Buffalo Chicken Quinoa
Jazz up your dinner with this nutritious, spicy Buffalo Chicken Quinoa! Chock full of everything you'd get with an order of buffalo wings - celery, carrots and blue cheese - and tossed in a creamy buffalo sauce.
Buffalo Chicken Quinoa
If you've never tried quinoa, now is the time!
I was scared the first time because of the weird name and because I thought of it as a "healthy" food like kale.
We try to eat healthy, but we prefer to eat foods that don't scream "health food."
We like healthy meals that don't seem healthy like Mexican Tuna Salad (no mayo) or Puerto Rican Rice and Beans with tons of flavor.
Well, quinoa is good for you and I actually do like kale, but this little seed tastes really good, too!
I like to think of it like rice, it's soft and fluffy, but with a nutty flavor.
It comes in various colors like white or red, but I've never noticed a difference in taste.
The easiest way to make it in the rice cooker and it turns out perfect every time!
You can cook quinoa in water, or jazz it up with some chicken broth. Just make sure you rinse it well before cooking. This will eliminate any bitterness.
We do eat a lot of quinoa and even my husband is on board. If you're looking for a great way to try it out, this buffalo chicken quinoa salad is just the trick.
We love buffalo sauce around here and incorporate it every chance we get.
Check out my post on how to make buffalo chicken dip - the ultimate appetizer and also my hand-held buffalo chicken roll ups!
I call this "buffalo chicken," but to be honest I rarely put chicken in it.
One of the benefits of quinoa is that it's a complete protein, so I leave it out and we have a vegetarian dinner, which also saves us some calories.
The quinoa takes the place of the chicken (protein) and it's all tossed with a creamy buffalo sauce.
It has all the trimmings you'd get with an order of buffalo wings - celery, carrots and blue cheese!
Feel free to leave out what you don't like, or add in what you do!
That's the beauty of this buffalo chicken quinoa bowl.
You can serve individually, or you can mix everything up into a salad that's great to take for lunch or potlucks.
Buffalo Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- ¾ cup quinoa uncooked
- ⅔ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 3 tablespoons hot sauce
- 1 cup diced celery
- 1 cup shredded carrots
- ½ cup blue cheese
- Black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to the package instructions.
- In a small bowl, mix together yogurt and hot sauce. Season to taste with black pepper.
For quinoa bowls
- Assemble quinoa bowls by dividing quinoa between 2 bowls. Top each bowl with celery, carrots and blue cheese. Drizzle with yogurt sauce and serve.
For quinoa salad
- In a large bowl, mix together quinoa, celery, carrots and blue cheese. Toss with yogurt sauce and serve.
Nutrition
For the buffalo chicken lovers:
