Chicken Taco Salad with Chili Lime Chicken is an easy summer salad recipe that is perfect for the main dish on a hot summer day! Fresh crispy romaine lettuce topped with Juicy chicken with an amazing chili rub, corn, black beans, tomatoes and homemade taco seasoning salad dressing.
Chicken Taco Salad
We love tacos, so this Skinny Chicken Taco Salad is a big hit in our house. My husband has been in a huge salad kick recently and I am not the type who can just eat a boring salad over and over again. I need to change it up and I need to feel full after eating my salad.
I love this Chicken Taco Salad with grilled chicken for this very reason, it is very filling with the chicken and the beans. Yet it has a light dressing made with Greek yogurt.
Looking for more tasty salad recipes? Check these out!
What to Serve with Chicken Taco Salad
You can serve this southwest taco salad by itself as a meal or you can enjoy it as the main dish. There are lots of tasty side dishes that you can serve with this taco salad recipe.
- Mexican Rice
- Homemade Tortilla chips and Guacamole
- White Cheddar Queso
- Sheet pan Quesadillas
- Restaurant Style Salsa
- Taco Cups
- Cheese Quesadillas
How to Bake Chicken
I normally use chili lime chicken when I make this easy chicken taco salad, but if you want to bake chicken you can and it is easy to do.
Place chicken breasts in a baking pan add a little olive oil and rub it on the bottom of the pan so the chicken does not stick. Then cook at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes. You want the chicken to be at 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Tips for making this recipe
Use a Salad Spinner. Having a salad spinner makes it really easy to get your lettuce washed, I don’t know about you but I hate it when I get water all over the place when I am washing my lettuce. It drives me crazy, so a salad spinner saves me clean up time!
Serve cold or hot. This chicken taco salad recipe works well if the chicken, corn and beans are warm or chilled.
Make it Low Carb! If you are sticking to a low carb diet, skip the corn and black beans when making this salad.
Make it a meal or a side dish! If you would like to have this as a side dish you easily can or you can make it the main dish of a meal.
Use chicken you have on hand or chili lime chicken. I love making this Chicken Taco Salad with my chili lime chicken but if you are running short on time you can always use a rotisserie chicken or chicken breast you already have cooked.
How to Make Taco Salad Dressing
Making taco salad dressing is easy. All you need is Taco sauce, greek yogurt and ranch dressing. Mix them all together in a bowl or a salad dressing shaker and you are done.
I personally like to keep the salad dressing in my fridge for whenever I want to use it because it is an amazing taco salad dressing.
It is easy to double/triple/10 times the salad dressing recipe and store it in the fridge. Then I use this salad dressing shaker for mixing the salad dressing in it and then storing it in the fridge. You can easily pour your dressing on your salad right from the salad dressing shaker.
Chicken Taco Salad Ingredients
- Chicken
- Taco salad Dressing
- Romain Lettuce
- Grape tomatoes
- Canned black beans
- Black Olives
- Canned or fresh cooked corn
- Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- avocado
Chicken Taco Salad Dressing ingredients
- Jarred Taco Sauce
- Ranch Dressing
- Plain Greek Yogurt
Chicken Salad Taco Chicken & Chicken Rub Ingredients
- chicken breasts
- olive oil
- lime
- chili powder
- garlic powder
- brown sugar – if you are low carb or keto then use Golden Monkfruit
- chipotle chili powder
- ground cumin
- paprika
- onion powder
- salt
- black pepper
How to Make Taco Salad with Chicken
Mix all spices, brown sugar, olive oil and lime together in a small bowl.
Slice your chicken breast into to thin slices so you end up with 4-6 thin but wide pieces of chicken breast.
Rub the chicken with the mixture and place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
Grill the chicken at 375 for 6 minutes on each side until the internal temperature reaches 160°.
Remove from the grill and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing.
While the chicken is sitting, prep your salad ingredients.
Wash and chop the romaine lettuce. And place into bowls or on plates.
In a small bowl mix taco sauce, greek yogurt and ranch dressing and set aside.
Was the tomatoes and dice them, and place on top of the lettuce.
Drain the olives and slice them and place on top of the salad.
Rinse the canned corn and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes. If using frozen bagged corn heat the corn according to the package and then put on top of the salad.
Rinse the black beans and pour into a bowl and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes and then put on top of the salad.
Shred and sprinkle the cheese on top of the salad.
Slice the chicken once fully rested and place on top of the salad.
Drizzle with the homemade taco salad dressing.
Love tacos? Check these out!
- Chicken Taco Lettuce Wraps
- Crockpot Taco Soup
- Homemade taco seasoning
- Crockpot taco meat
- Chaffle Taco shells
- Layered Taco Dip
- Crockpot chicken tacos
- Taco Pockets
Chicken Taco Salad with Chili Lime Chicken
Ingredients
Chicken Taco Salad ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken breasts
- Taco Salad dressing
- 2 cups grape tomatoes
- 3 cups romaine lettuce
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 15 ounce can black beans
- 15 ounces corn canned or frozen
- 6 ounces canned black olives
- 1 hass avocado
Taco Salad Chicken Rub Ingredients
- 1 lime zest and the juice
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Taco Salad Dressing ingredients
- 1/2 cup taco sauce
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup ranch dressing
Instructions
- Mix all spices, brown sugar, olive oil and lime together in a small bowl.
- Slice your chicken breast into to thin slices so you end up with 4-6 thin but wide pieces of chicken breast.
- Rub the chicken with the mixture and place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
- Grill the chicken at 375 for 6 minutes on each side until the internal temperature reaches 160°.
- Remove from the grill and let sit for 5 minutes before slicing.
- While the chicken is sitting, prep your salad ingredients.
- Wash and chop the romaine lettuce. And place into bowls or on plates.
- In a small bowl mix taco sauce, greek yogurt and ranch dressing and set aside.
- Was the tomatoes and dice them, and place on top of the lettuce.
- Drain the olives and slice them and place on top of the salad.
- Rinse the canned corn and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes. If using frozen bagged corn heat the corn according to the package and then put on top of the salad.
- Rinse the black beans and pour into a bowl and heat in the microwave for 2 minutes and then put on top of the salad.
- Peel and slice the avocado and place on top of the salad.
- Shred and sprinkle the cheese on top of the salad.
- Slice the chicken once fully rested and place on top of the salad.
- Drizzle with the homemade taco salad dressing.
Use low fat cheese and low fat dressing and this salad is 7 Weight Watchers FreeStyle Points!
More Chicken Recipes you will love!
- Slow Cooker Parmesan Garlic Chicken Bake
- Rosemary Garlic Chicken Meatballs
- Slow Cooker Asian Chicken
- Dorito Chicken Casserole
- Chicken and Potato Casserole
- Cracker Barrel Chicken and Dumplings
Comments & Reviews
Ashley Tobey says
Hi!
What’s 1/2 ranch dressing? Half a cup? Half a packet?
Stephanie says
1/2 of a cup of ranch dressing.
Alyssa says
Is taco sauce the same as taco seasoning?
Stephanie says
No it is not it is a premade sauce you can find in the same spot as taco seasoning in the store.
Linda says
Do you have the nutritional information for this salad?
Stephanie says
No, sorry I do not. If you would like you can always put these ingredients into a food calculator online.