Southwest Salad is one of my favorite lunches to meal prep.

It tastes so fresh, and there's so many colors. Cherry tomatoes, chopped bell pepper, black beans, corn, romaine lettuce, Mexican-blend cheese, organic blue corn tortilla chips, chopped chicken (first marinated in my homemade taco seasoning and a little Chipotle Tabasco), cilantro, green onion, and a fresh squeeze of lime. To dress this salad, we'll mix some of that homemade taco seasoning with ranch.

Everything is in perfect harmony in this salad, and the variety will keep you enthralled the entire munching experience.

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What Ingredients Do I Need to Make Southwest Salad?

Romaine lettuce
Cherry tomatoes
Black beans
Corn kernels
Green onion
Cilantro
Lime
Red or orange bell pepper
Shredded Mexican-blend cheese
Crushed organic blue or yellow corn tortilla chips
Chicken breasts
Chipotle Tabasco Sauce
One recipe my Homemade Taco Seasoning Blend or substitute for store-bought taco seasoning to save time

Ranch dressing. *I buy refrigerated ranch dressing in the produce aisle instead of the bottled pantry aisle. The brand is Marzetti Simply Dressed. It has much healthier ingredients, and I think it tastes way better!
Salt and pepper to taste.

(Optional) How to Make My Homemade Taco Seasoning Blend:

I prefer to make homemade taco seasoning because store-bought contains hidden ingredients, such as GMO-filled corn products. You can make a double, triple, etc. batch of this recipe and store the remainder in a glass jar like any other spice blend, ready to use. Simply use 3-4 tbsp. of the seasoning blend per recipe.

You can adjust the spice level to your liking. Since this recipe for Southwest Salad marinates the chicken along with Chipotle Tabasco sauce, I don't add spice other than chili powder to the seasoning blend. If using the seasoning blend for something like tacos, you may want to add in a few dashes of crushed red pepper flakes or even ground chipotle pepper powder.

Ingredients:

3 teaspoon oregano
3 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika (You can also used smoked paprika for a smoky flavor)
¼ teaspoon ground coriander (optional: you can leave this out if you don't have it in your cupboard - this adds additional cilantro flavor)
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Add all ingredients to a bowl. Stir until well blended. Set aside until ready to use.

How to Make Southwest Salad:

Optional: Make Homemade Taco Seasoning Blend. Set aside.

Prep: Chop raw chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place in a large gallon bag. Add in 2-3 tbsp. of oil, ⅔rd of the taco seasoning blend, and 15-20 drops of chipotle Tabasco sauce. Close up the bag and massage the chicken/flip the bag around until the seasonings fully coat every piece of chicken. Place bag in fridge and allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes to one hour. Tip: You can do this step the night before for extra flavor, and to save time the next morning.

Once the chicken has marinated, preheat the oven to 350 F. Heat a large oven-safe grill pan, cast iron skillet, or frying pan over medium-high heat on the stove. Once hot, add in butter and allow to melt. Then, add in the chicken, spacing it around the pan. Cook for 5 minutes or so, until browned. Then, use a spatula to toss as much of the chicken onto its other side as possible. Cook for an additional 5 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven. Bake until chicken is completely cooked through and has an internal temperature of 165 F, about 5-10 minutes.

For the Taco-Ranch Dressing:

Meanwhile, simply add 1 ½ cups of ranch dressing to a glass mason jar. Add in 2 tbsps. of taco seasoning. Screw the lid on the jar, then shake until well combined. Refrigerate until ready to be used.
Once the chicken has finished cooking, remove from oven and allow to cool before adding to salad.
To prepare the salad ingredients: Wash all vegetables, and set them aside on a towel to dry. *I like to use a salad spinner for my lettuce. Chop romaine, bell pepper, green onions, and cilantro. Slice the lime into sections.

To assemble the salad: Lay a bed of romaine lettuce on a large dinner plate or bowl. In sections, add chicken, black beans, corn, cheese, bell pepper, tomatoes, and crushed tortilla chips. Sprinkle over green onion and cilantro. Place lime on edge of the plate, or squeeze overtop of the salad. Drizzle over Taco-Ranch dressing. Enjoy!

For meal prep: I place everything in meal prep containers except I put the chicken, black beans, and corn in a separate compartment. Keep the tortilla chips and dressing separate until ready to be eaten.

Notes:

Can't stand ranch dressing? It really is a subtle and perfect pairing in this salad, but there are many other dressings you could use or make instead. A cilantro lime dressing, a salsa-sour cream dressing, and creamy avocado dressing. Seriously, you can't go wrong with any of those.

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