Loaded salads are totally my jam. They make life colorful and delicious and it’s a great way to use whatever is left in my fridge. Yesterday I whipped up this BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad for my boyfriend and myself because I had some leftover quinoa I needed to ditch before I hit the road for NYC. The result was one flavorful, protein rich salad that will sure be happening again very soon. Layers of quinoa, grilled corn, black beans, shredded BBQ chicken, diced avocado, BBQ sauce and a little cheese gave this salad about 324 dimensions and each bite was packed with flavor.
It’s kind of like a BBQ chicken pizza but subbed with quinoa which makes it healthier and guilt free! Hands down this is one of my new favorite salads that you absolutely have to try! Any quinoa skeptics out there will most likely change their mind after a few bites of this. (But feel free to sub in couscous or rice if you feel inclined)
| BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad |
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1/2 cup corn
- 1/2 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup shredded BBQ chicken
- 1 avocado, chopped
- 2 tbsp White Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2-4 tbsp BBQ sauce
- 2 scallions, chopped
- cilantro for garnish
- In a large bowl, toss together the quinoa, corn, black beans, chicken and avocado. Season with salt and pepper
- Transfer mixture onto a bowl and top with shredded cheese, BBQ sauce, scallions and cilantro.
- Serve warm or at room temperature
*Note: this recipe calls for already cooked chicken so plan ahead! I prefer tocook my chicken in the crockpot, using 6 chicken thigh, 1 white onion sliced and 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce. I cook on low for about 6-7 hours and then shred and refrigerate for later.
{ 30 comments… read them below or add one }
Looks yummy and healthy, to boot!
Sometimes leftovers thrown together make the best meal! This looks like a total winner.
Yum! This sounds so awesome.
This is right up our alley. And what a fun & unique way to serve quinoa!
Sounds truly fabulous…. don’t you just love when you throw a bunch of stuff together and end up with a fabulous new dish? I sure do.
This is like a complete meal in one beautiful dish!
Um, yes YES. Consider me giddy for this meal.
This is my new go-to meal. Love the quinoa.
I am sure that is a good and healthy food.
I am making this tonight!
This sounds perfect for so many occasions! Thanks for posting!
Loaded salads are my jam too. I’ll have 5 of these please
Made this tonight and I LOVED it!!
Me too!
mmm…yum! When I saw this pic I was also thinking BBQ chicken pizza in a healthier form – this is a great recipe!
Oh my… now my favorite pizza is in salad form?? Where’s my fork!!! Brilliant Ms. G… simply brilliant!!
My husband and I fell in love with quinoa during a recent trip to Peru. Now he begs me to make it each week. I made this tonight and it was PERFECT! I skipped the cheese because someone in this house can’t leave alone a brick of cheese sitting in the fridge (me!). I also used rotissere chicken and squirted BBQ sauce on it. Total shortcut, but it got a delicious meal on table after a long day at work. Thanks for a great recipe, Gaby. This is a keeper!
Hi gaby. This looks like a great recipe, and I think I will try it. I just bought a Weber q 320 and think I will try cooking the chicken in a pan on the grill.
Cheers
This is certainly a healthy salad and very tasty at that!!! Love all the ingredients so the combination must be great! Great recipe!
Umm, yum. That’s all I can say for fear that I will start drooling. I love quinoa, especially in salads – it gives them such a wonderful heartiness!
Found this on pinterest…couldn’t wait to try it. I’ve got everything together, waiting for avocado, cheese, & green onions at the last minute. It tasted great before the last additions, can’t wait for dinner tonight! Thanks for the great recipe!
Looks delicious!! I am saving this to add into my rotations next week!! Thanks for sharing
This looks amazing!! I so need to try this nice and healthy.
This salad was so good I just had to blog about it! Thank you so much for sharing!!
YUM! Made this tonight with chicken I had leftover from http://chaosinthekitchen.com/2009/07/lime-and-coconut-chicken/ including the sauce in place of BBQ – it was delicious! Can’t wait to try it with the BBQ chicken and BBQ sauce. Definitely will be a regular at our house. Thanks!
yay!! glad you loved it!
Hi Gaby. I made this for dinner a few nights ago and it was amazing! I made several alterations based on what I had on hand: I added half a red pepper, a couple handfuls of spinach, omitted the cheese, and added some ranch dressing and lime juice. Even my non-salad-loving husband couldn’t get enough of it! Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Gaby, I am a Quinoa virgin! I would love some tips on cooking it. I can’t wait to make this salad:-)
This looks great! Is there a dressing or no?
Hey Stacey! No dressing other than the BBQ sauce
Thanks!
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