While the original Sweetgreen buffalo chicken salad is delicious, wouldn’t it be nice to make it at home?! This version is just as good as the original and but perfect for meal prepping at home.
The Deets:
I promise you this is the best copycat Sweetgreen buffalo chicken salad… dare I say this one tastes better than the OG?! It also takes minimal meal prep and is perfect for weekday lunches.
Meal prep:
I like to meal prep this by making the pickled vegetables, chicken and dressing (if you are making a homemade dressing) at the beginning of the week. Then whenever you are ready to make, all you need to do is mix it together in a bowl.
Ingredients:
Chicken: My favorite chicken cut will always be thighs. I find that boneless skinless chicken thighs are the best because you have no fuss with a bone, and they’re a little fattier than breasts which honestly makes all the difference. If you want to be a little healthier, you can substitute for chicken breasts over thighs.
Kale: I picked kale here to optimize meal prep. Kale doesn’t wilt the way most other lettuce does, and stays fresh for longer. The original also uses shredded kale and the key to make it tender is to massage it with some olive oil and lemon juice.
Pickled vegetables: This salad is nothing without the delicious pickled celery and carrots that you add on. Again, another super easy thing to meal prep and keep in your fridge for the week. I think all pickled vegetables are a great way to get a lot of flavor with not a lot of calories.
The dressing: I wanted to keep this recipe “no fuss” so I encourage you to use store bought Caesar dressing. I am a big fan of California Olive Ranch but I also love my super delicious Caper Caesar Dressing if you want to make it at home.
Hot sauce: I will ALWAYS be a Franks Red Hot or Franks Buffalo girlie. You can go with what you but I suggest Franks all the way!
Sweetgreen copycat buffalo chicken salad
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 pack of kale
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1/2 a lemon
- 1 pack of romaine
- Blue cheese crumbles
- Panko breadcrumbs
- Zaatar
- Cherry tomatoes
- Cilantro
- Wing sauce
- Homemade or store bought Caesar dressing of choice (I really like California olive ranch)
The pickled veggies:
- 3 carrots
- 3 pieces of celery
- Apple cider vinegar or another white vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- Any pickling spices (optional)
Instructions
- Chop carrots and celery and add to a clean mason jar. Bring equal parts water and vinegar, sugar and spices to a boil. Make sure you do enough to fill up your mason jar. Pour over veggies to the top and then cover. You should do this the night before as you need several hours for the veggies to pickle. (I have done it morning of and it’s fine, but the longer the better)
- Preheat oven to 375. Wash and pat dry chicken thighs. Cover in buffalo sauce and season with salt and pepper. Lay out on a baking sheet and cook for about 8-10 min per side or until internal temperature is 165.
- Keep chicken and pickled veggies in the fridge for easy meal prep all week.
- Assemble salad by first adding kale to a bowl. Add olive oil and lemon juice and massage until tender. Add romaine, chopped chicken, blue cheese, pickled veggies, chopped cilantro, breadcrumbs, sprinkle of zaatar. Drizzle with Caesar and hot sauce. Mix and enjoy!
