Southwest Chicken Salad Winter
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Well here it is, the final season of the year for my Southwest Chicken Salads. There are still more ideas bouncing around in my head to use the black bean salsa, so it won’t be completely gone. 😉 This Southwest Chicken Salad Winter was originally created for a healthy eating contributor post…..
but in the end, I decided to go with the Paleo Chicken Stir-Fry for that post. I absolutely love these salads!! They are so simple to prepare, less than 30 minutes, and they are so delicious! I just don’t want to eat the same one every time, and that is why I change them up based on the seasons.
The Winter version features pomegranate seeds, also know as arils, and an Orange Cilantro Dressing. I was trying to keep it Paleo, so there is no mayonnaise in the dressing. (yes I do realize that black beans and corn are not Paleo either). This makes it a bit thinner than the Cilantro Lime Dressing from the Summer version, but still incredibly delicious!!
How to make Southwest Chicken Salad for Winter:
To make the salsa:
Toss the diced red pepper, onion, corn, pomegranate seeds, green onions, cilantro, cumin, chili pepper, salt, oil together in a large bowl and stir it together…..
Place the salsa in the refrigerator.
To make the Dressing:
Add the cilantro, garlic, vinegar, honey, and orange juice in the bowl of a food processor…..
Pulse to combine. While the machine is running, slowly add the olive oil…..
Blend until dressing reaches desired consistency. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use.
To make the Salad:
Place the lettuces, chicken, and salsa on a large platter or in a large bowl, and toss together…..
Serve with dressing and additional salsa on the side…..
See how easy that was!! Use leftover or rotisserie chicken to make it even easier. 🙂
I love how bright and colorful this salad is!! So how did I get the seeds out?
I just sliced it in half, then broke it apart and dropped the seeds into a bowl. I have seen all kinds of tips and tutorials on pinterest, but couldn’t seem to find one the day I needed it! It took a few minutes, but really wasn’t that bad at all.
more delicious Southwest Chicken Salad recipes:
1. Southwest Chicken Salad Spring with Avocado and Creamy Guacamole Ranch
2. Southwest Chicken Salad Summer with Mango and Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
3. Southwest Chicken Salad Fall with Roast Sweet Potatoes and Corn with Chipotle Ranch Dressing
It would have made sense to roast the bell pepper along with the sweet potatoes and corn….maybe next time!
Enjoy!!
Southwest Chicken Salad for Winter
Ingredients
For the Salsa
- ½ cup diced red pepper
- ½ cup diced red onion
- 1 can organic corn drained and rinsed
- 1 can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 pomegranate seeded
- 3 green onions chopped
- 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground chili powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
For the Dressing
- ½ cup olive oil
- ⅓ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- 2 large cloves fresh garlic
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
For the Salad
- 1 bag leaf lettuce I use European Blend
- 1 bag spring mix
- 2 cups shredded, cooked chicken
Instructions
To make the Salsa:
- Place diced bell pepper, onion, corn, pomegranate seeds, green onions, cilantro, oil, cumin, chili powder, and salt in a large bowl, and stir to combine. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
To make the Dressing:
- Place cilantro, garlic, vinegar, honey, and orange juice in the bowl of a food processor or blender. Blend to chop ingredients. Slowly pour in the olive oil while machine is running. Process to desired consistency. Store in refrigerator until ready to use.
To make the Salad:
- Place lettuce on a large platter or in a large bowl. Add the chicken and salsa. Toss to combine.
- Serve salad with dressing drizzled over the top.
Looks delicious, Lisa!! I love me some cilantro!! Pinned!
Thanks Claire, it’s one of my favorites as well! 🙂
Lisa, this is fantastic! I love salads and have enjoyed all your salad recipes – it looks so fresh and I would love one for lunch… Pinning!
Thank you Deb!! 🙂
I love salads like this! It’s warm enough here to enjoy them now–thanks for sharing! 🙂
You are so lucky Dee, it is still cold and snowing here! Have a great weekend. 🙂
This is such a bright and beautiful salad Lisa! I love the pomegranate and cilantro – pinning 🙂
Thank you so much Kelly!! 🙂
This sounds (and looks) amazing! I don’t know if yo have a Trader Joe’s near you, but they carry packaged pomegranate seeds. I’m pinning this for sure!
Oh how I wish I had a Trader Joe’s Amy, but I live in a corn field in Iowa! 😉 That would make my life so much easier…someday I will move back to the real world!!
I just found your recipe on Show Stopper Saturday and the timing was perfect. I just posted a link party on my website featuring Spinach recipes. I hope you’ll pop over and share it and any other spinach recipes in your archives.
Thanks so much Karen! 🙂
Wow. Now that’s a salad. I pinned this to my lunch board. Would love for you to linkup tomorrow for the Let’s Get Real Blog Hop at 5PM EST. mypinterventures.com
Thank you Erlene. 🙂
I love salads and that dressing sounds lovely. Thats very pretty. Thanks for sharing at Sweet and Savoury Sundays, I’d love you to stop by this weekend and link up!
It looks absolutely amazing. I’m pretty much sold on anything that uses Pomegranate arils. The dressing sounds fabulous too. Thanks for sharing on Foodie Friday
Thank you so much Adelina! 🙂
Hey Lisa, just wanted to let you know I shared this on a recipe round up today 🙂
Thanks so much for sharing Adelina! 🙂
The salsa portion of this recipe looks to have black beans in it but I don’t see them listed as an ingredient either in the blog or the list of ingredients. Could you tell me if they are indeed in there?
The recipe looks delicious and I am going to try it this winter as well as the one with sweet potatoes. Thanks for your hard work, you really help cooks like me who don’t have time to develop delicious new things to serve our families!