A classic game day snack takes a healthy turn in these Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps, complete with a blue cheese yogurt sauce.

Nothing says game day quite like Buffalo chicken. If you go to a tailgating party and there isn't a spicy chicken wing in sight, it feels like you're doing something wrong. Of course, Buffalo chicken wings aren't exactly the healthiest choice. Typically fried and on the fatty side...but, oh so good.

So, how do you capture the flavors of Buffalo wings while also providing a healthier option?

Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps are a great answer to this game day conundrum. They're easy, perfectly spicy and a heck of a lot healthier than the alternative. The flavor starts with the hot sauce (I used Frank's RedHot, which can be found in many supermarkets). Most of the cayenne-based hot sauces will do the trick, but choose your favorite and adjust the seasoning according to your heat tolerance.

For these Buffalo chicken lettuce wraps, I cooked the boneless chicken tenders in a large nonstick skillet (this is the one I use everyday), but they could just as easily be baked. We ate these both hot and room temperature, and they were great either way. So, feel free to make the chicken ahead of time, tossing with the sauce right after the chicken is cooked.

If you like to keep quinoa on hand in the freezer, this recipe moves to the "lightening fast" category effortlessly. If not, quinoa takes just 15 to 20 minutes to cook. You'll need approximately three-quarters of a cup of dry quinoa to yield a cup and a half cooked.

And Buffalo chicken just isn't the same without some sort of blue cheese dressing and celery sticks on the side. In this version, I whipped up a quick blue cheese yogurt sauce and stirred diced celery into the quinoa.

Healthy game day achieved.

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Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps Recipe with Quinoa

Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Quinoa…Lighten up Buffalo chicken by sautéing chicken tenders and serving them in lettuce wraps with a crunchy quinoa vegetable mix. Perfectly spicy, healthy and delicious!

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Entrees

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Gluten Free, Healthy Dinner Recipes, Poultry Recipes

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 8

Total Time: 23

Servings: Servings

Calories: 249kcal

Author: Dara Michalski | Cookin' Canuck

Ingredients

10 chicken tenders about 1 ¼ pounds
½ teaspoon ground pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons olive oil divided
¼ cup cayenne hot sauce I use Frank's RedHot
1 ½ cup cooked quinoa
2 medium celery stalks diced
2 green onions thinly sliced
10 butter lettuce or Boston bibb lettuce leaves

The Sauce:

½ cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons nonfat milk
¼ cup 1 ounce crumbled blue cheese
⅛ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Season the chicken tenders with the salt and pepper.
Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large nonstick skillet set over medium-high heat. Cook until the chicken is just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side.
Transfer the chicken to a bowl, add the hot sauce and toss to coat.
In a separate bowl, stir together the quinoa, 1 teaspoon olive oil, celery and green onions.
Scoop about 3 tablespoons of the quinoa mixture into each lettuce leaf, and top with 1 chicken tender and 1 tablespoon yogurt sauce. Serve.

The Yogurt Sauce:

In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt, milk, blue cheese and salt.

Notes

Weight Watchers Points: 5 (SmartPoints), 6 (Points+), 5 (Old Points)

Nutrition

Tried this recipe?If you make this recipe, I'd love to see it on Instagram! Just use the hashtag #COOKINCANUCK and I'll be sure to find it.

Other healthy game day entrées:

Cookin' Canuck's Slow Cooker Hoisin Chicken
Cookin' Canuck's Kale, Mushroom & Goat Cheese Quesadillas

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Comments

5 from 1 vote (1 rating without comment)