Serves 4 // Recipe by Chef Jonathan Bardzik

Yes, this is the salad you’ve been waiting for! Crunchy tortilla strips, creamy homemade Ranch and spicy Buffalo chicken top tender, fresh greens. Feel free to add crumbled blue cheese, grated carrot, sliced celery and diced summer tomatoes! Oh, and double the recipe so you can assemble it quickly with pre-cooked chicken and tortilla strips for an easy lunch or week night dinner.

Ingredients

For salad:

  • 2 10” flour tortillas
  • 4tbs olive oil
  • 6 cups Salanova, sunnies and radish blend

For chicken:

  • 4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
  • 2 tbs olive oil
  • 1/3 cup hot sauce like Frank’s
  • 2 tbs apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 cup cold butter cut in 1” pieces

For dressing:

  • 1/3 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/3 cup sour cream
  • 4 sprigs cilantro
  • 2 tbs garlic powder
  • Cayenne pepper to taste
  • 2 tbs apple cider vinegar
  • Buttermilk or water

Directions

Make dressing: Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Purée. Thin with a couple tablespoons of buttermilk or water for a pourable but thick dressing.

Make tortilla strips: Pre-heat oven to 400°F. Cut tortillas into 4” wide strips. Stack and cut into ¼” strips. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt, and toss to coat. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and cook until crisp, about 10 min. Reserve.

Make Buffalo chicken: Pat chicken thighs dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Let rest for 20 min. Warm oil in a 12” skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken and brown, about 5 min. Turn and brown other side. Reduce heat to med and cook through to 165°F. Reserve chicken. Return pan to med heat with hot sauce, vinegar and Worcestershire. Scrape up brown bits from bottom of pan while sauce bubbles. Begin to whisk in butter, 1 piece at a time. Remove from heat when half the butter is whisked in and continue with remaining butter. Slice chicken and toss with sauce.

Assemble salad: lightly dress Salanova blend with homemade Ranch. Divide among four plates. Top with chicken and tortilla strips.

TIP: Why whisk in the butter cold rather than melted? The cold butter emulsifies, making the sauce silky and creamy.