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chicken salad in a mason jar
SaladMeal Prep
April 23, 2018

Southwest Chicken Salad with Chipotle Greek Yogurt Dressing

Delicious southwest chicken salad with black beans and corn and paired with an incredible homemade healthy chipotle greek yogurt ranch dressing. This veggie and protein-packed salad is perfect for meal prep!

Prep Time
15 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Total Time
30 mins

a mason jar salad with labels on the side

Welcome to the first recipe for the #AKSaladChallenge featuring this incredibly easy and healthy Southwest Chicken Salad. We’re SO freaking excited to celebrate all the veggies with you!

We wanted to start the salad challenge, to encourage you to enjoy more seasonal produce, get more veggies in, have fun meal prepping and nourish your body.

This southwest chicken salad is an absolute favorite recipe of mine. Every time I go to a Mexican restaurant, I’m always ordering some version of this salad with a side of chips and a marg and it never ceases to bore me. This one is packed with grilled chicken breast that’s rubbed with taco-inspired spices, plus you’ll enjoy fiber-packed black beans, sweet corn, jalapenos, cilantro, tomatoes and cucumber.

I think these beautiful photos kind of speak for themselves, don’t you?

lettuce, avocado, black beans, chicken, corn, jalapeños, tomatoes, and cucumber pieces on a marble board

THINGS TO NOTE:

+If you’re vegetarian, no worries! Simply swap chicken for 1 can of chickpeas or add tofu.

+I’ve also included instructions on how to bake your chicken instead of grill it in the notes section below.

southwest chicken salad in a mason jar

SEE HOW TO MAKE THE SOUTHWEST CHICKEN SALAD HERE:

southwest chicken salad drizzled with dressing in a rectangle glass container

I hope you love this simple, easy southwest chicken salad recipe. Layer the salad up in large mason jars or throw it in meal prep containers for an on the go lunch or dinner. ENJOY! xo.

**Please note, we’re aware of a current recall of romaine lettuce in the U.S. Please feel free to use spinach in place of romaine in this recipe, and read more about the recall here. 

Want more salads like this one? Try these!

Balsamic Chicken Berry Quinoa Salad

Thai Chicken Quinoa Salad with Peanut Dressing

Greek Chickpea Chicken Salad

Southwest Chicken Salad with Chipotle Greek Yogurt Dressing

5 from 4 votes
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chicken salad in a mason jar
Course Gluten Free, Grain Free, Lunch, Meal Prep, Salad
Keyword southwest chicken salad
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Serves 4
Delicious southwest chicken salad with an incredible homemade chipotle greek yogurt ranch dressing. This veggie and protein-packed salad is perfect for meal prep!

Ingredients

  • For the chicken marinade:
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts*
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • For the chipotle ranch dressing:
  • 1/2 cup nonfat plain greek yogurt
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (or can sub apple cider vinegar)
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
  • 3/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder, or sub a few dashes of chipotle tabasco hot sauce
  • 2 tablespoons water to thin dressing
  • For the salad
  • 2 roma tomatoes, diced
  • 1/2 cup diced cucumber, from 1 medium cucumber
  • 1/2 cup corn
  • 1 cup black beans
  • 1 jalapeno, sliced
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 2-3 cups chopped romaine

Instructions

  1. Add chicken and marinade ingredients to a large ziploc bag. Marinate chicken for 20 minutes to 1 hour.
  2. While you are marinating your chicken, chop all your ingredients for your salads.
  3. Next, make your chipotle ranch dressing: Add all ingredients for the dressing to a small bowl and mix until well-combined.
  4. Once ready to cook chicken, preheat grill to medium high heat. Lightly oil the grate. Grill chicken breasts for 6-8 minutes per side, or until juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink. Once chicken has cooked, transfer to a cutting board and dice into bite sized pieces.
  5. Make the mason jar salads by dividing ingredients evenly between 4 (32-ounce) large mason jars in the following order: dressing, tomato, cucumber, corn, black beans, jalapeño, chicken breast, avocado, romaine.
  6. When ready to serve, pour contents from the mason jar onto a plate or into a bowl and enjoy! Makes 4 large mason jars.

Recipe Notes

To make vegetarian: sub 1 cup chickpeas or 1 package of extra firm tofu, cubed

To bake the chicken instead of grill: Bake chicken breasts on a greased baking sheet at 400 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.

Nutrition
Servings: 4 mason jar salads
Serving size: 1 mason jar salad
Calories: 380kcal
Fat: 15.7g
Saturated fat: 3.1g
Carbohydrates: 28.5g
Fiber: 9.9g
Sugar: 7.7g
Protein: 35.2g

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