Southwestern Chicken Salad

It would be appropriate at the very outset of this recipe to make the confession that I absolutely love sweet corn.  So any recipe that has corn in it instantly becomes my favorite and in this salad I use roast corn which makes it smoky and sweet at the same time. I have had various versions of this salad but the ones I like the most are those that have a balance between the savory and the sweet ingredients.  I like this salad cause it is easy to make (since I buy the rotisserie chicken from the super market and the rest of the ingredients need very little cooking) and nutritionally balanced (since it has protein from chicken, beans and cheese) and it is relatively low fat (uses minimal quantity of low-fat salad dressing) and it tastes great (always the most pertinent issue for me).

Ingredients:

  1. ½ cup of shredded or chopped breast meat from an herb roasted rotisserie chicken.
  2. ¼ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese.
  3. One can of Black beans
  4. 2 table spoons of low fat ranch dressing
  5. 3-4 spring onions
  6. Half a head of fresh Romaine lettuce
  7. One ripe avocado
  8. Juice of half a lemon
  9. 10-12 crispy tortilla chips
  10. 2 tablespoons of fresh chopped cilantro leaves
  11. Two ears of sweet corn

Directions:

  1. On an open flame, roast the ears of corn (roast them evenly on all sides)
  2. When the corn is roasted, cut the kernels off the cob using a sharp knife. Let the corn cool down.
  3. Chop the lettuce leaves and place them in a large salad bowl.
  4. Chop the spring onions in small pieces
  5. Open the can of beans and wash them under a stream of cold water. Drain the water thoroughly.
  6. Peel and dice the avocado just when you are ready to serve the salad because it has a tendency to oxidize quickly.
  7. Crumble the tortilla chips into bite sized pieces.
  8. Add all the ingredients to the salad bowl on top of the lettuce leaves (avocado, beans, spring onions, shredded cheddar cheese, corn kernels) and dress the salad with the light ranch dressing and the juice of ½ a lemon.  Mix thoroughly but gently with a pair of salad spoons.
  9. Add the Tortilla chips on top (or the dressing could make them soggy) and serve with a crusty piece of bread on the side.

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comments

  1. Permalink Submitted by Shilpa Patel on Thu, 05/04/2012 - 13:23

    I love these sorts of salads. They’re such a blend of tastes and textures!

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