This Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad is one epic way to get lunch or dinner on the table. It’s spicy and savory, and oh so good!
If you’ve never tried quinoa, now is the time! I was scared the first time because of the weird name and because I thought of it as a “healthy” food like kale.
We try to eat healthy, but we prefer to eat foods that don’t scream “health food.”
Meals like Mexican Tuna Salad (no mayo) or Puerto Rican Rice and Beans with tons of flavor. Well, quinoa is good for you and I actually do like kale, but this little seed tastes really good, too!
I like to think of it like rice, it’s soft and fluffy, but with a nutty flavor. It comes in various colors like white or red, but I’ve never noticed a difference in taste.
I even make it in my rice cooker and it turns out perfect every time!
You can cook quinoa in water, or jazz it up with some chicken broth. Just make sure you rinse it well before cooking. This will eliminate any bitterness.
Some people even eat quinoa for breakfast like oatmeal. I haven’t gone that far yet, but we do eat a lot of quinoa and even my husband is on board.
If you’re looking for a great way to try it out, this buffalo chicken quinoa salad is just the trick.
I call this “buffalo chicken,” but to be honest I rarely put chicken in it.
The quinoa takes the place of the chicken and it’s all tossed with a creamy buffalo sauce. It has all the trimmings you’d get with an order of buffalo wings – celery, carrots and blue cheese.
If you want to add chicken you totally can! One of the benefits of quinoa is that it’s a complete protein, so I leave it out and we have a vegetarian dinner, which also saves us some calories.
Feel free to leave out what you don’t like, or add in what you do! That’s the beauty of quinoa bowls.
You can serve them individually, or you can mix everything up into a salad that’s great to take for lunch or potlucks.
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Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup Quinoa uncooked
- 2/3 cup Plain Greek Yogurt
- 3 tablespoons Hot Sauce
- 1 cup Diced Celery
- 1 cup Shredded Carrots
- 1/2 cup Blue Cheese
- Black Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to the package instructions.
- In a small bowl, mix together yogurt and hot sauce. Season to taste with black pepper.
- Assemble quinoa bowls by dividing quinoa between 2 bowls. Top each bowl with celery, carrots and blue cheese. Drizzle with yogurt sauce and serve.
- In a large bowl, mix together quinoa, celery, carrots and blue cheese. Toss with yogurt sauce and serve.