Chicken Avocado Collard Wraps

These Chicken Avocado Collard Wraps are made with mashed avocado, seasoned quinoa, and lemon baked chicken. The result is nothing short of tantalizing! And, if you’ve never worked with collard greens before, there are tips in this post to learn how to get the perfect roll for your wrap! {Gluten-free + Dairy-free + Soy-free} 

I am always on the hunt for a delicious protein-packed, veggie-friendly lunch recipe! And these Chicken Avocado Collard Wraps check all the boxes! From savory chicken to citrusy avocado to salted quinoa, the final product is delicious lunch fare! Not only that, but if you’re in the market for more collards in your diet, then this is the recipe to use. When prepped correctly, collard greens trade their bitterness for an earthier flavor that complements the other ingredients in the wrap.  

And this fare is gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free! If you want to make your collard wraps officially grain-free, then swap the quinoa for cauliflower rice. One of the benefits of making your own collard wrap recipe is the flexibility to add whatever ingredients you like. Make your own combination by choosing a favorite from each of the following categories:

• Leafy greens: collards, butterhead lettuce, romaine, Swiss chard
• Protein: poultry, pork, beef, fish, seafood, beans, or tofu Veggies: roasted/fresh, diced/sliced
• Sauce or spread: Paleo Tzatziki Sauce, Lemon Avocado Dip, Lemon Avocado Dressing, Avocado Pesto, or Homemade Basil Pesto (pine nut-free)
• Spices or seasonings: Oregano, cumin, basil, thyme, sage, cilantro, or parsley

Mix and match to your heart’s content and never get bored! The options are endless, and this recipe is just the tip of the iceberg! 

To get the most roll for your wrap, check out the best practices section below and let’s get lunching!

CHICKEN AVOCADO COLLARD WRAPS INGREDIENTS:

• Collard greens. They have somewhat of a short shelf life. So I buy the largest leaves I can find at the store and make a point to prepare these gluten-free wraps within 24 hours of purchase.
• Shredded chicken. Any shredded chicken will do. My favorite chicken for this recipe is from Lemon Baked Chicken and is what is pictured in this post.
• Quinoa. For this recipe, I keep it pretty simple. Prepared according to package directions and lightly salted. Add olive oil so the quinoa retains a buttery flavor.
• Avocado. Avocados, lime juice, and sea salt lightly mashed together. You could add sliced avocado to this wrap instead. However, mashed avocados become a glue that holds all the ingredients together!
• Parsley, cilantro, coarse black pepper. These are the prefect garnishes! Add them last, or mix them in with each layer for an integrated blend of flavors!

HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN AVOCADO COLLARD WRAPS:

Below are the steps to make Chicken Avocado Collard Wraps. Depending on the ingredients you use, your order of steps may be different.

To prepare the ingredients:

1. In a saucepan, prepare enough quinoa to yield 1/2-3/4 cup cooked quinoa, according to package instructions. Add the sea salt and olive oil, if not originally mentioned in the package instructions.
2. While the quinoa cooks, prepare the collard greens. Rinse each leaf and then trim the thick center stem out of each leaf, removing it about one third to halfway up the leaf.
3. Place the collard greens in a pan of boiling water and blanch them for two minutes. Then transfer the leaves to an ice water bath to shock them. This prevents them from being overcooked. Let them sit there for a minute or so and then transfer them to a paper towel-lined plate or tray. Pat away as much excess water as possible from the leaves before assembling the wraps.
4. When the quinoa is done cooking, remove it from the heat and fluff it with a fork.
5. While the quinoa is cooling, combine the avocados, lime juice, and sea salt in a small bowl. Mash them together just enough to form a paste.

To assemble each wrap:

1. Lay each leaf on a cutting board with the inside of the leaf facing up. Spread about 1-2 tablespoons avocado onto the collard green and then sprinkle with parsley.
2. Next, place a few pieces of shredded chicken on top of the avocado and add more parsley.
3. Finally, scoop about 1 tablespoon cooked quinoa onto the chicken and top with more parsley.
4. Then take the rounded edge of the collard green and fold it over the layered mixture. As you begin rolling it, start bringing the sides together, up and over the layered mixture, similar to making a taco or wrapping a present. There will be a gap in the leaf where the spine was, so as you roll the wrap, pull the two sides closer together to close the gap.
5. For best results, keep refrigerated and consume within 24 hours. 

NOTE: Ingredient amounts given are a guideline and will depend on the size of the collard leaves. I like to err on the side of having MORE of each ingredient rather than less, making as many wraps as I can until I run out of collard greens.

BEST PRACTICES TO GET THE PERFECT ROLL:

Learning how to roll a leaf for a lunch wrap is a skill, and it took me a LOOOONG time to learn just how to do it. But once you learn, just like riding a bike, it stays with you! Below are two tips I found make rolling wraps much easier to do!

• Remove the spine (thick center stem). Kendra Peterson of Drizzle Kitchen has an excellent IG TV video that shows how to make a collard wrap. Specifically, she shares how to remove the center spine, which makes rolling the collard green, without breaking it, much easier to do. Thank you, Kendra!
• Blanch and shock the leaves. Thanks to my mother-in-law, I knew what it meant to blanch vegetables. But the process of giving them an ice water bath has its own name, too. Thanks to Lindsay Cotter of Cotter Crunch in her recipe for Swiss Chard Salad Wraps, I now know what it is. It’s called shocking. So, to get the best collards, we’re going to blanch and shock our greens so they taste great and are easy to work with!

WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVER QUINOA:

I usually make about 1-2 cups cooked quinoa, which ends up being more than I need for Chicken Avocado Collard Wraps. So what I usually do is eat the leftovers straight-up OR make a separate quinoa recipe to enjoy for dinner or throughout the week! Below are a few quinoa recipes you could make with your leftovers!

• Avocado Quinoa Salad
• Spicy Quinoa Stuffed Peppers
• Cauliflower Turmeric Quinoa Bowls

We also have a compilation of quinoa recipes on the blog in this post, Favorite Easy Quinoa Recipes!

If you are in the mood for additional creative ways to eat your vegetables, then savor these recipes!

• Deli Sandwich Lettuce Wraps
• Loaded Shrimp Tacos
• One-Skillet Spicy Chicken Fajitas
• Green Goddess Fajitas

Enjoy, friends! Be well, stay safe. I’m glad you’re here! ❤️

Print