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–+ servings
BBQ Chicken Salad

BBQ Chicken Salad | Easy Meal Prep Lunch | Gluten Free

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes
Yield: 6 salads
Shredded BBQ chicken is made in the slow cooker and then paired with a fresh salad and your favorite dressing of choice. It's the perfect easy Summer lunch, and/or meal prep work lunch.
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Equipment

Ingredients

For the BBQ Shredded Chicken:

  • 3-4 chicken breasts trimmed of excess fat
  • your favorite BBQ sauce, or homemade sauce I used Heinz Original BBQ
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • ½ cup water optional, to bottom of slow cooker

For the Salad:

  • 3 hearts of romaine lettuce washed, chopped
  • 1 can black beans rinsed and drained
  • 1 can corn kernels drained
  • cherry tomatoes
  • ½ bunch cilantro chopped
  • 1-2 limes sliced into quarters (1 per salad, for squeezing)
  • 8 oz bag shredded Mexican-blend cheese
  • corn tortilla chips crushed
  • ranch dressing, or your favorite salad dressing I use Marzetti's Classic Ranch from the refrigerated section of the Produce aisle (fresher, healthier)

Instructions

For the Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Chicken:

  • Trim chicken breasts of excess fat. Place in a slow cooker with a touch of water on the bottom. Salt and pepper to taste. If using homemade BBQ sauce, you can add your sauce into the bottom of the slow cooker instead of the water. If using store-bought BBQ sauce, you can add in about ½ cup BBQ sauce instead of the water. Just note that as the chicken cooks and releases juices, it will water down the sauce some. That's why I recommend adding more BBQ sauce at the shredding stage.
  • Cook on High for 3 to 4 hours, or on Low for 6-7 hours.
  • Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and place into a large bowl or plate.
  • Shred the chicken using two forks. Add in 1-2 cups of BBQ sauce, and stir to combine. You can add it back to the slow cooker if you want to incorporate some of the juices from there, and keep it on Warm until ready to use.

For the Salad:

  • Prep: Rinse and dry off fresh produce. Chop romaine lettuce and cilantro. Slice lime into quarters.
  • To assemble: Lay a bed of romaine lettuce on a large dinner plate or salad bowl. Add the following ingredients in piles on the top: BBQ shredded chicken, black beans, corn kernels, cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, and crushed tortilla chips. Sprinkle over chopped cilantro. Drizzle salad dressing over top, or serve on the side. Place a fresh lime wedge off to the side of each plate.
  • Enjoy!

Notes

    • Swap the ranch dressing for your favorite dressing that goes with BBQ chicken. Try something like a creamy avocado, cilantro lime, or maybe even an aioli or sour cream based sauce.
    • You can add other ingredients to this salad such as avocado, coleslaw or cabbage mix instead of romaine, red onion, etc.
    • Grill the chicken and baste with BBQ sauce to make it taste even more like summer. You can prep the chicken the weekend before for week-long lunches.
    • For meal prep: You will need three containers and one ziploc bag for each serving. (1) A large rectangular container that has the cold salad ingredients (romaine, black beans, corn kernels, cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, chopped cilantro, and lime slice. (2) A medium-sized microwave-safe container that contains the BBQ shredded chicken. (3) A small sauce container that contains the dressing. Then, in the plastic baggie, the crushed tortilla chips.
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