I love salads. From a basic little side salad to a big, complexly flavored dinner salad, I am a fan of all of them. I do, however, occasionally have very specific cravings for certain types of salads and today I was really in the mood for some crispy breaded chicken, barbecue sauce and ranch in salad form.
Something exactly like the crispy barbecue chicken salad…
This salad is fabulous. Crispy pan fried chicken breast smothered in my very barbecue sauce over a bed of crunchy romaine and peppery arugula with sharp cheddar, hard boiled eggs, cherry tomatoes and some celery (celery and bbq chicken are bffs). All of these ingredients combine to make a really wonderful salad full of different flavors and textures… just perfect for lunch or dinner.
Let’s get it started…
Begin by gathering some classic salad fixings. A small head of romaine lettuce sliced thin, 2/3 cup of cherry tomatoes halved, 1/2 cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, 2 spring onions chopped, 2 celery stalks sliced thin and 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled and quartered.
Combine all of these ingredients in a large mixing bowl and set them aside for now.
Prepare the chicken by slicing a large boneless skinless chicken breast in half horizontally. Using a meat tenderizer or heavy rolling pin, pound the chicken out thin and season each piece with a generous pinch of garlic powder and onion powder.
For the breading, whisk 1 large egg with 1 tablespoon of milk in a shallow bowl and season with a pinch of salt and black pepper. In a second shallow bowl, add 3/4 cup of all purpose flour and season that with salt and black pepper. In a third shallow bowl, combine 3/4 cup of panko breadcrumbs, 1 tablespoon of dried parsley, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper.
Place a large skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of butter. While the butter is melting, dip one portion of chicken into the flour first, then into the egg mixture and then into then breadcrumbs, being sure that the entire chicken is generously coated in the seasoned breadcrumbs.
As soon as the butter has melted, place the breaded chicken into the pan and repeat with the second portion of chicken. Cook the chicken for about 3 minutes on the first side or until it is crispy and golden brown. Flip the chicken and cook until both sides are golden brown and the chicken is cooked through with an internal temperature of 165 degrees.
Transfer the crispy chicken onto a parchment lined baking sheet and brush it all over with barbecue sauce. Turn your ovens broiler on and broil the chicken for 60-90 seconds or until the barbecue sauce is bubbly and begins to crystalize.
The combination of the bubbly barbecue sauce over that crispy breading is absolutely perfect.
Slice that fabulous crispy barbecue chicken into bite sized pieces, divide the salad between two big bowls and grab some ranch dressing….
Layer the crispy chicken on the salad, add your dressing and prepare to meet your new favorite salad…
It has everything you love about a good salad (the lettuce, cheese, tomatoes… the fresh stuff) and it has the amazing breaded chicken, all crispy and glazed in barbecue sauce (I used my sweet & spicy barbecue sauce, but you can use your favorite!) and then the addition of a creamy ranch dressing over everything just creates the ultimate flavor combination that you are going to just love.
Crispy Barbecue Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Barbecue Chicken
- 1 boneless skinless chicken breast, halved horizontally, pounded thin
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon of milk
- 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon of dried parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- salt and black pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 cup barbecue sauce (check out my sweet & spicy barbecue sauce!)
Salad Ingredients
- 1 small head of romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
- 1 cup of arugula
- 2/3 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 spring onion, sliced thin
- 2 celery stalks, chopped
- 2 large eggs, hard boiled, peeled, quartered
- 1/2 cup ranch dressing (check out my buttermilk ranch!)
Instructions
- Combine chopped romaine lettuce, arugula, cherry tomatoes, spring onions, shredded cheese, celery and hard boiled eggs in a large bowl and set aside
- Thinly slice 1 boneless skinless chicken breast horizontally and pound each piece out thinly using a meat tenderizer or heavy rolling pin
- Season the chicken with a pinch of garlic powder and onion powder
- Prepare the breading by whisking 1 large egg with 1 tablespoon of milk seasoned with salt and black pepper in a shallow bowl. Add 3/4 cup of all purpose flour in a separate shallow bowl and combine 3/4 cup of breadcrumbs with 1 tablespoon of dried parsley, 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper in a third shallow bowl
- Bread the chicken by dipping it first in all purpose flour, then the egg mixture and finally in seasoned breadcrumbs
- Add 2 tablespoons of butter into a large skillet and place it over medium heat
- Once the butter has melted, cook the chicken for 3 minutes on the first side or until it is crisp and golden brown.
- Flip the chicken and cook on the other side until both sides are golden brown and the chicken is cooked through with a internal temperature of 165 degrees
- Transfer the browned chicken onto a parchment lined baking sheet
- Brush both sides of the chicken with barbecue sauce
- Turn your ovens broil setting on
- Broil the chicken until the barbecue sauce is bubbly and begins to crystalize
- Transfer the chicken onto a cutting board and cut into bite size pieces
- Add the chicken to the salad and top with ranch dressing
