This Bacon Broccoli and Ranch Salad is a satisfying and flavorful chicken salad. Use ranch dressing instead of mayonnaise to tie together the bold flavors of this chicken bacon ranch salad.
30 minutes
Minimal prep
You’ll Learn: How to meal-prep a delicious, protein-packed chicken salad for lunches or wraps all week
Worth It: It’s a satisfying, protein-forward option that actually keeps you full
Bonus: Easy to tailor to common diets
Why You’ll Love this recipe
- Perfect for meal prep – I love making this chicken bacon ranch salad for meal prep. It is so versatile to eat all week long in salads, sandwiches, and wraps
- Easy lunch or dinner – This recipe takes a total time of 30 minutes or less. It is great for quick and easy lunches and dinners. It has protein and veggies to make it a delicious and satiating meal.
- Updated twist on a classic recipe – The ranch adds so much flavor to this recipe. It is a great twist that keeps this chicken salad mayo-free!
Make your salad with ranch instead of mayo
One thing I have heard over and over again on Instagram is that people are NOT fans of mayonnaise. They will make my same chicken salad recipe but swap in some Greek yogurt for the mayo. This chicken salad recipe is for all of those people who don’t like mayo.
Turns out you can use ranch dressing in place of mayo for chicken salad! The flavor of the ranch works perfectly with the chicken, broccoli, ranch, and shallots. This recipe works best with a thicker ranch dressing like my homemade ranch dressing.
Chicken, bacon and ranch is one of my favorite flavor combinations. Mix in some raw chopped broccoli for crunch and freshness and minced shallots to balance the flavor.
Trick for shredding poached chicken
To make this bacon ranch chicken salad you will need to shred poached chicken breast. I usually shred it with two forks, but there are a few tricks to make shredding the chicken even easier.
If you have a stand mixer, place the chicken breasts in the bowl of the stand mixer and use the paddle attachment to shred the chicken breasts. Or use an electric hand mixer to shred the chicken breasts in a large mixing bowl.
Ingredients
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts – boneless skinless chicken makes it easy to shred after cooking, but you can use almost any type of chicken. You can use bone in, but it requires more work to remove the bones before shredding
- Bacon – I love adding bacon to my chicken salad. It adds extra crunch and flavor that is so tasty.
- Broccoli florets – my favorite vegetable for this recipe is broccoli, but you can use or add any vegetable you would like
- Ranch dressing – You can use homemade ranch dressing or store bought
- Shallot – I love the flavor of the shallot in this chicken salad, but you can use any onion
Ingredient substitutions
Instead of shallot, you can use red onion or yellow onion. Be sure to mince the onions finely so that you don’t get a big chunk of onion in each bite.
This recipe has a lot of flavor from the bacon and ranch dressing, but feel free to dress it up with more spices, like garlic powder, onion powder, and salt and pepper to taste.
To make this ranch chicken salad recipe even easier, you can use a premade rotisserie chicken to cut down on prep time. Just shred the breast meat from the rotisserie chicken and follow the recipe as listed. Canned chicken can work, but I prefer homemade or rotisserie so the pieces of chicken are a bit bigger.
You can also use leftover chicken for this recipe. If I am using chilled leftover chicken, I like to cut it into cubes and use it to make this ranch chicken salad.
Ranch dressing options
The key ingredient in this ranch chicken salad is a thick and creamy ranch dressing. I prefer to use my homemade ranch dressing recipe because it makes the perfect homemade creamy ranch dressing. You could mix it up and use my avocado ranch dressing.
You can also use a classic hidden valley ranch dressing. Or make a quick homemade ranch dressing using ranch seasoning, mayo, greek yogurt and a little lemon juice.
Serving Suggestions
This chicken bacon ranch salad is perfect for meal prep. Once prepared there are so many different ways to serve it!
Most of the time I serve this ranch chicken salad on leaf lettuce like as a big fresh salad as a main dish. I also like to add some fresh veggies to the salad like tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers or carrots. Top with green onion, chives, dill or your favorite herbs for a even more flavor when serving.
It is also delicious on a wrap, or as a sandwich with cheddar cheese on my overnight bread recipe.This recipe is keto-friendly, so if you could serve it on a romaine lettuce wrap, similar to this no bread turkey club.
For a quick filling snack, I put some in a small bowl with some crackers.
If you’re looking for this same flavor combination, but in a creamy, cheesy dip form try this Bacon Ranch Chicken Cheese Dip.
How to make ranch chicken salad
Step 1: Bake Bacon and Poach Chicken
First, bake the bacon in the oven until crispy. Then, fill a pot with cold water and place 2 chicken breasts in the pot. Next, place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Once boiling cover the pot and simmer for 14 minutes.
Step 2: Prep other ingredeints
While the chicken and bacon cook, dice the shallot and chop the broccoli into smaller pieces. Then, remove the chicken breasts from the water and allow it to cool slightly. Next, shred the chicken with two forks and add to a large bowl.
Step 3: Mix it up!
Then, add chopped bacon, broccoli, shallots, and ranch dressing to the bowl with the chicken. Finally, mix it all together so that the ranch dressing coats all of the other ingredients. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
How long will this chicken salad keep in the fridge?
Once prepared, store this low carb chicken salad in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Serve cold straight from the fridge.
Check out these other cold lunch ideas!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Email Recipe for Later
Recipe
Bacon Broccoli and Ranch Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup chopped broccoli
- 5 strips cooked bacon
- 1/2 cup ranch dressing – thicker dressings work best
- 1/2 a large shallot or one small shallot
Instructions
- Bake bacon until crispy
- Fill a pot with cold water and place 2 chicken breasts in the pot
- Place the pot on the stove and bring to a boil
- Once boiling cover the pot and simmer for 14 minutes
- While the chicken and bacon cook, dice the shallot and chop the broccoli into smaller pieces
- Remove the chicken breasts from the water and allow to cool slightly
- Shred the chicken with two forks and add to a large mixing bowl
- Add chopped bacon, broccoli, shallots and ranch dressing to the bowl with the chicken
- Mix it all together so that the ranch dressing coats all of the other ingredients
- Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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