Southwestern Chicken Salad

This Southwestern Chicken Salad is full of healthy ingredients like kale, vegetables, cheese, corn, black beans, and chicken that are chopped and combined. This salad is topped with an incredibly delicious Cilantro Lime Avocado Dressing.

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Get back to eating better with this Southwestern Chicken Salad.

A complete salad recipe that’s easy to make, filling, and full of flavor is always a great choice for lunch or dinner and this salad meets all those requirements.

The icing on the cake (or rather, the dressing on the salad) is a Cilantro Lime Avocado Dressing that is so good. You will want to eat it straight off the spoon! But, if it isn’t your jam, you can use any salad dressing or vinaigrette that you like. We sometimes use balsamic vinaigrette like the one in this Apple Walnut Salad recipe or ranch dressing.

Why This Recipe Works

This salad is loaded with healthy ingredients like kale, chicken, red peppers, black beans, spicy cheese, and avocado.

You can enjoy this salad for lunch or dinner. For a heartier meal, add a bowl of soup or half of a sandwich.

This salad can be prepared and on the table in just 20 minutes. 

Step-By-Step Instructions

Ingredients

Salad

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken (diced into bite size pieces)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
• 2 teaspoons chili powder (divided)
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup black beans (canned, drained and rinsed)
• 1 cup corn
• 1/2 cup roasted red peppers (jarred, diced): you can use raw red peppers if you’d like instead.
• 4 cups kale (chopped)
• 1/2 cup pepper jack cheese (diced)

Cilantro Lime Avocado Dressing

• 2 limes (juiced)
• 1 avocado (diced)
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro (loosely packed)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup: you could also use honey or agave, if preferred.
• salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)

The entire recipe and instructions can also be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. You can also print the recipe from the card, if needed.

Prep!

 

Dice the chicken into small cubes, chop the kale into bite size pieces, and cut the cheese into small cubes.

Create!

Season the chicken with salt, pepper, and 1 teaspoon of the chili powder.

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat and add the chicken. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, or until no longer pink in the center. Set aside to cool.

In a small bowl, combine the black beans, corn, roasted red peppers, and remaining teaspoon of the chili powder. Stir to combine.

To make the avocado dressing, add the lime juice, avocado, cilantro, olive oil, and maple syrup to a blender cup.  Season with salt and pepper.  Blend until well combined and smooth.

Taste and adjust seasonings, as needed. You can add more lime juice if it’s too sweet or more maple syrup if you’d prefer it to be sweeter.

Present!

Divide the kale, beans and corn mixture, cheese, and chicken between 4 bowls.  

Top with 1-2 tablespoons of the dressing.

Toss, if desired, and enjoy!

Tips & Techniques

• If you do not like kale, you can substitute romaine, butter, or iceberg lettuce instead. You could also make this salad with arugula and/or spinach, as well.
• Store any leftover salad and dressing separately, tightly covered, in the refrigerator. Consume the salad within 2-3 days. The dressing may not keep very long due the fact that the avocado may start browning. The lime juice does help to slow this process down quite a bit.

FAQ’s

Is Southwestern Chicken Salad Gluten Free?

Yes, this recipe is 100% gluten free without any needed modifications.

Is Southwestern Chicken Salad Healthy?

With the definition of “healthy” meaning different things to different people, I can say that this salad is loaded with good-for-you vegetables and healthy fats like avocado and extra virgin olive oil.

More Salad Recipes

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This recipe was originally published on July 17, 2017. It was updated with new images, step-by-step instructions, tips, techniques, and FAQ’s in February 2014.