Crispy Chicken Salad

Crispy Chicken Salad 

Learn how to make a crispy chicken salad that's drizzled with sriracha honey bbq dressing! The chicken tenders are perfectly juicy and tender on the inside with that crispy panko crust on the outside. You'll love this easy crispy chicken salad!

Ingredients

Dressing:

•  ¼ cup EACH: honey AND bbq sauce 

•  2 tablespoons EACH: dijon mustard AND apple cider vinegar 

•  ½ cup mayonnaise

•  1 - 3 teaspoons sriracha (or more to taste)

Chicken:

•  1 cup buttermilk

•  1 ½ pound boneless chicken tenders (or breasts)

•  ¾ cup all-purpose flour (or whole wheat)

•  1 teaspoon EACH: garlic powder AND smoked paprika

•  ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

•  2 eggs, whisked

•  1 ½ cups panko breadcrumbs

•  Peanut or canola oil, for frying

Salad:

•  1 cup cherry tomatoes

•  ½ cup EACH: toasted sliced almonds AND sliced red onions

•  10-ounce romaine, chopped into small pieces

•  2 avocados, sliced

Instructions

• DRESSING: Whisk the ingredients for the dressing along with a big pinch of salt and black pepper. Continue to whisk until you’ve got a smooth dressing.

• MARINATE: Add the buttermilk, ¾ teaspoon of salt, a big pinch of black pepper and ⅓ cup of the prepared dressing to a bowl and stir to combine. Add the chicken tenders into the bowl and allow the chicken to marinate for 30 minutes (you can also marinate the chicken for up to 24 hours covered in the refrigerator.)

• PREP: When you’re ready to cook the chicken, Combine the flour, garlic powder and the smoked paprika in a shallow baking dish, in another one, combine the panko and the parmesan cheese and set them side by side. We’re going to set up a dredging station. Start by removing a chicken tender from the marinade and allow the excess to drip off, then dredge the strip into the flour mixture, then the beaten egg, then the panko mixture and place the tenders on a clean baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tenders.

• COOK: Add about an inch to an inch and half of the oil to a cast iron skillet (or anything you usually fry stuff in) and allow the oil to heat up on medium-high heat. Once then oil is hot, add a few tenders and allow them to fry for 5-9 minutes, flipping as required to cook the tenders all the way through. Remove to a plate lined with a paper towel and continue to fry until done. Slice the tenders into pieces or chop them up.

• ASSEMBLE: Add the greens to a large bowl, top with cherry tomatoes, sliced onions, avocados, sliced almonds, and add the chicken on top. You can also just make individual bowls if you didn't want to serve this family style. Drizzle with the dressing and serve immediately! 

Notes

• I suspect that you could possibly cook these tenders in an air fryer but I haven’t tried it so I can’t say with certainty! If you give it a try, would love to know how it went for you! Haven't tried baking the chicken tenders so, unfortunately, not sure at all how that would go!