Recipe

This Southwest Santa Fe salad with grilled chicken knocks it out of the park with incredibly seasoned chicken, lots of fresh ingredients, avocado, and a simple vinaigrette to seal the deal.

A salad worthy of being served as a meal is what you'll get with this epic Southwest Santa Fe chicken salad recipe.

top view of santa fe chicken salad with tomatoes, avocado, corn, and black beans

Easy Santa Fe Salad

Laura fuentes holding a skillet of food standing in front of a blue door

In the Summer months, I often make this Santa Fe chicken salad as part of my weekly meal plan, and it helps get my kids used to eating more veggies; other times, I make a big batch and pre-pack it as work lunches for the week.

I also sometimes make this chicken salad with extra oven-roasted chicken. It’s packed with so much flavor you’ll forget you’re eating a healthy salad.

Ingredients

For this salad, you can cook chicken breasts from scratch with taco seasoning and a little olive oil, or use leftover chicken. To build the salad, I include lettuce (or other greens), cherry tomatoes, avocado, canned corn (or frozen), canned black beans (or other beans you like), and Cotija cheese (you can omit it or swap it for feta or goat cheese). Cumin vinaigrette is my favorite for this recipe, but you can use any other.

Cumin Vinaigrette

I'm a firm believer that the best salads come with homemade dressings. The warm taste of cumin pairs great with garlic, fresh lime juice, a pinch of spice from the chili, and a little honey to balance the flavor.

How to Make a Santa Fe Salad with Chicken

Make the dressing.
Combine all the ingredients in a jar, shake, and refrigerate.
Cook the chicken.
If you’re cooking chicken like in the recipe instructions below, now is the time. Otherwise, you can chop or shred the leftover chicken you plan to use to top your salad.
Assemble the salad.
In a large bowl, make a lettuce base and layer the other ingredients. Drizzle the vinaigrette all over the salad, and enjoy!

santa fe chicken salad with tomatoes, avocado, corn, and black beans

Laura’s Favorite Add-Ons for Santa Fe Salad

Whether you want to make your Santa Fe chicken salad more crunchy, creamy, fresh, or spicy, pick one or more of these add-ons ideas: tortilla strips, sliced jalapeño, black olives, cubed red bell pepper, Pico de gallo, sour cream, or avocado lime ranch dressing.

What to Serve with Santa fe Chicken Salad

This salad matches perfectly with a skinny margarita or a pineapple jalapeño margarita. If you also want to add something on the side, try these roasted parsnips, baked garlic parmesan fries, or fluffy homemade popovers.

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Southwest Santa Fe Chicken Salad

Servings: 6

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 25

This Southwest Santa Fe salad with grilled chicken knocks it out of the park with incredibly seasoned chicken, lots of fresh ingredients, avocado, and a simple vinaigrette to seal the deal.

5 from 25 votes

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Ingredients

1 ½ lbs chicken breasts, about 2
1 tablespoon taco seasoning
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 heads romaine or 1 large, washed and chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, diced
14 ounce can corn, drained and rinsed
14 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup cotija cheese, optional
½ cup cumin vinaigrette

For the vinaigrette:

1 large garlic clove grated, or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 ½ teaspoons cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons honey
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup lime juice, about 4 large limes

Instructions

Prep:

Make the vinaigrette by adding all the vinaigrette ingredients inside a mason jar or a dressing bottle. Shake well to combine and refrigerate for up to 7 days and ready to use.

Grill the chicken:

Pat the chicken breasts dry with a paper towel and season them on both sides with the taco seasoning.
Heat a cast iron skillet or large pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, pour the oil and distribute it around the hot surface. Place the chicken breasts on the pan and cook the first side for 7 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts over and cook for another 7 minutes on the other side, until the internal temperature reaches 165F. Cooking time on the second side will vary by the thickness of the chicken breast. Remove from the skillet or pan onto a board.

Build this dream salad:

Assemble the salad in a large bowl by layering the chopped Romaine, topping it with cherry tomatoes, diced avocados, black beans, corn, and sliced chicken breasts. Sprinkle the cotija cheese over the top.
Drizzle ½ cup salad dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve with lime wedges for an additional zest in life.

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