Southwest Chicken Salad featuring a Homemade Creamy Avocado Dressing

Experience the FINEST Southwest Chicken Salad paired with Velvety Avocado Dressing! Filled with vibrant vegetables, marinated grilled chicken, black beans, sweet corn, and crumbled cotija cheese. Everything is mixed together with the most delightful avocado cilantro dressing!

This Southwest Chicken Salad recipe has everything you adore and is bound to become your favorite! Indulging creamy dressing, succulent grilled chicken, fresh vegetables, black beans, and sweet corn are all enveloped in the FINEST avocado dressing. This is always my top choice when aiming to impress a crowd with a salad. I cherish the convenience of preparing this salad in advance for weekly lunches, plus the marinade is bursting with flavor! This wholesome recipe effectively helps you achieve your protein objectives while allowing you to enjoy healthy fats, ensuring you feel satisfied and full.

Reasons to Fall in Love with this Salad

• This salad is filling, nutritious, and brimming with your favorite southwest tastes. Your palate will appreciate it!
• Loaded with protein and healthy fats, making it the ultimate wholesome salad.
• An ideal option for meal prepping, as all components can be prepared in advance for quick assembly.
• The luscious avocado dressing is incredibly simple to make and elevates this salad!
• An excellent meal-sized salad suitable for serving to a group!

Ingredients You Will Need

Salad Components

• romaine lettuce – finely chopped romaine, but you can use any leafy greens like arugula, kale, or spinach.
• veggies – a vibrant mix of grape tomatoes, fresh corn (or fire-roasted corn), crunchy red onion, and a ripe avocado. Green onions can also be added for extra flavor.
• black beans – I opted for canned black beans, a fantastic protein source for this salad. Just remember to drain and rinse them.
• cilantro – a perfect addition that gives this salad a fresh burst of flavor and a splash of color. If you’re not a cilantro fan, you can substitute with other fresh herbs like parsley.
• cotija cheese – contributes creaminess and flavor.

Chicken Components

• chicken – you’ll require 2 or 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts. Boneless skinless thighs or chicken tenderloin are also options.
• olive oil – assists in infusing flavors into the chicken and keeps it from sticking during cooking. I prefer using a quality olive oil that is cold-pressed and organic for optimum flavor.
• lime juice – fresh lime juice imparts a zesty flavor, requiring approximately half a lime for the marinade. Feel free to add lime zest for an extra bite!
• taco seasoning – I created a homemade taco seasoning that tastes far superior to store-bought varieties loaded with sodium. It’s made from chili powder, ground cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and oregano.
• salt + pepper – essential for chicken seasoning.

For the Avocado Dressing

• avocado – the hero of this dressing! Ripe avocados are essential to achieve that creamy consistency.
• garlic – fresh garlic yields the best flavor for this recipe, but you can substitute with one teaspoon of garlic powder.
• greek yogurt – I enjoy the tanginess that greek yogurt adds to this dressing. Regular yogurt or even sour cream can work if that’s what you have.
• avocado oil – I absolutely love the subtle essence of avocado oil in this dressing, which allows the other flavors to shine. Olive oil can also be used for a richer taste.
• lime juice – this adds a refreshing zest to the dressing and helps prevent the avocado from browning.
• cilantro – fresh cilantro enhances flavor and adds vibrant green color. You can keep the stems on since they improve taste and will get blended up.
• seasonings – a mix of cumin, salt, and black pepper.

Steps to Create the Southwestern Salad

1. Marinate the chicken. In a small bowl, whisk together lime juice, olive oil, taco seasoning, salt, and pepper, then combine with chicken. Let the chicken marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes to up to 12 hours.
2. Prepare the veggies. While the chicken marininates, wash and chop the romaine lettuce, slice the tomatoes and red onion, and chop the cilantro. If you plan to bake the chicken, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F now. To keep it fresh, wait until just before serving to chop the avocado!
3. Cook the chicken. Bake chicken at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes, or until its internal temperature hits 165 F, verified with a digital thermometer. You can also grill the chicken on a grill or grill pan for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, until the juices run clear.
4. Prepare the dressing. As the chicken cooks, place all dressing ingredients in a food processor or high-speed blender and process until smooth. Scrape down the sides as needed. If desired, add a couple of tablespoons of water to thin the dressing to your preferred consistency. Store in the refrigerator in a sealed container until ready to use.
5. Combine the salad. In a sizable mixing bowl, mix the lettuce, tomatoes, black beans, corn, avocado, red onion, cilantro, cheese, and diced chicken. Drizzle with the avocado dressing and toss until well combined. Serve either as a main dish or as a side.

Variations and Alternates

• Add more veggies – although this salad is already rich in vegetables, you can include red bell pepper strips, green pepper, chopped celery, carrots, and more.
• Add some crunch – this salad is full of texture and flavor; you can include crushed tortilla chips, tortilla strips, pepitas, nuts, or crunchy veggies.
• Add fresh fruit – incorporate some sweetness with fresh berries or sliced grapes.
• Cheese swaps – if you prefer, substitute crumbled cotija cheese with shredded cheddar, feta, or blue cheese crumbles.
• Make it spicy – to enhance the heat in this salad, add red pepper flakes, sriracha, or adobo sauce to the dressing or chicken marinade. Green chilis can also spice it up.
• Serve over rice – consider making delicious rice bowls with this southwest chicken salad, hosting it atop brown rice or fluffy Mexican rice from the instant pot.
• In a wrap – wrap this salad in a large tortilla to make a hearty southwest chicken wrap or sandwich.
• Use the dressing on other salads, as a veggie dip, drizzled over tacos and fajitas, or even as a spread for sandwiches and wraps.

Serving Suggestions

This southwestern chicken salad is a fantastic standalone meal, but you could also pair it as a side salad with the following dishes:

Preparing this Salad in Advance

The beauty of this salad lies in how easily its components can be made ahead of time at the start of the week and stored separately until assembly.

• The chicken can be prepared up to 3 or 4 days in advance and tastes delightful warm or cold on the salad. Leftover chicken, crock pot shredded chicken, or rotisserie chicken can also be used.
• The avocado dressing can be kept in the fridge for approximately 2 to 3 days in a sealed mason jar or container. When ready to use, give it a good shake to mix everything together.
• The romaine lettuce can be washed and stored in a container in the fridge until you’re ready to make the salad.
• The tomatoes and red onion can be sliced ahead of time and stored in separate containers until you’re ready to combine the salad.

More Chicken Salad Recipes

I hope you enjoy this easy Southwest Chicken Salad! Should you find it as delicious as we do, please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below and don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using the hashtag #eatyourselfskinny! I love to see your culinary creations!