Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad

Now that the weather here in Florida has started to warm up a bit, we found ourselves craving one of our favorite summer salads. This Buffalo Chicken Quinoa salad is great as a side dish, or on top of a bed of spinach as an entree. The best part is that this recipe gets better the longer it sits- so it’s almost better the next day as left overs; and it’s crazy packed with veggies and all things healthy!

BUFFALO CHICKEN QUINOA SALAD

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup dry quinoa
2 large chicken breast
1.5 cup Franks Hot Sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)
2 cup chopped broccoli florets
1-2 cup chopped red cabbage (to your preference)
1.5 cup shredded carrot
1 cup crumbled blue cheese

PREPARATION:

Cook 1 cup of dry quinoa as instructed on the package (typically 1 cup of quinoa to 2 cups of water). When finished, remove from heat. Place in large mixing bowl once cooled.
Chop broccoli, cabbage, and carrots.
I used our George Forman to cook the chicken breast (as I’m horrible at cooking chicken on the stovetop.. surprise surprise). But you are welcome to cook the chicken in a pan on the stovetop if you prefer. Cook two large chicken breast until they are cooked almost completely through (in a pan on the stove or separate griller). Slice into smaller pieces, place chicken into pan on stovetop if not there already.
Pour 1 cup of the Franks Hot Sauce into the pan. Allow chicken to absorb the sauce (about 2-3 minutes).
Pour cooked chicken and sauce into large mixing bowl containing the quinoa. Mix ingredients together until quinoa is completely covered in sauce.
Add remaining ingredients (broccoli, cabbage, carrots), including the crumbled blue cheese.
Add remaining 1/2 cup of Hot Sauce. Mix all ingredients together.
When finished, feel free to eat by itself or place on top of a bed of spinach for an entree salad. This salad can be eaten warm or cold.
ENJOY! 🙂

This recipe is SO incredibly delicious and SO good for you as well! Packed full of flavor and nutrients. If you’re like me and love blue cheese, feel free to top with extra blue cheese crumbles before you dig in!

As I was leaving the grocery store today after picking up the ingredients to make tonights dinner. I was thinking how I wished I’d picked up an avocado because I’m thinking that’d be a delicious topping on this salad! Oh well, I’ll just have to try next time.

So, enjoy this delicious dish! Definitely great as a summer lunch, a potluck side dish, or just as a healthy dinner in the cooler months when you need something to remind you of sunshine to come(thinking of my family and friends back home in Vermont) !!