BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad

I'm always looking for easy, clean, and healthy dinner ideas.  I've made this delicious BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad a couple times and the whole family has enjoyed it. I found a great recipe for a clean BBQ sauce and it did not disappoint! It's got a kick so you can leave out the cayenne pepper if you prefer a milder flavor.  Here is the recipe for both!

BBQ Chicken Quinoa Salad

Ingredients:

  

2 cups cooked quinoa

3/4 cup frozen or fresh corn, thawed

1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups shredded BBQ chicken (see recipe below, can also use bottled BBQ sauce)

1/2 avocado, chopped

4 green onions, chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

Cilantro, as garnish

 

Directions:

1. Cook quinoa according to package directions. 
2. In a large bowl, mix together quinoa, corn, black beans, and BBQ chicken. Fold in avocado, green onions and season with salt and pepper. Top with a bit of cilantro and additional BBQ sauce as desired and enjoy!

Note: This makes 2 nights of meals for us, and then some.

 

 

 

Clean Crockpot BBQ Chicken

 

 

Ingredients:

• 3-4 large chicken breasts
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, minced
• 1 Tbsp of minced garlic
• 1 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cup of organic ketchup
• 3/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp of natural honey
• 1/2 tsp of low sodium soy sauce (I use Tamari for gluten free)
• 3 Tbsp of paprika
• 1 tsp of chili powder
• 1/2 tsp of ground cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp of salt
• pepper to taste

 

Make your sauce:

1. Add EVOO to large sauté pan and heat over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until soft. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes.
2. Add in ketchup and honey, stir.  Add in dry spices.
3. Add soy/tamari and apple cider vinegar.
4. Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 25 minutes, or until thickened.

Make your chicken:

1. Place chicken in crockpot and top with BBQ sauce. Mix, cover, and cook on low for 6 hours. Shred with fork (I do this on a separate plate) and add sauce as desired.