READY IN 1¼ hrs

Spicy Southwest Chopped Salad with Salsa Verde

Read Reviews (11)

"This is by far the best summer salad I have ever made! You can adjust the amount of spice, depending on your preference by adding more or less jalapeno and Cajun seasoning. The salsa verde makes a big enough batch that you can have more for dipping chips later. It is a great low-fat, all-in-one meal. This dish can also be topped with crushed tortilla chips, if desired." — Jenny from WA

Directions

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a rolling boil; add the corn and boil 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the corn and allow to cool until cool enough to handle. Cut the corn off of the cob and place into a large mixing bowl; set aside.
Place the tomatillos, cilantro, jalapeno, onion, garlic, salt, and 4 teaspoons of lime juice into a blender. Pulse until the vegetables have been finely chopped; set aside. Toss the avocado with 1 teaspoon of lime juice and mix with the corn, cabbage, black beans, and bell pepper.
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat and lightly oil the grate. Season the chicken breasts with Cajun seasoning.
Cook the chicken breasts on the preheated grill until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 6 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C). Set the breasts aside until cool enough to handle; cut into bite sized pieces.
Divide the lettuce leaves onto 4 plates. Mound the avocado mixture on top of the lettuce, followed by the chicken. Sprinkle with cotija cheese and garnish with lime wedges to serve.

Kitchen-Friendly View

PREP 45 mins
COOK 30 mins
READY IN 1 hr 15 mins

Reviews More Reviews

Aug 24, 2009

LOVED this salad! Made it just as described. The flavors are perfect. Left out the cotija, couldn't find it at my store. My husband wants me to make the salsa all of the time now!! 2nd Review..just made this salad with ground beef...wow! So yummy this time added the cotija cheese and went to heaven. Can't wait for the lefties....

—MIADAMIANI

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Jun 10, 2010

This is delicious and I could tell just by looking at it that it's a nutritionist's dream. For my comments/suggestions: I used Queso Fresco instead of Cotija because it's much cheaper (less than half the cost). Also, I seasoned the chicken with salt, pepper and chile powder and I was quite happy with that in place of the cajun seasoning. I had one serving without avocado and I would say that is a must for the recipe. And lastly, I would actually suggest skipping the lettuce.

—cheeziekt

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16 Ratings

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Jul 27, 2009

This salad was delicious! I used raw corn, omitted the chicken and the beans, and tossed the veggies with the salsa verde (which is what I'm assuming you're supposed to do, but the directions leave you hanging). Great flavor, nice texture, and very pretty--good for a party. If you've never had cotija, it's a very dry, mild, salty cheese; it reminds me of cheese curd. If you can find it, use it (but I wouldn't sub anything else)--it really adds to this salad.

—KymInNM

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Feb 16, 2010

Yum! Loved it!!

—dabergmans

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May 08, 2011

Made this for Recipe Group: 30, April '11. My family really enjoyed this salad. It is a little time consuming to put together, but worth it. I realized as I'm typing this review that we forgot to put the cheese on it. The dressing on this salad is the best part in my opinion. I will most certainly make the dressing again. The lime flavor is a very nice compliment to this salad. Thanks Jenny for sharing.

—Molly

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May 03, 2011

Made this for Recipe Group. I prepped everything and then put the avocado mix on some Boston lettuce leaves, adding the salsa verde on top (as stated, it doesn’t say what you are supposed to do with it), Queso Fresco on top of that, chicken on the sides and garnished with lime wedges. The cilantro overpowered the salsa for me, I don’t care much for it anyway. The salad as a whole seemed to be just dry raw veggies with chicken. If the salsa is supposed to be mixed in with the avocado mix, that may account for the dryness part. Although I did mix it all together before eating. I didn’t care too much for it and added in some Catalina dressing. A nice southwest dressing would go wonderful here. Hubby liked it and added more of the salsa to his. Thanks for the recipe.

—sassyoldlady

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May 01, 2011

Overall, a good salad that I will make again for sure but lacked the wow factor that would have made it 5 star. This only took me an hour to prepare. I made the corn in the microwave and wish I had actually grilled it. I also didn't have red peppers so used green and added a little tomato garnish for color. The salsa was very good and had a different texture(which we liked) than most other verde recipes I've tried. The instructions didn't really say what to do with the salsa so I used it as dressing. I think I would prefer mixing some with the avocado mixture to "disperse" it better as it's rather thick and doesn't really pour. I like a little taste in every bite and the overall dish was a little "dry" served as it was. Without the lettuce, it would make a pretty good summer side dish, that would hold up well. Thanks, Jenny (and the Recipe Group)

—linda2d

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Nov 24, 2010

Excellent flavor, although labor intensive. Worth it though!

—Carol

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Nutrition

Calories
550 kcal
28%

Carbohydrates
50 g
16%

Cholesterol
99 mg
33%

Fat
22.4 g
34%

Fiber
17.5 g
70%

Protein
43 g
86%

Sodium
1209 mg
48%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Nutritional Information

Spicy Southwest Chopped Salad with Salsa Verde

Serving Size: 1/4 of a recipe
Servings Per Recipe: 4
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 550
Calories from Fat: 202

% Daily Value *
Total Fat 22.4g 34 %
Saturated Fat 8.5g 42 %
Cholesterol 99mg 33 %
Sodium 1209mg 48 %
Potassium 1632mg 46 %
Total Carbohydrates 50g 16 %
Dietary Fiber 17.5g 70 %
Protein 43g 86 %
** Sugars 10.9g
** Vitamin A 152 %
** Vitamin C 192 %
** Calcium 44 %
** Iron 55 %
** Thiamin 50 %
** Niacin 180 %
** Vitamin B6 66 %
** Magnesium 53 %
** Folate 108 %

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
** Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.