This is my favorite grilled chicken southwest chili lime salad recipe with its smokey chili lime dressing recipe. They are absolutely delicious together. This Southwest Cobb Salad looks complicated because of all the ingredients - but it is actually quite simple - especially if you make the dressing ahead of time and marinate the chicken the night before.
If you don't have time you can skip marinating the chicken, but marinating will add a lot of flavor to the chicken. Even marinating the chicken for half an hour while you prep the veggies is a whole lot better than nothing. This dressing is so good and even though it has a lot of ingredients, don't be intimidated. It just takes a few minutes to pull together.
When they say that you should be eating the rainbow, I don't think you can get any more literal than this salad. I mean look at it! And it is the healthy version of tasting the rainbow (skittles are good but they won't give you the nutrients this salad will provide. :))
I also love how this cobb salad is gluten-free and homemade. The dressing is simple to make and so much better than dressing at the store and so much healthier than most salad dressings in restaurants. And don't be intimidated by the homemade mayo. After making it and seeing how easy it is and how much better it tastes than store-bought mayo, you will wonder why you ever bought mayonnaise.
This salad can be adapted to whatever you want it to be. If you don't care for a certain topping the recipe calls for, take it out or replace it with something you do like. This is your chance to have a recipe to follow but also be creative with the overall flavor you produce!
This Southwest Cobb Salad is also great because you can make it for just you or a whole group of people by simply increasing the quantity of the ingredients to fit the size of your group and, trust me, you will have people begging for more with this recipe. I would even call it child-friendly because they can choose the toppings they want and skip the ones they don't like.
PrintRecipe
Southwest Chili Lime Salad Recipe
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Cuisine: South West
Description
Talk about eating the colors of the rainbow! I love all the subtle flavors in this grilled chicken cobb salad. They come together to create a unique flavor that I don't get tired of.
Ingredients
Smokey Chili Lime Dressing
- 1 ½ Cups Mayo
- Juice of 1 large Lime
- 1 Tbl Apple Cider Vinegar *
- 2 tsp Honey
- 1 tsp Mustard
- 1 clove garlic, (minced)
- ½ tsp Smoked Paprika
- ½ tsp Chili Powder
- 1 tsp Coarse Real Salt *
- 1 Tbl Chives (chopped)
- 1 Tbl Cilantro (finely chopped)
Chicken Marinade
- 4 large Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
- 2 Tbl Olive Oil
- 1 Tbl Balsamic Vinegar
- Juice of ½ a Lime
- Large Pinch Chili Flakes
- ½ tsp Cumin
- ½ tsp Smoked Paprika
- 1 tsp Coarse Real Salt *
- ½ tsp Coarse Ground Pepper
Southwestern Cobb Salad
- 6 pieces Small Romaine Hearts (chopped into bite-sized)
- ½ cup Cilantro (roughly chopped)
- 1 Small Red Onion (chopped)
- 1 Red Bell Pepper (chopped)
- 1 Orange Bell Pepper (chopped)
- 1 Yellow Bell Pepper (chopped)
- 2 Avocados (pitted and sliced into ½" cubes)
- ½ cup Pico de Gallo
- 1 can Black Beans (drained)
- Sliced Grilled Chicken (see above marinade)
- Smokey Chili Lime Dressing (see above)
Instructions
Smokey Chili Lime Dressing
- Add all of the dressing ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth and combined.
- Store in an airtight container in fridge.
Chicken Marinade
- Add the oil, balsamic vinegar, lime juice, chili flakes, cumin, salt, and pepper to a mixing bowl and whisk together until combined.
- Add the chicken, turning until all breasts are well coated.
- Cover and let sit in the refrigerator for at least one hour or overnight.
- Cook chicken on a hot grill until both sides have nice grill marks and chicken is cooked through.
- Let sit for 10 minutes before slicing.
Southwestern Cobb Salad
- Place the romaine lettuce in a large bowl.
- Set each salad ingredient in a row across the bed of romaine.
- Drizzle with a little dressing.
- Using salad tongs, serve up a little of each section when plating, or toss everything together and then plate.
- Serve with more salad dressing.
Keywords: Healthy, Unique, Subtle, Grilled
Mary Jane J.
Love this salad! It tastes great anytime of the year and my kids always ask for it!
★★★★★
Barbara McDaniel
Making this for Friday night dinner. One of our favorite recipes and it never disappoints. We especially love the chili lime dressing. It’s so fantastic!! GREAT RECIPE!!
Rebecca Baron
I'm so glad you like it enough to make it often! Thanks for commenting.
Barbara
Super great salad. Easy to make and a show stopper. The dressing is incredible!!
★★★★★
Jeni
We LOVE this salad! Have made it a couple times for company as well. I have flavored balsamic dressings and olive oils so often use them in the marinade for the chicken. It is always a hit. Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Rebecca
You're welcome! I'm so glad you like it. Just different enough, but not too different, if you ask me.
Jennifer Tammy
I'm so with you on the homemade mayo - worlds of difference and so much easier than I would have ever thought!
This looks amazing - especially that dressing combo, I cannot wait to try it! Pinning 🙂
Rachel @ Simple Seasonal
Mmmmm... Wishing I had a big bowl of this in front of me right now. Your Smokey Chili Lime Dressing sounds awesome!
★★★★★
Ashley Priston
Wow! It looks so delicious, I'm going to follow this recipe tonight. Thanks for this awesome recipe.
★★★★★