Chicken Taco Salad

This healthy Chicken Taco Salad is loaded with seasoned ground chicken, black beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, Cheddar cheese, and avocado. Top it off with a drizzle of easy homemade cilantro-lime vinaigrette.

Try these Baked Chicken Tacos, Chipotle Chicken Tacos, and these Chicken Tinga Tacos

Easy Chicken Taco Salad

As the weather warms up, there is nothing I crave more than a big hearty salad (followed by Strawberry Shortcake, of course). Chicken Taco Salad is loaded up with veggies, a simple ground chicken mixture, and the best cilantro vinaigrette. It’s similar to my Turkey Taco Salad, but with a vinaigrette instead of a creamy dressing.

It’s packed with nutritious ingredients and so many amazing textures and flavors. 

Ingredients In Taco Salad With Chicken

Salad

• Olive Oil: Used to cook the ground chicken.
• Ground Chicken: The main protein in the salad.
• Red Onion & Garlic: Provide savory, aromatic flavor.
• Taco Seasoning: Adds classic taco flavor with spices.
• Romaine Lettuce: The base of the salad, providing freshness and crunch.
• Black Beans: Add protein, fiber, and a creamy texture.
• Fresh Corn: Adds sweetness and a crisp texture.
• Avocado: Adds creaminess and a buttery flavor.
• Cherry Tomatoes: Provide juicy, sweet bursts of flavor.
• Cheddar Cheese: Adds sharpness and richness in this chicken taco salad.

Dressing

The dressing combines cilantro, lime, jalapeño, olive oil, rice wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper. Dress the salad just before serving, and store the dressing separately to maintain freshness.

How To Make Chicken Taco Salad

• Make the dressing. Start by prepping the dressing so the flavors can meld and it can chill before adding it to the salad.
• Cook the chicken. Saute the ground chicken in a little olive oil with onions and garlic. Once the chicken is cooked through, add taco seasoning to the meat.
• Assemble the salad. Chop the lettuce and other veggies and toss them in a large bowl.

[quicktipIf you prefer, you can swap out ground turkey or ground beef for the chicken in this recipe. It will taste a bit heartier, but otherwise, it’s pretty much the same.[/quicktip]

Tips For The Best Salad

• Slice lettuce thinly for better dressing coverage and easier eating in your chicken taco salad. 
• Thoroughly dry washed lettuce to avoid a soggy chicken taco salad. Read more about how to prep your lettuce here.
• Ensure ripe avocados for creaminess; gently press to check ripeness.

More Salad Recipes

• Kale Avocado Salad with a creamy avocado dressing
• Creamy Balsamic Dressing on a spring Cobb salad
• Greek Pasta Salad with a Greek-inspired vinaigrette
• Apple Salad with an apple cider vinaigrette
• BBQ Chicken Salad with an avocado-cilantro vinaigrette

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5 from 6 votes

Chicken Taco Salad

By Chelsea Lords

This healthy Chicken Taco Salad is loaded with seasoned ground chicken, black beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, Cheddar cheese, and avocado. Top it off with a drizzle of easy homemade cilantro-lime vinaigrette.

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 4 servings

Ingredients 

USMetric

 

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Dressing

• ▢ 2 cups cilantro twist and rip off the top half of the bunch of cilantro to loosely measure (stems are fine)
• ▢ 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons lime juice freshly squeezed
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lime zest
• ▢ 1 and 1/2 tablespoons diced jalapeño seeds and ribs removed
• ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil
• ▢ 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• ▢ 2 teaspoons white sugar
• ▢ Salt and pepper, to taste

Salad

• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1 pound ground chicken
• ▢ 1 red onion, separated (See Note 2)
• ▢ 1-2 cloves garlic, minced (1 and 1/2 teaspoons)
• ▢ 1 packet taco seasoning (See Note 3)
• ▢ 8 cups romaine lettuce, thinly sliced (3 heads of lettuce)
• ▢ 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, drained & rinsed
• ▢ 1 cup fresh corn, cut off the cob (~2 ears of corn)
• ▢ 1 large avocado, (or 2 small-medium ones) thinly sliced or diced
• ▢ 1 and 1/4 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• ▢ 1/2 cup extra-sharp Cheddar cheese, freshly grated
• ▢ Optional: additional limes and cilantro for topping salad

Instructions 

• DRESSING: Combine all the dressing ingredients except for the olive oil in a blender or food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste (about 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper). Pulse until ingredients are combined and then drizzle in olive oil, quickly pulsing until emulsified. Don't over-mix/pulse/blend the olive oil or it can create a metallic flavor. Taste and adjust any seasonings to personal preference.
• GROUND CHICKEN: Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large cast-iron skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Once shimmering, add in 1 cup finely diced red onion and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic. Stir often, cooking until tender, about 5 minutes. Reduce the heat if it starts to burn. Add in the ground chicken and cook for 6-8 minutes or until white and cooked through. Add in the packet of taco seasoning and reduce the heat to low. Stir to coat and season to taste with salt (it will vary depending on the taco seasoning used). Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
• LETTUCE: Wash and chop the lettuce. Cut into ribbons and halve the ribbons -- thinner salad pieces allow for more surface area that the dressing can adhere to. Use a salad spinner to ensure the lettuce is 100% dry before adding any other ingredients.
• VEGGIES: Thinly slice the other quarter of the red onion to get about 1/4 cup (See Note 2), drain and rinse black beans, prepare the corn (See Note 4), halve the cherry tomatoes, chop or thinly slice the avocado(s), and grate the cheese. Add to the salad.
• ENJOY: If serving the salad immediately, pour the dressing over (add to desired preference; you may not want to use all the dressing), toss the salad, and enjoy! Add additional lime wedges and cilantro to individual plates.
• STORAGE: Once dressed, Chicken Taco Salad doesn’t store well-- the dressing makes the lettuce soggy. I’d recommend only dressing what you will enjoy the same day. Store dressing and salad separately. You’ll also want to store the avocado separately as well since it has a tendency to brown and change texture.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Dressing: If you don't like a lot of dressing, halve the dressing recipe. Any leftover dressing stays good for up to 1 week in the fridge and is delicious over salads, roasted or raw veggies, etc.

Note 2: Onion: The red onion is used twice; cut it in half and dice up half of it to use with the ground chicken. Cut up the other 1/4th of the onion (or all the rest of it if desired) into thin strips. 

Note 3: Taco seasoning: Either use 1 packet taco seasoning (I use McCormick®) or make your own by mixing together the following spices: 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 tablespoon beef bouillon powder.

Note 4: Corn: Thaw and then sauté frozen corn in a skillet, or grill fresh corn. To grill fresh corn: Preheat a grill to medium-high heat, around 400 degrees F. Once hot, clean the grill grates. Remove the husks and silk from the corn. Pour about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil on each corn cob and rub that oil onto all the sides. Very lightly sprinkle salt and pepper on all sides of the corn. Place corn on grill grates (nothing needs to go down first--don't wrap in foil) and close grill. Let the corn cook (temps remaining at 400 degrees F) for about 3 minutes per side, undisturbed. Using tongs, rotate and continue cooking, for about 12 minutes total. When all sides are browned, remove from the grill onto a plate. Cut the kernels off the cob once cool.

Nutrition

Serving: 4servings | Calories: 623kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 33.9g | Fat: 38.6g | Cholesterol: 112.7mg | Sodium: 757.7mg | Fiber: 14.1g | Sugar: 9.4g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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