This recipe for Southwest Chicken Salad is so much fresher, healthier, and tastier than any restaurant version. Made with crisp romaine, corn, avocado, tomatoes, peppers, cheese, tortillas, grilled chicken, and topped with a creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing, this Southwest Salad is packed with incredible flavor!
If you love healthy Chicken Salads, you need to check out Buffalo Chicken Salad, BBQ Chicken Salad, and Waldorf Chicken Salad.
Southwest Chicken Salad
This Southwest Chicken salad is my version of a restaurant Southwest Salad--just made lighter and tastier!
It is filled with fresh produce, diced avocados, crisp romaine hearts, sweet bell peppers, corn, black beans, fresh tomatoes, and southwest-flavored chicken. This healthy salad is finished with a light and fresh creamy Cilantro Lime dressing that marries all these flavors together perfectly.
Of course, my family would argue that tortilla chips are a MUST on this salad--and I tend to agree that the crunch of tortilla chips adds texture to a very satisfying salad.
Ingredients for Southwest Salad
The great thing about this salad is that it is completely flexible and can be custom-made based on what your family likes. Use this recipe as a guide and change up the ingredients based on your family's preference.
- Chicken--use boneless, skinless chicken breasts seasoned with taco seasoning for an easy, lean protein.
- Greens--I like the crisp, freshness of romaine hearts for this salad, but you can use iceberg or mixed greens for the base of this salad.
- Toppings--Let your taste buds guide you, but black beans, corn, tomatoes, peppers, avocados, and cheese all make great toppings on this Tex Mex Salad. Omit ingredients you don't care for, or add in things like onions, feta, etc based on what you like.
- Dressing--The homemade Cilantro Lime Dressing is incredible! It is creamy, a bit spicy, and perfectly tangy. But if you don't care for it, make homemade ranch dressing and add 1-2 teaspoons of homemade taco seasoning or a tablespoon or two of salsa for a Homemade Southwest Ranch Dressing.
- Tortilla Chips/Strips--Tortilla chips are optional, but add great texture to this easy Chicken Salad.
How to Make Southwest Salad
Step One: Prepare Chicken
- Season chicken breasts with taco seasoning.
- Cook chicken until it reaches 165 degrees F.
- Grill for 6-7 minutes per side over medium-high heat.
- Bake chicken at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes.
- Broil the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, watching closely not to burn.
- Let chicken rest for 10 minutes and then slice chicken into ½ inch slices.
Step Two: Prepare Cilantro Lime Dressing
- Zest washed and dried limes with a microplane.
- Juice the limes using a juicer or beater attachment from a kitchen mixer--see how I do this here!
- Using a blender or food processor, or fork, blend together the lime juice, oil, cilantro, jalapeno, garlic, and honey until smooth. If using a fork, you will need to very finely mince jalapeno and cilantro before mixing them into the dressing.
Tip: Omit the jalapeno for less heat!
Step Three: Assemble Southwest Salad
- Lay out shredded lettuce onto a platter.
- Top the lettuce with corn, beans, peppers, tomatoes, avocado, and sliced chicken.
- Toss together with the salad dressing and serve with tortilla strips if desired.
Recipe Modifications for Southwest Salad
- Make this Southwest Salad meatless, by adding more beans and omitting the chicken.
- Use any beans you like--black beans, pinto beans, or red beans all pair well in this southwest-style salad.
- You can use leftover Rotisserie Chicken or 3 Ingredient Taco Meat for an even easier version of this Southwest salad as well.
- For a vegan-friendly southwest salad, omit the chicken and cheese and in place of Greek yogurt in the dressing, use half an avocado, which will give the Cilantro Lime Dressing creaminess.
More Dinner Salad Recipes
- Taco Salad
- Buffalo Chicken Salad
- BBQ Chicken Salad
- Waldorf Chicken Salad.
- Tabbouleh Salad
- Mexican Quinoa Salad
Need more inspiration for planning meals that your family will love? Sign up for my FREE Meal Plans and each week you will get a meal plan with a shopping list.
If you tried this Southwest Chicken Salad, I would love for you to leave a comment and review below.
Southwest Chicken Salad
Ingredients
For the Southwest Chicken
- 2 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts (6 ounces each)
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
For the Southwest Salad
- 2 hearts romaine lettuce chopped
- 1 cup black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 cup frozen corn defrosted
- 1 large tomato diced, or ½ pint of cherry tomatoes
- 1 avocado diced
- 1 cup mini peppers sliced
- ½ cup sharp cheddar cheese grated
- tortilla strips or chips optional
Cilantro Lime Dressing
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice 3-4 limes
- â…“ cup olive oil or avocado oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- ½ jalapeno seeds and ribs removed
- 1 tablespoon water if needed
Instructions
For the Chicken
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F or a grill/grill pan to medium-high heat.
- Trim the chicken of any fat. Brush the chicken with olive oil and season the chicken breasts evenly with taco seasoning on all sides.
- Grill the chicken for 6-7 minutes per side, or until the chicken reaches 165 degrees. Alternatively bake the chicken for 15-18 minutes, or until the chicken reaches 165 degrees.
- Remove chicken from grill and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes, before slicing into ½ inch cubes.
For the Southwest Salad
- In a large salad bowl or platter, lay out the chopped romaine. Top with the beans, tomatoes, corn, peppers, cheese, and avocado. Top with chicken, tortilla chips if using, and the cilantro lime dressing.
Cilantro Lime Dressing
- Zest 1 lime and juice 3-4 limes to give you 1 teaspoon lime zest, along with ¼ cup fresh lime juice.
- To a blender add lime juice, olive oil, lime zest, salt, honey, garlic, cilantro, and jalapeno. Blend on high speed until everything is broken down and the dressing is smooth. Add water if, 1 tablespoon at a time, if needed to smooth. Taste and add salt if needed.
Lux
This was really good! I was looking for an easy dinner idea, so I bought some frozen "fajita chicken" instead of making my own. Also replaced the cilantro and jalapeno in the dressing with half of an avocado. Maybe a controversial choice, but it made it very creamy and thick (had to add a little water to get it to pour). My brother still thought it was too acidic and added a tbsp or so of ranch straight into his salad. I tried it too, and it really helps. He told me to just make avocado ranch next time, lol. Oh well, live and learn. Anyway, thanks for sharing!
Kristen Chidsey
I don't think you can ever go wrong with avocado! But it would need additional liquid to help loosen it up. For sweetness, you could always add in a touch of honey (or ranch works too!)
Christine
I'm confused on the dressing ingredients. I don't see avocado listed in ingredients. I noticed higher on the page it mentions avocado in the dressing. It also isn't mentioned in the instructions.. can you leave it out? If not, how much do you use?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Christine! The dressing is for a Cilantro Lime Dressing, but the salad itself has diced avocado.
Karen from Michigan:)
MMM! WAY BETTER THAN MCDONALD's SOUTHWEST SALAD! DELISHHH!
Kristen Chidsey
WAHOO!!! I love hearing you enjoyed so much Karen! Thanks for leaving a review.
julia
The instructions for the chicken are great, I have made chicken again this way several times after initially making this recipe.
My family found the dressing extremely strong and it sorta ruined eating the salad as we found out after we had already dressed the salad.
I would much prefer Chipotle ranch or something creamier and less acidic.
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Julia! I am glad you enjoyed the chicken, but sorry the dressing was too acidic for you. You have to really love cilantro to enjoy this salad dressing. You may just want to mix together 2 tablespoons salsa with 1/2 cup ranch to use in the future. 🙂
Raquel
Absolutely delicious! My family loved it. I love that it has the Mexican food flavors, but yet very different. My limes were bad, so I improvised and made a salsa ranch dressing instead. I am wheat-free, so I made corn quesadillas instead of flour.
Kristen Chidsey
YAY!! I love to hear your family enjoyed this Raquel. And great swaps--we often use corn tortillas ourselves. And I love the sound of your salsa ranch dressing.
Kristen Chidsey
Thank you so much Debra!! I just linked back up. Love #FoodieFriday
Kristen Chidsey
I bet yours will be fabulous Liz.
Kristen Chidsey
Then you will LOVE this dressing for sure Cynthia!
Maria
Always on the quest for new chicken salad recipes- love this one!
Kristen Chidsey
This is a good one for sure!
Shashi at RunninSrilankan
Kristen, you don't have to tell me twice - this salad surely is spectacular! I LOVE your twist on the classic cobb salad and I LOVE your use of tortillas instead of croutons as I abhor croutons!
Kristen Chidsey
Thanks Shashi!! #3 is indeed crucial!