This Barbecue Ranch Chicken Salad with juicy barbecue chicken, smoky bacon, seasoned black beans, corn, tomatoes, creamy avocado, and onions is a delicious, filling main dish salad. Topped with homemade ranch dressing and a drizzle of barbecue sauce, it is a family favorite that kids and adults enjoy.
What we love about this BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad
This is a salad that everyone in my family eats and loves. I have some kids that aren’t big salad fans, EXCEPT for this one. What’s not to love? The seasoned, barbecue chicken is delicious on it’s own. It marinates for about 15-30 minutes while I make the dressing, preheat the grill, and prepare the salad. It is juicy and flavorful every time. Combined with the seasoned black beans, creamy avocado, corn, smoky bacon, and onion, it is so delicious.
I love the dressing with the barbecue chicken as well. I’ve made a lot of homemade ranch dressing recipes. I particularly love this one with barbecue chicken. It’s based on a recipe from The Food Network, but I add more mayonnaise and less Worcestershire sauce. The Worcestershire sauce in the dressing and fresh herbs balance the sweetness of the barbecue sauce so well. I love adding a little drizzle of extra barbecue sauce to accompany the dressing. The ranch dressing would be delicious as a dip for barbecue chicken wings or other barbecue dishes. If you are short on time, you can substitute the homemade dressing for your favorite store-bought dressing as well.
Looking for other barbecue chicken dishes? Try our Oven Barbecue Chicken Wings or for other salad recipes, try our Sweet Potato Salad Recipe.
What you need to make BBQ Chicken Ranch Salad
You will need the following ingredients:
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Sugar
- Chili powder
- Cumin
- Paprika
- Salt
- Coarsely ground black pepper
- Garlic powder
- Barbecue sauce, divided
- Ranch dressing, bottled or optional homemade
- Romaine lettuce
- Cherry tomatoes
- Black beans
- Corn kernels
- Bacon
- Avocado
- Scallions
- Buttermilk
- Mayonnaise
- Chives
- Dill
- Parsley
- Worcestershire sauce
- Onion powder
- Dried minced onion
- Coarse salt (Kosher or Sea salt)
BBQ Chicken Salad Recipe Substitutions
I know what it’s like when you don’t have everything on hand and the last thing you want to do is run to the store and pick something up. Here are a few ideas to substitute items on the ingredients list if needed:
- Your favorite bottled ranch dressing is a great substitute for the homemade ranch dressing. It tastes delicious with the barbecue sauce and salad as well.
- We have used taco seasoning and store-bought barbecue seasoning for the chicken, and it also tastes great with the barbecue sauce.
- This is a versatile salad; add or subtract ingredients your family enjoys. Chopped sweet peppers, cucumbers, shredded carrots, shredded cheese, olives, or tortilla chips would all be delicious to add or exchange with the current ingredients.
- Rotisserie chicken and leftover chicken could easily be used when coated with seasoning and barbecue sauce.
- Any kind of tomato is fine, chopped or halved for larger tomatoes.
- Other beans besides black beans could easily substitute.
- You could use a bagged lettuce blend in place of the romaine lettuce.
Step-by-step Instructions for BBQ Chicken Salad
Step 1. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. In a large bowl, rub 2 teaspoons of the barbecue seasoning onto the chicken breasts, making sure each side of each chicken breast is coated. Pour ½ cup of barbecue sauce in the bowl and, using gloved hands or tongs, make sure each chicken breast side is covered in the sauce. Set the chicken aside.
Step 2. If using the homemade dressing, in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, mayonnaise, chives, dill, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, minced onion, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
Step 3. Preheat a grill over medium-high heat. Place chicken on the grill and cook for 4 minutes. Brush about 1 tablespoon of sauce onto each chicken breast, turn chicken over, and brush each breast with an additional tablespoon of sauce. Cook for an additional 4 minutes. Check with a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is thoroughly cooked through to 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Step 4. To serve, place chopped lettuce in a large serving bowl or set it onto individual plates. Top the lettuce with the tomatoes, beans, corn, bacon, avocado, and green onions. You can line toppings up side by side in a wheel-like pattern or place ingredients on the lettuce and toss. Slice the cooked chicken into slices and place it on the ingredients in the large serving bowl or on the individual plates. Drizzle with the desired amount of Ranch dressing and barbecue sauce, or serve sauces on the side for individual plating.
Tips
- The chicken can be grilled or sautéed for the same length of time, whichever is easiest! I have also used chopped leftover and rotisserie chicken and added the seasoning and barbecue sauce to it.
- There’s no need to heat the black beans. After rinsing and draining in the can, I additionally rinse them in a colander for a salad so no additional liquid from the can remains. This makes the beans less likely to color the salad and less likely to stick together.
Frequently Asked Questions
| How to store Barbecue Ranch Chicken Salad? |
| a. The chicken can be safely stored in the fridge, covered, for 3-4 days, or kept in a freezer-safe container in the freezer for about 3-4 months for best quality. Thaw the chicken completely in the fridge before warming it to eat. b. Due to the delicacy of the greens used in a salad and the high moisture content of some vegetables, tossed salads don’t often last long and get soggy and wilted quickly. Some ways to help your salad last longer are: 1. Ensure all the ingredients are completely dry, especially the lettuce used. 2. Don’t add all the dressing at once when eating. If you know you are going to save some salad for later, store the salad ingredients and dressing separately. Once the dressing is applied, any acidity in the dressing causes the lettuce to wilt quickly. 3. Store some of the salad ingredients separately. Any cheese, tomatoes, proteins, cooked ingredients, or wet ingredients should be stored in separate containers. 4. Avoid storing your salad ingredients at the very back of the fridge where the lettuce could potentially freeze. 5. Make sure all ingredients are properly covered in air-tight containers in the fridge. You can place paper towels between layers of lettuce leaves to make sure they are dry and prevent wilting. |
| Can the ingredients be prepared in advance? |
| a. The homemade ranch dressing can last one week in the fridge and can easily be made in advance. b. You can chop the vegetables up to 24 hours in advance to make meal preparation faster the day you serve the salad. c. Cooked chicken lasts 3-4 days in the fridge and can also be made in advance of serving. d. Wait to add any ingredients that will brown, like avocados, until right before serving. |
| What should I serve with Barbecue Ranch Chicken Salad? |
| As a main dish salad, you wouldn’t necessarily need to serve it with anything else, with the beans, vegetables, and protein served together in the salad. However, a side of fruit, rolls, bread, cornbread, a side of soup, or even an additional salad could all be welcome accompaniments to the meal. |
Barbecue Ranch Chicken Salad
4
servings30
minutes8
minutes38
minutesIngredients
Barbecue Chicken Seasoning:
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 chicken breasts), sliced in half horizontally to make them thin
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic
1 cup barbecue sauce, divided
½ cup ranch dressing, bottled or *optional homemade
Salad:
1 head romaine lettuce, chopped (about 6 cups)
1 ½ cups halved cherry tomatoes
1 ½ cups black beans, rinsed well and drained
1 cup corn kernels (fresh, canned, or frozen and cooked), if using fresh corn about 3 ears of corn
4 -6 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 avocado, chopped
3 -4 scallions, chopped
*Ranch Dressing (optional):
2/3 cup buttermilk
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon chopped chives
1 tablespoon chopped dill (or 1 teaspoon dried dill)
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 ½ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon dried minced onion
½ teaspoon coarse salt (Kosher or Sea salt)
¼ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Directions
- In a small bowl, combine the sugar, chili powder, cumin, paprika, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
- In a large bowl, rub 2 teaspoons of the barbecue seasoning onto the chicken breasts, making sure each side of each chicken breast is coated. Pour ½ cup of barbecue sauce in the bowl and, using gloved hands or tongs, make sure each chicken breast side is covered in the sauce. Set the chicken aside.
- If using the homemade dressing, in a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, mayonnaise, chives, dill, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, minced onion, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
- Preheat a grill over medium-high heat. While the grill preheats, in a small bowl, mix ½ teaspoon of the remaining barbecue seasoning with the black beans.
- Place chicken on the grill and cook for 4 minutes. Brush about 1 tablespoon of sauce onto each chicken breast, turn chicken over, and brush each breast with an additional tablespoon of sauce. Cook for an additional 4 minutes. Check with a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is thoroughly cooked through to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If needed, cook an additional minute or until cooked to 165 degrees. Place chicken on a large plate or baking sheet and let rest while you assemble the salad.
- To serve, place chopped lettuce in a large serving bowl or set it onto individual plates. Top the lettuce with the tomatoes, beans, corn, bacon, avocado, and green onions. You can line toppings up side by side in a wheel-like pattern or place ingredients on the lettuce and toss. Slice the cooked chicken into slices and place it on the ingredients in the large serving bowl or on the individual plates. Drizzle with the desired amount of Ranch dressing and barbecue sauce, or serve sauces on the side for individual plating.
Notes
- I like using Sweet Baby Ray’s Original Barbecue Sauce with this meal.
- If using fresh corn, I prefer to briefly cook fresh corn before slicing it off the cob. While the chicken cooks in this recipe, I bring water to a boil and cook the fresh corn for 3-5 minutes. After removing it from the water, I let the corn cool until safe to touch and slice the kernels off the cob. Eating raw corn is safe though and the kernels can be sliced straight from the cob.
- The chicken can be grilled or sautéed for the same length of time, whichever is easiest! I have also used chopped leftover and rotisserie chicken and added the seasoning and barbecue sauce to it.
- There’s no need to heat the black beans. After rinsing and draining in the can, I additionally rinse them in a colander for a salad so no additional liquid from the can remains. This makes the beans less likely to color the salad and less likely to stick together.
So wholesome and delicious!
Thank you so much! I appreciate the great feedback! We love this salad!
Seriously, this salad has it all, juicy BBQ chicken, smoky bacon, avocado… I’m sold!
Thank you so much! We love this salad, it is definitely a main dish! Thanks for the great feedback and for stopping by!
My husband love good chicken salad like this. Bookmarking this recipe, thank you for sharing!
Thank you Abi! We have made this recipe many times and love it, hope you enjoy it! Thanks for the great feedback!
Great salad with big flavor! This one’s a keeper!!
Thank you so much! We really enjoy this salad, kids and adults both love it. I appreciate so much the great feedback!
This salad is a whole meal in one with such great flavours. My husband and I both loved it!
I love hearing that, I am so glad you enjoyed it! It’s a favorite here. Thanks so much for taking the time to leave some feedback!
The husband I love a salad that can be a main dish, especially when the BBQ is used. This was so delicious and the girls had the chicken as a sandwich. We all loved it.
This makes me so happy to hear! I, too, really love a main dish salad, especially in the summer. I am so glad the recipe worked for your whole family. Thanks for taking the time to leave some feedback and let me know!