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Published: Apr 2, 2022 · Updated: Apr 3, 2022. Post contains affiliate links. See full disclosure page for details.

Spicy Southwest Salad

This spicy southwest salad is what dreams are made of! With an easy spicy ranch dressing, perfectly seasoned chicken, and tons of vegetables, it’ll be your new go-to salad at home!

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There is literally nothing I love more than a fresh summer salad on a hot evening. Salads are so versatile with toppings and dressings, they can truly be anything you want them to be!

My favorite salad right now is the spicy southwest chicken salad. Chicken marinated in honey, fresh lime juice, and seasonings, then grilled to perfection is already delicious. But then, placed atop a bed of lettuce, avocado, fresh vegetables, and smothered in homemade spicy ranch dressing, you just can’t beat it!

If you’re ready to try a delicious new summer salad, then you’ve come to the right place! Let’s get cooking!

A spicy southwest chicken salad on a platter drizzled with southwest ranch dressing.
Jump to:
  • What is a spicy southwest salad?
  • What does southwest chicken salad taste like?
  • What’s in a southwest chicken salad?
  • Substitutions
  • How to Make Southwest Salad
  • Grilled Chicken Tips
  • Storage Instructions
  • Tips & FAQ
  • Nutritional Info
  • Pricing Info
  • Other Cinco De Mayo Recipes
  • Recipe

What is a spicy southwest salad?

Although there are many variations of this grilled southwest chicken salad, this one is a regular chicken salad that’s been totally jazzed-up with spicy southwest flavor!

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    Southwest-inspired ingredients like black beans, corn, avocado, cilantro, and tortilla strips all drizzled with a spicy ranch dressing made with hot sauce just beg to be eaten!

    What does southwest chicken salad taste like?

    This southwest avocado chicken salad tastes like a super flavorful chicken salad. The chicken is marinated in a sweet and tangy marinade, then grilled to juicy perfection. The salad greens are fresh and crunchy, and with all the added toppings, it basically tastes like a burrito and a salad had a baby. This salad recipe is that baby!

    What’s in a southwest chicken salad?

    The ingredients needed to make spicy southwest chicken salad with southwest ranch dressing.

    Lime – You’ll end up using at least one lime for this recipe, both zested and juiced to help flavor and marinade the chicken. If you’re a big fan of lime, buy a couple more to squeeze over your finished salads.

    Garlic powder – One of the marinade ingredients, it just adds a nice garlic flavor to the chicken.

    Cumin – This is a southwest chicken salad, so we need to add some southwest flavors like cumin!

    Chili powder – One of the main flavors in the chicken, chili powder just adds a nice color and taste to the chicken breasts.

    Salt – This helps tenderize the meat as it sits in the marinade, so don’t skip it. If you’re looking for a lower sodium chicken, reduce the amount of salt down to 1/4 teaspoon.

    Honey – Adding honey to the marinade makes the chicken a little sweet, and who doesn’t like a sweet and spicy chicken?

    Avocado oil – This will add some moisture to chicken breasts, which are prone to drying out.

    Chicken breasts – The main protein source of this recipe. Chicken breasts grill easily and take on a lot of flavors!

    Ranch dressing – You could just use ranch dressing for this salad, but then it wouldn’t be spicy! Give your ranch dressing a kick instead by adding in hot sauce!

    Hot sauce – Transform regular ranch dressing into a spicy southwest ranch by just adding a few tablespoons of your favorite hot sauce.

    Lettuce – It wouldn’t be a salad without lettuce!

    Tomatoes – I love to add tomatoes for the flavor, color, and vitamins they provide!

    Black beans – Low sodium black beans that are drained and rinsed work great for this salad recipe!

    Bell pepper – I like to use red bell peppers because they’re sweeter than the other colors. You can use any color you’d like, though!

    Avocado – A filling and healthy fat source, avocado adds a great texture to this southwest salad recipe!

    Corn – I use frozen that I thaw under hot water, but you can use canned or fresh if you’d like, too!

    Tortilla strips – You can buy tortilla strips for salads at the grocery store. They’re usually by the salad kits in the produce department. You can also sometimes find them in bulk bins at a discount grocery store like Winco.

    Red onion – As if this salad recipe didn’t have enough color, red onion adds a gorgeous purple and provides a little more flavor, too!

    Cilantro – Garnish your salad with cilantro, or skip it altogether!

    Substitutions

    Chicken breasts – You can eliminate this ingredient altogether to keep this salad vegetarian, and you won’t need any of the marinade ingredients, either!

    Ranch dressing – Instead of using ranch dressing and mixing it with hot sauce, you could buy a premade southwest salad dressing or even an avocado lime dressing, too!

    Hot sauce – Feel free to use your favorite hot sauce! Cholula, sriracha, or tapatio all work great. I personally like using chipotle Cholula for it’s smoky and spicy flavor!

    Tomatoes – I used Roma tomatoes, but you can use any kind you want. You could even use grape or cherry tomatoes.

    Black beans – Black beans are a favorite in my house, but garbanzo beans also work great!

    Bell pepper – Feel free to use any color you’d like. The orange and red are sweeter than the green and yellow, though.

    Tortilla strips – If you can’t find tortilla strips, just break up some regular tortilla chips and sprinkle them on!

    How to Make Southwest Salad

    • Chicken breasts in lime honey marinade.
    • Marinated chicken breasts on a grill pan.
    • Ranch dressing and hot sauce stirred together in a bowl.
    • A spicy southwest chicken salad drizzled with southwest spicy ranch dressing.
    1. In a large bowl or gallon-sized zip lock, combine the chicken marinade ingredients. Add the chicken breasts, and toss until covered in the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours.
    2. Spray a grill pan with cooking spray, then heat on medium heat. Once the grill pan is hot, add the chicken breasts, and cook for 5-6 minutes on each side. Once the chicken is cooked, set aside to cool, then slice into thin strips.
    3. Make the southwest ranch dressing. Add the ranch dressing and hot sauce to a small bowl, then stir until combined. Set aside.
    4. Assemble your salads with lettuce, tomatoes, black beans, bell pepper, avocado, corn, red onion, tortilla strips, cilantro, and lime juice. Drizzle with the spicy ranch dressing and eat up!

    Grilled Chicken Tips

    To make perfectly grilled chicken on your stovetop, there are a few things you should know beforehand!

    1. Preheat your grill pan. If you want perfect grill lines on your chicken, you need to make sure your grill pan is hot! Heat it up for 2-3 minutes on medium heat before adding your chicken to make sure it sears perfectly.
    2. Spray oil on your grill pan. Not only will doing this make clean-up easier, it will also help the chicken become golden brown and not stick to the pan. Chicken that gets stuck to the pan will not be pretty.
    3. Don’t flip your chicken multiple times. Make sure to cook for the full 5-6 minutes on each side, but don’t cook either side more than once. If you flip your chicken back and forth multiple times, you’ll give the chicken multiple grill marks and it won’t look perfectly grilled.

    Storage Instructions

    If you find that you’ve got some leftovers, feel free to store assembled salads in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 2 days. Just make sure to store the dressing and tortilla strips separately, and consider waiting to cut the avocado up for the salad until the day you plan to eat it.

    Tips & FAQ

    Are grilled chicken salads good for you?

    They absolutely are! As long as you stay away from pouring too much high-fat or high-sugar dressing on, then they are great for you! Grilled chicken salads are usually loaded with vegetables, lean protein, and fiber to keep you full and keep you healthy, too!

    How long do you grill chicken?

    Grilled chicken is easy to make, and for chicken breasts, grilling on either the outdoor grill or your grill pan takes about 5-6 minutes on each side.

    Can I make grilled chicken salad ahead of time?

    Yes you can! For this southwest grilled chicken salad, go ahead and assemble your salad, but leave off the avocado, dressing, and the tortilla strips until the day you plan to eat it. Store your salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.

    Nutritional Info

    This southwest chicken salad recipe is full of healthy fats, fiber, and lean protein, making it an insanely filling and healthy salad recipe.

    To keep it on the low sodium side, use a lower sodium ranch dressing, and low sodium beans as well.

    Overall, for a full meal full of every color in the rainbow, this salad recipe is perfectly reasonable in terms of calories. Enjoy!

    Total nutritional content per serving is:

    • Calories: 564 calories
    • Total Fat: 30 grams
    • Protein: 30 grams
    • Sodium: 776 mg
    • Carbohydrates: 48 grams
    • Fiber: 14 grams

    *This nutritional information is an estimate and calculated based on the ingredients used to create the recipe. The nutritional value of your ingredients may differ slightly. Furthermore, this food is not intended to prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat any disease.

    A spicy southwest chicken salad on a platter drizzled with southwest ranch dressing.

    Pricing Info

    This is what I personally paid to make this recipe:

    • 1 lime: $0.58
    • 1 tsp garlic powder: $0.09
    • ½ tsp cumin: $0.06
    • 1 tsp chili powder: $0.04
    • ½ tsp salt: $0.02
    • 2 tbsp honey: $0.80
    • 1 tbsp avocado oil: $0.27
    • 2 chicken breasts: $2.48
    • ½ cup ranch dressing: $0.67
    • 3 tbsp hot sauce: $0.98
    • 1 head green leaf lettuce: $2.28
    • 2 tomatoes: $0.67
    • 1 can black beans: $0.78
    • 1 red bell pepper: $0.98
    • 2 avocado: $1.16
    • 1 cup corn: $0.33
    • ½ red onion: $0.34
    • ½ cup tortilla strips: $0.43

    The total comes out to be around $12.96 or roughly $3.24 per salad!

    Other Cinco De Mayo Recipes

    • A yellow bell pepper stuffed with quinoa and topped with cheese.
      Quinoa Stuffed Bell Peppers
    • A carne asada quesadilla cut into 4s with lime wedges, cilantro, and guacamole.
      Carne Asada Quesadillas w/Slow Cooker Steak
    • Sheet pan huevos ranceros with egg, cilantro, homemade sauce, and diced tomatoes
      Sheet Pan Huevos Rancheros | An Easy Brunch
    • Slow Cooker Carne Asada Bowls w/Mango Sauce

    Shop my recipe:

    Tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating in the comments below! I would really appreciate your feedback!

    Recipe

    A spicy southwest salad on a platter drizzled with spicy ranch dressing.
    Print Recipe
    5 from 4 votes

    Spicy Southwest Salad

    This spicy southwest salad is what dreams are made of! With an easy spicy ranch dressing and avocado, it'll be your new go-to salad at home!
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time10 mins
    Total Time20 mins
    Course: Main Course, Salad
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: Spicy Southwest Salad
    Servings: 4 servings
    Calories: 564kcal
    Author: Megan Byrd, RD
    Cost: $12.96 or $3.24/serving

    Ingredients

    Chicken Marinade

    • 1 lime juiced and zested
    • 1 tsp garlic powder
    • ½ tsp cumin
    • 1 tsp chili powder
    • ½ tsp salt
    • 2 tbsp honey
    • 1 tbsp avocado oil
    • 2 chicken breasts

    Spicy Ranch Dressing

    • ½ cup ranch dressing
    • 2-3 tbsp hot sauce of choice I used Chipotle Cholula

    For the Salad

    • 1 head green leaf lettuce chopped
    • 2 tomatoes diced
    • 1 can black beans drained and rinsed
    • 1 red bell pepper sliced
    • 2 avocado sliced
    • 1 cup corn
    • ½ red onion sliced
    • ½ cup tortilla strips
    • cilantro for garnish and lime wedges

    Instructions

    • In a large bowl or gallon-sized zip lock, combine the chicken marinade ingredients. Add the chicken breasts, and toss until covered in the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours.
    • Spray a grill pan with cooking spray, then heat on medium heat. Once the grill pan is hot, add the chicken breasts, and cook for 5-6 minutes. Flip the chicken breasts and cook on the other side for 5-6 minutes as well. Don't flip the chicken back and forth, as you won't get the perfect grill marks! Once the chicken is cooked, set aside to cool, then slice into thin strips.
    • While the chicken is cooking, make the southwest ranch dressing. Add the ranch dressing and hot sauce to a small bowl, then stir until combined. Set aside.
    • Assemble your salads with lettuce, tomatoes, black beans, bell pepper, avocado, corn, red onion, tortilla strips, cilantro, and lime juice. Drizzle with the spicy ranch dressing and eat up!

    Video

    Nutrition

    Calories: 564kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 30g | Sodium: 776mg | Fiber: 14g

    Pin me for later!

    Spicy southwest chicken salad.

    If you end up making this and loving it, take a photo and tag me on Instagram! I’d love to see your versions of my recipes! And feel free to rate it down below in the comment section. I would really appreciate it!

    This spicy southwest grilled chicken salad is one you’ll be making every spring and summer from now on! I can’t wait to hear what you think!

    xoxo Megan

    « Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Soup
    Air Fryer Asparagus Recipe »

    Categories: 30 Minute Meals

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Michelle says

      June 14, 2022 at 9:21 am

      5 stars
      I could eat this for lunch every day this summer! And the dressing is perfect for it!

      Reply
    2. Michele says

      June 12, 2022 at 8:49 am

      5 stars
      Yum! My husband and I loved it. This is our kind of salad with the southwest flavors. Thank you for sharing.

      Reply
    3. kushigalu says

      June 12, 2022 at 8:20 am

      5 stars
      How colorful & refreshing is this salad recipe. Love the flavors here. Thanks for sharing

      Reply
      • Megan Byrd, RD says

        June 12, 2022 at 8:32 am

        Thank you so much! I love the colors too! 🙂

        Reply
    4. Jacqueline says

      June 12, 2022 at 8:01 am

      5 stars
      Just said “oh my goodness” out loud when I saw that first photo. And I love ranch dressing!

      Reply

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