Southwest Salad
This delicious Southwest salad is loaded with fresh veggies and grilled chicken before being smothered with a tangy and creamy cilantro lime dressing to create the perfect meal.
Servings: 4
Calories: 1056kcal
Ingredients
Cilantro Lime Dressing
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream
- 0.4 ounce packet of ranch seasoning
- 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 7 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Salad
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, approximately 1½ to 2 pound package
- 0.87 ounce Southwest ranch chicken taco seasoning packet (McCormick)
- ½ cup light olive oil
- ¼ cup water
- 24 ounces Romaine lettuce hearts, rinsed and chopped
- 1 cup canned black beans in seasoned sauce, liquids drained
- 1 cup canned whole kernel sweet yellow corn, liquids drained
- 1 cup Campari tomatoes, from 4 to 6 quartered
- 1 Hass avocado, diced
- ½ cup red onion, thinly sliced
- Santa Fe Style tortilla strips and a lime wedge, optional garnish
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the buttermilk, mayonnaise, sour cream, packet of ranch salad dressing mix, fresh lime juice, and fresh chopped cilantro.
- Whisk together to fully incorporate all the ingredients. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour while preparing the remainder of the Southwest salad recipe.
- Add the boneless skinless chicken breasts to a large, heavy-duty, zip-top bag.
- To a small mixing bowl, add the packet of ranch chicken taco seasoning, light olive oil, and water. Stir to combine.
- Pour the seasoned marinade over the chicken breasts inside the zip-top bag. Seal the bag, making sure to remove as much air as possible, and place it into the refrigerator to allow the chicken to marinate for 1 hour.
- Once your chicken has marinated, you can preheat your outdoor grill to medium-high heat (approximately 425°F to 450°F, depending on how your grill runs).
- Grill your chicken breasts for 8 to 9 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Remove from the grill and slice each chicken breast into ½-inch thick slices. Try to keep your chicken breast together to transfer it to your salad for a pretty presentation when assembling your salad.
- While the chicken is grilling, you can prepare the romaine lettuce, black beans, corn, tomatoes, avocado, and red onion slices. You will need to divide the romaine lettuce equally into 4 large salad bowls.
- Top each bowl of lettuce with ¼ cup black beans, ¼ cup corn kernels, ¼ cup sliced tomatoes, a quarter of the chopped hass avocado and some red onion slices.
- Place one of the sliced grilled chicken breasts onto the top of your salad and garnish your salad with a drizzle of the cilantro-lime ranch salad dressing.
- You can add an optional garnish of the Santa Fe-style tortilla strips and a lime wedge to squeeze over the entire salad.
Notes
- This Southwest chicken salad recipe makes four very hearty large salads. If you only plan to eat one of the salads at a time, you can easily prepare additional servings for meals for the week.
- The dressing will keep for up to a week in the fridge. You can keep leftovers or prepare the dressing ahead of time.
- A little lemon juice on the avocado will prevent it from browning.
Nutrition
Calories: 1056kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 88g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 30g | Monounsaturated Fat: 37g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 119mg | Sodium: 1540mg | Potassium: 1536mg | Fiber: 13g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 16201IU | Vitamin C: 29mg | Calcium: 198mg | Iron: 4mg