American · Salads & bowls

Buffalo chicken salad

Name: Buffalo chicken salad
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded 3/4 inch thick; 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided; 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1/3 cup cayenne pepper hot sauce, such as Frank's RedHot; 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted; 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt; 1/4 cup mayonnaise; 1/4 cup buttermilk; 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar; 2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled, divided; 2 romaine hearts, chopped and thoroughly dried; 3 celery ribs, thinly sliced, leaves reserved; 2 medium carrots, coarsely grated; 1 English cucumber, sliced in half-moons; 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved; 3 scallions, thinly sliced

Hot-sauce glazed chicken over crisp romaine, celery, carrots, cucumber, and tomatoes with a cool, chunky blue-cheese dressing.

About 40 minTotal

About 35 minActive

$$Cost

EasyDifficulty

Makes 4 servings

Equipment

Use another covered 12-inch oven-safe skillet or transfer before the oven finish.
Best large covered skillet
All-Clad D3 12-Inch Fry Pan with Lid · 41126
View at Amazon
Another workable path: Use another covered 12-inch oven-safe skillet or transfer before the oven finish.
Paid links. As an Amazon Associate, Kwilt earns from qualifying purchases.
How we chose
Research-backed · reviewed Aug 2026
We matched the twelve-inch footprint, fitted lid, tri-ply heat distribution, 600°F oven and broiler rating, current model 41126 and UPC, ownership burden, and exact Amazon identity. Kwilt has not cooked with this pan.
All-Clad D3 12-Inch Fry Pan with Lid · 41126: Its twelve-inch cooking surface gives rice, shrimp, meat, and vegetables room to cook evenly, while the fitted lid and 600°F oven rating cover both the lidded stovetop method and the shepherd's-pie oven finish. Trade-off: It is a premium-priced pan, food can stick without sound preheating and fat control, and the long handle plus lid need more storage room than a basic skillet.
Another workable path: Use another oven-safe 12-inch skillet with a well-fitting lid; if the handle has a lower heat limit, transfer oven-finished food to a suitable baking dish.
Sources
All-Clad model 41126 specifications
Amazon exact product listing

Ingredients

1× recipe · Makes 4 servings

1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, pounded 3/4 inch thick
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup cayenne pepper hot sauce, such as Frank's RedHot
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled, divided
2 romaine hearts, chopped and thoroughly dried
3 celery ribs, thinly sliced, leaves reserved
2 medium carrots, coarsely grated
1 English cucumber, sliced in half-moons
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
3 scallions, thinly sliced

Instructions

Season chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Heat olive oil in a and cook chicken 5 to 7 minutes per side until 165°F. Rest 5 minutes, then slice.
Whisk hot sauce and melted butter. Toss the warm sliced chicken with half the Buffalo sauce and reserve the rest for serving.
Whisk yogurt, mayonnaise, buttermilk, vinegar, remaining salt, remaining pepper, and half the blue cheese. Mash some cheese into the dressing but leave small chunks.
Combine romaine, celery, carrots, cucumber, tomatoes, and scallions. Toss with enough blue-cheese dressing to coat lightly and divide among bowls.
Top with warm Buffalo chicken, remaining blue cheese, and celery leaves. Pass reserved Buffalo sauce and dressing separately so diners can adjust heat without saturating the greens.

Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo wing-inspired American cooking

From the table

About this recipe

Buffalo chicken salad translates Buffalo, New York's wing logic—cayenne hot sauce, butter, celery, and blue cheese—into a cold dinner salad with separately sauced warm chicken.

Buffalo chicken translates the flavor logic of Buffalo, New York's famous wings—cayenne hot sauce, butter, celery, and blue cheese—into a full dinner salad. The chicken is pan-seared rather than breaded and fried, keeping it an ordinary one-skillet meal. Warm chicken goes on only after the cold vegetables are plated so the lettuce remains a salad, not a wilted garnish. This Kwilt version follows the reviewed household adaptation: Use the high-rated non-fried structure, preserve every defining Buffalo-wing cue, and separate warm sauce, cold dressing, and greens so a familiar indulgent flavor remains an easy high-quality salad.

Sources

Dinner does not stop at the recipe