Southwest Chicken Salad featuring a Creamy Avocado Dressing Recipe

The ULTIMATE Southwest Chicken Salad featuring Creamy Avocado Dressing! Bursting with vibrant vegetables, marinated grilled chicken, black beans, corn, and crumbled cotija cheese. All tossed together with the most delectable avocado cilantro dressing!

This Southwest Chicken Salad recipe has everything you adore and will quickly become your new favorite! Creamy dressing, succulent grilled chicken, crisp veggies, black beans, and sweet corn all combined with the FINEST avocado dressing. This is my go-to recipe whenever I need to prepare a salad for a group. I enjoy getting this salad ready beforehand for lunches during the week, and the marinade is packed with flavor! This nutritious recipe is an excellent way to meet your protein goals and consume healthy fats while feeling full and content.

Reasons to Adore this Salad

• This salad is filling, nutritious, and full of all your favorite southwest tastes. Your taste buds will rejoice!
• Loaded with protein and healthy fats, making it the ultimate nourishing salad.
• A fantastic salad for meal prepping since all components can be prepped ahead for quick assembly.
• The creamy avocado dressing is a super simple recipe and a real game changer for this salad!
• Perfectly sized salad to serve a large group!

Ingredients You Will Require

Salad Components

• romaine lettuce – finely chopped romaine lettuce, though any leafy greens like arugula, kale, or spinach are suitable.
• veggies – a vibrant mix of grape tomatoes, fresh corn (or fire-roasted corn), crispy red onion, and a ripe avocado. Feel free to add green onions for additional flavor.
• black beans – I used canned black beans as a great source of protein in this salad. Just ensure to drain and rinse them.
• cilantro – a perfect touch to this salad, providing a refreshing taste and a burst of color. If cilantro isn’t your favorite, substitute with other herbs like fresh parsley.
• cotija cheese – brings creaminess and flavor.

Chicken Components

• chicken – you’ll need 2 or 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts. You can also opt for boneless skinless chicken thighs or chicken tenderloins.
• olive oil – helps impart flavor to the chicken and keeps it from sticking to the grill or pan. I prefer a good-quality olive oil that’s affordable, just ensure it’s cold-pressed and organic for optimal flavor.
• lime juice – fresh lime juice adds a tangy flavor, about half a lime is needed for the marinade. A bit of lime zest can also be added for extra zing!
• taco seasoning – I utilize my homemade taco seasoning, which is far tastier than store-bought packets full of sodium. It’s made with chili powder, ground cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano.
• salt + pepper – essential for seasoning the chicken.

For the Avocado Dressing

• avocado – the star of this dressing! Choose ripe avocados to ensure the dressing is deliciously creamy.
• garlic – fresh garlic makes the best flavor in this recipe, but you can substitute with one teaspoon of garlic powder.
• greek yogurt – I appreciate the tanginess greek yogurt adds to this dressing. Regular yogurt or sour cream can be used if that’s what you have.
• avocado oil – I love the subtle flavor of avocado oil in this dressing, allowing the other flavors to truly shine. Olive oil can also be used for a richer taste.
• lime juice – adds a fresh tang to the whole dressing and helps prevent the avocado from browning.
• cilantro – fresh cilantro enhances the flavor and imparts a vibrant green color. You can even leave the stems on as they will just add more flavor and blend up anyway.
• seasonings – a mixture of cumin, salt, and black pepper.

Steps to Create Southwestern Salad

1. Marinate chicken. Combine lime juice, olive oil, taco seasoning, salt, and pepper in a small bowl and toss with the chicken. Let it marinate for at least 30 minutes, up to 12 hours.
2. Chop veggies. While the chicken marinates, prepare the salad by washing and chopping romaine lettuce, slicing tomatoes and red onion, and chopping cilantro. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F if planning to bake chicken. Wait to chop the avocado until right before serving to keep it fresh!
3. Cook the chicken. Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165 F using a digital thermometer. Alternatively, grill the chicken on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes per side until juices run clear.
4. Prepare the dressing. While the chicken cooks, place all dressing ingredients in a food processor or blender, processing until smooth. Scrape down the sides as needed. Feel free to add a few tablespoons of water to thin it as desired. Store in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to use.
5. Assemble the salad. In a large bowl, combine lettuce, tomatoes, black beans, corn, avocado, red onion, cilantro, cheese, and diced chicken. Drizzle with avocado dressing and toss until combined. Serve as a main dish or alongside other options.

Variations and Alternatives

• Add More Veggies – While this salad is abundant in veggies, consider adding bell pepper strips, chopped celery, carrots, and more.
• Add a Crunch – This salad is full of textures and flavors, but you may enhance it with crushed tortilla chips, tortilla strips, pepitas, nuts, or crisp veggies.
• Incorporate Fresh Fruit – Introduce sweetness by adding fresh berries or sliced grapes.
• Substitute Cheese – Instead of crumbled cotija cheese, feel free to use shredded cheddar, feta, or blue cheese crumbles.
• Make It Spicy – To add heat to this salad, try adding red pepper flakes, hot sauce such as sriracha, or adobo sauce to the dressing or chicken marinade. Green chilis can also be tossed in the salad.
• Serve Over Rice – This southwestern chicken salad can make for wonderful rice bowls! Serve over brown rice or fluffy Mexican rice prepared in the instant pot.
• Wrap It Up – Pack this salad into a large tortilla for a substantial southwest chicken wrap or sandwich.
• Use the Dressing on other salads, as a dip for veggies, drizzled over tacos and fajitas, or even as a spread for sandwiches and wraps.

Serving Suggestions

This southwestern chicken salad is a fantastic stand-alone meal, but you can also pair it with these other dishes as a side salad:

Preparing this Salad in Advance

The wonderful aspect of this salad is that all elements can be easily prepared at the start of the week and stored in separate containers until it’s time to assemble.

• The chicken can be cooked up to 3 or 4 days ahead and tastes delicious warm or cold atop the salad. Leftover chicken, shredded crockpot chicken, or rotisserie chicken works well too.
• The avocado dressing can be kept in the refrigerator for about 2 to 3 days in a sealed jar or container. Shake it well before use to mix everything up.
• The romaine lettuce can be washed and kept in a container in the fridge until you are ready to make the salad.
• The tomatoes and red onion can be sliced ahead and stored in separate containers until assembly.

Additional Chicken Salad Recipes

I hope you all enjoy this simple Southwest Chicken Salad. If you like it as much as we do, please give a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below and remember to tag me on Instagram with the hashtag #eatyourselfskinny! I love seeing all your tasty recreations!