Mexican Chicken Salad – Nutritious & Healthy Meals
You may groan at the mention of chicken salad. Oh no, not that again. Whenever we are trying to lose weight and work out, invariably one tends to eat a lot of chicken salad. Often at a restaurant it may the one of the only things which fit into our diet plan, thus leaving us with little choice than to half heartedly push lettuce leaves around our plates whilst watching our friends tuck into a plate of cheesy nachos. Enter the Mexican Chicken Salad.
This particular chicken salad has the best of both worlds. Quick and easy to make, it puts a new spin on things with a slightly spicier flavour palette and the addition of nacho chips for texture. Be sure to use only high quality, oven baked chips and not a packet of the local corn triangles from the nearest grocery store.
Another thing to remember with this healthy recipe is if you want to make it ahead of time, for work, for example, be sure not to add the nachos until you actually eat the meal. Otherwise, they will go all soggy and you will end up with a disappointing, squishy mess. Sit down with your meal and enjoy it while perusing some of the best NZ betting sites on the net, possibly increasing your bank balance while decreasing your waist.
Ingredients:
- 4 corn tortillas (or ½ packet of good quality nachos)
- 2 cups frozen corn (or tinned whole corn)
- 8 cups bagged fresh spinach (or Chinese cabbage if you can get any)
- 2 cups sliced chicken breast, (rotisserie chicken can be used but is not advisable as it is usually very full of oil and fat)
- 1 can black beans, drained
- 1 punnet cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 medium avocado, sliced in thick slices
- 1 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/2 cup light sour cream
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1/2 tsp chipotle chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp coriander
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees centigrade.
- If you are using the tortillas in your Mexican Chicken Salad, then place them on a baking tray. Place the tray in the oven when it has reached the correct temperature. Cook until crispy about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Prepare corn according to package directions if using frozen corn, if using tinned corn then heat gently in a microwave until warm but not boiling.
- Toss spinach (or Chinese cabbage. Chinese cabbage has a very nutty, earthy flavour with lots of bite. It is great cooked or eaten raw.), chicken, black beans, tomatoes, avocado, red onion, and corn in a large bowl. Divide among serving plates if you are making enough for more than one person, if it is just for you serve the desired amount onto a plate. In a bowl, whisk together sour cream, olive oil, lime juice, chipotle chilli powder, cumin, coriander and a few pinches of salt.
- Break tortillas into small pieces and sprinkle over salad. If you are using the nachos, crumble them slightly until about a third of their original size. Drizzle sour cream dressing on top.
This Mexican Chicken Salad is not only a great lunchtime option but will keep the whole family happy at dinner too. Remember that eating too many carbs too late in the evening is never a good idea for those wishing to reduce their waistline.
