Mexican Chicken Salad
by Sommer Collier — last updated on Mar 22, 2025 
Mexican Chicken Salad — This Mexican Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe is loaded with tons of veggies and topped with an easy homemade spicy tomato ranch dressing! This wholesome salad offers a delightful combination of textures and tastes, perfect for a satisfying and nutritious quick meal any day of the week!
Why We Love This Mexican Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe
Doesn’t it look glorious? I mean, really. Have you ever seen a more satisfying looking salad than this Mexican chicken salad?
We’ve been taking measures lately, to make sure we include more and more fresh raw produce into our diet. I would guess we enjoy a “dinner salad” at least twice a week, if not more.
I also try to eat at least one raw vegetable dish a day, so often I enjoy a salad at lunch. Yet to keep this up, my salads need to be exciting.
There’s something marvelous about cool crisp veggies topped with hot protein, don’t you think? If I could demonstrate how I want to eat (all the time right now) on one platter, it would be this Mexican grilled chicken salad.
Veggies, veggies, and more veggies, topped with juicy seasoned grilled chicken, bacon, and crumbly cheese. Then smothered in a creamy spicy tomato ranch dressing.
That pretty much covers it.
Ingredients You Need
- Chicken breast – use boneless and skinless chicken breast
- Old El Paso taco seasoning – incredible for great flavor with little effort
- Romaine lettuce – use fresh lettuce for extra crunchiness
- Cherry tomatoes – halved
- Avocados – peeled, pitted, and sliced for presentation and for a creamy texture in the salad
- Corn kernels – you can use the canned version of you like, but fresh corn always tastes best
- Bacon – cooked and crumbled
- Green onions – finely chopped
- Queso fresco – crumbled into small pieces
- Ranch – make sure to buy a thick variety of ranch dressing from the refrigerated section, not the dry goods section
- Salsa – use a fresh and spicy variety
How to Make Mexican Chicken Salad
- Coat the chicken all around with that Old El Paso taco seasoning. Chop up the romaine lettuce, slice the tomatoes, avocados, green onions, and get your corn and bacon ready!
- Grill the seasoned chicken for about 5 minutes on each side, until cooked through and juicy. Once done, let the chicken rest before slicing. While that’s happening, blend the ranch dressing and salsa together until it’s smooth and creamy.
- Spread the chopped romaine lettuce over a big serving plate. Slice up the chicken and lay it right on top of the lettuce. Add the sliced avocados and tomatoes all around the chicken. Then sprinkle on the corn, green onions, crispy bacon, and crumbled queso fresco to make it extra loaded. Serve right away with a generous drizzle of your spicy tomato ranch dressing!
Get the Complete (Printable!) Mexican Chicken Salad Recipe Below. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
This Mexican Chicken Salad is super versatile and perfect for all kinds of occasions.
You can prep the chicken, veggies, and dressing ahead of time and store everything separately for easy meal prep throughout the week. This salad is a perfect easy lunch recipe.
If you’re feeling creative, try serving it taco-style by scooping the salad into warm tortillas, or add a little crunch by sprinkling crushed tortilla chips over the top. This salad also makes a gorgeous family-style platter — just pile everything up on a large tray and serve with some tostadas, or your favorite crackers, and extra creamy dressing!
If you’re feeling a little extra, drizzle some sour cream or mayo on top of all that salad goodness.
And if you like a little heat, feel free to toss in some jalapenos or pour on your favorite hot sauce for an extra spicy kick. I also like to garnish this salad with some fresh cilantro, lime juice and chopped red onion.
Recipe Variations
- Protein swap – Swap the chicken for grilled salmon, shrimp, steak, or even crispy tofu if you want a vegetarian option.
- Rotisserie chicken – Use marinated leftover shredded chicken instead of grilled chicken breast.
- Vegetarian – Skip the chicken and bacon, and load up on black beans, grilled veggies, or even plant-based chicken alternatives for a hearty meat-free option.
- Grilled corn – For a smoky and charred flavor, grill the corn before adding it into the salad.
- Black beans – Toss in some black beans for an extra note of protein.
- Grain bowl – Serve the salad over a bowl of rice or quinoa.
- Cheese – Use cotija cheese, shredded cheddar or pepper jack instead of queso fresco.
- Greens – Don’t have romaine? Use mixed greens, arugula, or even chopped kale.
- Mixed vegetables – For an extra veggie boost, add is some diced crispy potatoes, shredded carrots or even peas.
- Store Bought Dressing – Blending the ranch with salsa gives it a fun, zesty twist to the Mexican chicken salad! But if you’re short on time, any creamy ranch or chipotle dressing will do.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you store the chicken apart from the other ingredients of the salad, it will stay fresh in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days. The salad greens and vegetables can last in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. Reheat the chicken in the microwave or the oven.
Queso Fresco is a crumbly Mexican Cheese that is translated as ‘Fresh Cheese’. It is traditionally made from cow’s milk and is aged for just a short time to give it that fresh taste!
You can find this cheese in the dairy section or cheese section in your grocery store. Or if there is a Mexican market near you they will most definitely have it.
Yes! You can prep all the components—the chicken, veggies, and dressing—a day in advance. Just store everything separately in the fridge and assemble right before serving to keep it fresh and crisp.
Definitely. If you’re short on time, any creamy ranch or chipotle dressing will do. But blending the ranch with salsa gives it a fun, zesty twist!
Use a meat thermometer to measure the chicken’s internal temperature. When the chicken is at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit inside, the chicken is cooked!
Absolutely! Just mix blend together chili powder, ground cumin, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red pepper flakes and dried oregano. Find the full recipe here from Love and Lemons.
Yes, this Mexican Chicken Salad is gluten-free as long as you make sure the ingredients used for the taco seasoning and ranch dressing don’t contain gluten!
Looking for More Salad Recipes? Be Sure to Also Try:
- Thai Quinoa Salad Recipe
- Guatemalan Fiambre Salad
- Perky English Pea Salad
- Easy Big Mac Salad
- Dorito Taco Salad
- Deviled Egg Salad
- Horiatiki (Greek Village Salad)
- Green Bean Salad with Peppadew Peppers
- Garlic Lime Roasted Shrimp Salad Recipe
- Brazilian Chopped Salad Recipe
- The Best Steakhouse Caesar Salad Recipe
- Thai Red Curry Grilled Chicken Salad Recipe
- Southwest Salad Recipe from Lil’ Luna
Check the printable recipe card below for the prep time, cook time, total time, and nutrition information. Make sure to share this recipe on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
Mexican Chicken Salad
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
- 1 packet Old El Paso Taco Seasoning
- 2 heads romaine lettuce
- 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 avocados, peeled and sliced
- 1 cup fresh corn kernels
- 1 cup cooked crumbled bacon
- 1 bunch green onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup crumbled queso fresco cheese
- 1 cup thick ranch dressing, from the refrigerated section
- 1/2 cup fresh spicy salsa
Instructions
- Preheat the grill to medium heat. Place the chicken breasts in a baking dish and sprinkle with Old El Paso Taco Seasoning. Turn to coat the chicken on all sides. Chop the lettuce and prep all other vegetables.
- Grill the chicken for 5 minutes per side. Then allow the chicken to rest for at least five minutes before slicing. Meanwhile, place the ranch dressing and the salsa in the blender and puree until smooth.
- Pile the chopped lettuce on a large platter. Slice the chicken and arrange over the lettuce. Then arrange the sliced avocados and tomatoes around the chicken. Sprinkle the corn, chopped green onions, crumbled bacon and queso fresco over the entire salad. Serve immediately with a side of spicy tomato ranch dressing.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Old El Paso. All opinions are my own.
Yummy! This salad looks amazing and so delicious. So colorful and full of flavor, so excited to make this salad. My family is going to love this for the weekend! Saved to my bookmarks!
I think I just found my new favorite meal. Incredibly good!
This hearty chicken salad recipe is loaded with flavors and SO GOOD! The BEST salad for summertime!
I always crave mexican food, but sometimes it is really carb heavy, so this is my go to when I want something mexican food related, but on the healthier side!