly love red onion, but I realize sometimes it is required. For this entire salad, I use only 1/4 of a red onion. But you need that punch of onion!
• mayonnaise – The base of any good chicken salad. I like to make my own mayonnaise but it can feel like a lot of effort sometimes. Primal Kitchen brand is a one I use all the time, Whole30 or not.
• Buffalo sauce – Frank Red Hot, the only way to go! This sauce is basically just peppers and is naturally Whole30 compatible.
• Ranch – I’ll admit, when not doing Whole30, I use Hidden Valley Ranch because it’s just the best Ranch flavor in the entire world. When I am in the middle of a Whole30, the Thrive Market brand is a good choice!
• garlic powder – Easily add some garlic flavor without chopping up cloves. Powdered garlic is easier on the tastebuds in no-cook recipes too.
• salt & pepper – Bring everything together with a pinch of salt and fresh ground black pepper.

What kind of chicken is best for this recipe?

The best kind of chicken to use for this recipe is chicken breast, baked, pressure cooked, boiled, or steamed. You can read more detailed info and recipes in my article How to Cook Chicken For Meal Prep.

You can use leftover chicken (use one pound) or cook up two breasts (around 8-10 ounces each) to use for the chicken salad with one of these methods:

• Oven: Preheat oven to 425F.  Lay chicken in a rimmed baking pan lined with aluminum foil (for easy clean up). Rub with 1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 20-30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165F.
• Instant Pot: Place your raw chicken breasts into the pot with 1 cup chicken broth. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook on Manual or High Pressure for 8-9 minutes for raw or 12-14 minutes for frozen (higher end of the range for thicker breasts). Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest of the pressure. 

Shred the chicken as finely as possible for the best texture chicken salad. I prefer to shred my chicken just after cooking – I think it’s easier to finely shred at a warmer temperature than when chilled.

How do you make the Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad?

The assembly of this chicken salad could not be any easier. In a large mixing bowl, add all the ingredients together and mix until it’s well combined. Feel free to give it a taste and adjust as you’d like:

• if it’s too hot, add another dollop of Ranch or mayo
• if it’s too mild, add another drizzle of hot sauce
• if it tastes flat, add another pinch of salt

Best tips for making this Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad:

While there is no heat or cooking in this recipe, there are a couple important preparation steps you shouldn’t skip!

• Before you put all the ingredients away, give it a taste and make sure you’re happy with the heat level and flavor. You can add more mayo, Ranch, or buffalo sauce, plus more salt and pepper if it needs it.
• Shred the chicken up really small! This helps the give the shredded chicken more surface area overall. It will absorb more sauce and be more pleasant to chew! You can also use a knife to chop the chicken up a bit, in addition to shredding.
• This recipe is delicious right when you make it, but in my opinion, it’s one of those that tastes even better after it’s chilled and the flavors have mingled in the fridge for a bit.

What should you serve with this buffalo chicken salad?

There are so many ways to serve and enjoy this chicken salad. You can stuff all this buffalo chicken goodness into a pita. Wrap it all in a spinach or sun-dried tomato wrap with some greens! Or dip pita chips or other crunchy snacks into it.

For Whole30 ideas, you could turn this chicken salad into lettuce wraps, or eat it with your favorite sides like I’m done here – blueberries and pistachios!

How do you meal prep this recipe?

Here are a couple ideas on how to meal prep or make portions of this recipe ahead of time at your house:

1. Ingredient prep: The chicken can be cooked a day ahead of time, shredded, and stored overnight. This way it can easily be added to the salad right when you’re making it.
2. Prep for now & later: Prepare the recipe as written and enjoy a portion now while saving the rest for additional meals in the next 3-4 days.
3. Complete prep & portion: Prepare the recipe as written and portion the salad into airtight meal prep containers to be enjoyed within the next 3 days.

I would not freeze this buffalo chicken salad. Unfortunately, I don’t think it would thaw very well due to the mayonnaise and celery. Everything I’ve read suggest mayonnaise does not freeze well. And I’m certain celery is not a good freezer candidate either.

A better idea to avoid food waste is to make a half batch with only one chicken breast or around 8 ounces of chicken. Half all the ingredients and it should make 1 large or 2 small servings.

I would be sure to eat this salad within 4 days of whipping it up, or less if you used leftover chicken instead of freshly cooked. Keep it in the fridge in an airtight container or your favorite (also airtight) meal prep containers! 

I would not directly heat this chicken salad, but I do think it would be delicious as a chicken salad melt – on an English muffin or sourdough bread slices covered in cheddar cheese!

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Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad (Whole30 & Paleo)

Recipe by Danielle

The world needs more simple yet delicious cold lunch options! My Easy Buffalo Chicken Salad Meal Prep has shredded chicken, diced veggies, ranch and buffalo sauce. Make-ahead friendly, easy to transport and Whole30 compatible.

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• Total Time10 minutes
• Yield4 servings 1x
• DietGluten Free

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Ingredients

Scale 1/2x1x2x3x

• 1 pound leftover cooked, shredded chicken breasts (about 4 cups)
• 2 medium carrots, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 2 stalks of celery, finely diced (about 1 1/4 cup)
• 1/4 red onion, finely diced
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup Buffalo sauce (I use Frank’s Red Hot)
• 3 tablespoons Ranch dressing
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon each salt & fresh ground black pepper

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Instructions

1. Combine ingredients: Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until well combined.
2. Serve & store: Serve on a wrap or pita with shredded lettuce or greens, or enjoy on its own. Store chicken salad in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy within 4 days.

Equipment

3 Compartment Glass Meal Prep Containers

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8-Piece Pyrex Sculptured Mixing Bowl Set

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Notes

To cook chicken breasts: Oven: Preheat oven to 425F.  Lay raw chicken in a rimmed baking pan lined with aluminum foil (for easy clean up). Rub with 1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 20-30 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165F. Instant Pot:Place your raw chicken breasts into the pot with 1 cup chicken broth. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Cook on Manual or High Pressure for 8-9 minutes for raw or 12-14 minutes for frozen (higher end of the range for thicker breasts). Let the pressure naturally release for 10 minutes, then quick release the rest of the pressure.

For Whole30, be sure to use compliant Ranch and mayonnaise.

Make a half batch of this recipe to serve 2 if you only have one chicken breast (at least 8 ounces). Nutrition information estimated with My Fitness Pal and includes buffalo chicken salad only.

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 0 minutes
• Category: Lunch
• Method: No Heat
• Cuisine: American

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1/4 of recipe
• Calories: 380
• Sugar: 1g
• Fat: 30g
• Carbohydrates: 3g
• Protein: 26g

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