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Hearty salads like this Southwest bbq chicken salad with black beans, corn, avocado, and crunchy romaine lettuce topped with an easy 5-ingredient homemade BBQ sauce are more than just a first course, they make the meal.
This BBQ Ranch Salad Will Appease the Staunchest of Salad Haters
I LOVE salad. Whether it’s a simple lettuce and dressing affair, or a full blown all-in-one-meal-deal like this BBQ chicken recipe situation, salad is the rock to my Gibraltar and if I was on a desert island, I’d want to be swimming in my leafy greens.
This salad is loaded with-good-for-you ingredients like:
- Protein-rich black beans and lean chicken breast
- Good-for-you-fats of avocado that provide 20 vitamins and minerals
- Lycopene-rich tomatoes with a ⅓ of your daily needs of vitamin C
- Sliced red onion for folic acid and vitamin B for energy
- Plus that crunch of romaine lettuce that is high in fiber and fills you up
The finishing touch to this salad is a drizzle of BBQ sauce and ranch dressing topped with fresh chopped cilantro and a squeeze of lime if you like.
Enjoy!
What You’ll Need
The full recipe, with amounts, can be found in the recipe card below.
- BBQ sauce — I’ve shared how to make my favorite 5-ingredient bbq sauce in the recipe card below, but you’re welcome to swap in your favorite bottled bbq sauce.
- Chicken — I always have boneless skinless chicken breasts on hand, but you can grill up any cut of chicken you like.
- Tortilla strips — I made my own by frying sliced corn tortillas in a little oil, but you can also crumble store-bought tortilla chips over your salad.
- Lettuce — I prefer using crunchy romaine as the base of this salad, but any leafy green may be used.
- Veggies — Cocktail tomatoes, canned black beans, diced avocado, red onion, and corn add lots of texture and intrigue to this salad.
- Lime juice — I squeeze a little over the salad itself and mix extra into the ranch dressing to really drive home the southwest flavor.
- Ranch dressing — My homemade ranch dressing is made with real herbs from your spice drawer, low-fat buttermilk, tangy sour cream, and mayo. You can use the lightened up versions or try Greek yogurt for a lighter calorie count instead.
- Cilantro — Because salads always taste best when finished with a handful of fresh herbs!
How to Make a Southwest-Style BBQ Chicken Salad
- Preheat your grill. Depending on the weather, I’ll either bust out my outdoor grill to cook a big batch of bbq chicken for a week’s worth or salads, or I’ll use my stovetop grill pan and make a smaller batch.
- Slice thicker chicken breasts into cutlets. I don’t always do this, but chicken breasts these days always seem so massive so I prefer to slice them lengthwise to make thinner cutlets, which cook faster and more evenly and won’t dry out on you.
- Grill the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes per side. Baste the chicken with the bbq sauce during the last minutes of grilling so the sugars of the sauce don’t burn and create an unpleasant bite.
- Meanwhile, make the tortilla strips. If you’re crumbling up bagged tortilla chips, you can skip this step! But I like to heat a small amount of canola oil in a skillet and lightly fry the tortilla strips until golden as the chicken cooks.
- Assemble your salad. You can either layer the ingredients for a pretty presentation or toss it all together to distribute all of the ingredients evenly.
Ingredient Swaps and Add-Ins
- Add cheese — A good crumbly Mexican queso or shredded cheddar are favorites.
- Swap the corn — If you’ve got fresh sweet corn on hand, grill it until juicy before cutting it off the cob.
- Swap the beans — Replace the black beans with pinto beans for a creamier texture.
- Swap the bbq sauce — You can also baste the chicken with raspberry chipotle bbq sauce, peach bbq sauce, or a North Carolina-style vinegar bbq sauce.
- Use a different protein — Instead of chicken, try making this salad with bbq grilled shrimp or pork chops.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating on this recipe below and leave a comment, take a photo and tag me on Instagram with #foodiecrusheats.
Southwest BBQ Chicken Salad Recipe
Hearty salads like this Southwest BBQ Chicken Salad with black beans, corn, avocado, and crunchy romaine lettuce topped with an easy 5-ingredient homemade BBQ sauce are more than just a first course, they make the meal.
Print
Servings 6
Calories 393kcal
Ingredients
For the BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- ¼ cup cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Salad
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper , to taste
- 2 (6-inch) corn tortillas
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 6 cups romaine lettuce , washed, dried, and chopped
- 15 ounces black beans , rinsed and drained
- ½ cup frozen corn , thawed
- 6 cocktail tomatoes , quartered or sliced
- 1 avocado , peeled, pitted and sliced
- ¼ red onion , thinly sliced
- 2 limes
- ¼ cup homemade Ranch dressing , or a quality store-bought brand
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- Make the BBQ sauce. Combine all of the ingredients in a small pan over medium heat. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until flavors combine, then remove from heat.
- Preheat the grill. Prepare a grill or stovetop grill pan over medium-high heat.
- Prep the chicken. Start at the thicker end of the chicken breast and use a sharp knife to cut the chicken breast in half into two thinner cutlets. Trim any excess fat and season both sides with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
- Grill. Spray the grill pan with cooking spray (or oil the grill grates) and cook the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Lower the heat to medium and brush both sides of the chicken breasts with the BBQ sauce and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes on each side until the thickest part of the chicken reaches 160ºF. Transfer to a platter and tent with aluminum foil.
- Make the tortilla strips. While the chicken is cooking, cut the tortillas into thin strips. Heat the canola oil in a small pan over medium-high heat and fry the tortilla strips, stirring often, until golden and crisp. You may have to do this in batches. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with kosher salt while still hot.
- Assemble the salad. Arrange the cut romaine lettuce in a large bowl with the black beans and corn. Slice the chicken into strips and place on top of the lettuce with the tomatoes, avocado, and red onion slices. Squeeze the juice of 1 lime over the salad. In a small bowl, mix the ranch dressing with the juice from the remaining lime. Drizzle the lime ranch dressing over the salad with the reserved BBQ sauce. Garnish with the chopped cilantro and the tortilla strips and serve.
Nutrition
Calories: 393kcal | Carbohydrates: 52g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 1041mg | Potassium: 995mg | Fiber: 11g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 4506IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 105mg | Iron: 4mg
More Main Dish Salads Using Chicken
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We all want this. This is a nice recipe.
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It’s a favorite! Thank you Jenny!
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Kelly Senyei @ Just a Taste
This salad is calling my name! It looks delicious, and I love the extra drizzle of barbecue sauce over the top of the salad!
Laura | Tutti Dolci
I could live on this salad all summer long – love the Southwest flavors!