Grilled Chicken Salad With Elote Dressing

You know what’s funny, I put a poll up on my IG stories a couple days ago asking which summer recipe you guys wanted first. I gave the option of a pie, a drink, a burger, and this salad. I thought for sure the dessert would win by a landslide. But, that wasn’t the case at all. This salad won by an almost full sweep! I guess you guys love that fresh summer produce as much as I do. So since I’m a woman of the people, let’s get to it!

Let’s start with the dressing. We’re going to make a quick and creamy dressing that has many of those classic street corn flavors. So, we’ll start with some mayonnaise and some sour cream. I like using a mixture of both, because the mayo adds a savory element while the sour cream adds a tangy element. Then, we’ll add some spices like chili powder, garlic powder, and a little sprinkle of cumin to give a little smokiness to the dressing. We’ll add some lime juice to add a pop of acidity. And, we can mix it all together. That’s it! Set it aside in the fridge for the flavors to blend while we work on the rest of the salad.

Our protein for this salad is the easiest grilled chicken of all time. We’re going to take some store bought taco mix, some store bought ranch seasoning, and a little olive oil then mix it all together into a paste. Then, we’ll pour our little marinade over some chicken breast cutlets (or some chicken breasts that have been sliced through the middle to create 2 thinner breast pieces) in a ziptop bag. And we’ll utilize our 5 minute marinade technique to gently massage that taco ranch mix into the chicken for 5 minutes straight. That’s all we need to infuse a ton of flavor. From there, we can toss the chicken onto a grill pan to cook until it’s perfectly charred and juicy.

All that’s left to do is toss alllllll the veggies into a big ol’ bowl. The greens selection is arguably one of the most important choices to make when preparing a salad. So to make sure we’re getting the most bang for our buck, I like to use two types of leafy greens: some chopped romaine and some torn spring greens mix. From there we’ll add some grape tomatoes, a little roasted corn, some red onion, a little creamy avocado, a crumble of feta, and some crushed tortilla chips for a little nice texture. Then, we’ll top the salad with our grilled chicken and our creamy dressing, and it’s time to dig in!

You know, salads get such a bad reputation for being boring or not filling enough. But, that couldn’t be farther from the truth on this one. In my opinion, fresh summer produce doesn’t need anything but itself, so we’re already starting on a super high note. Veggies are sooooooo flavorful this time of year. Then, we have that perfectly grilled chicken which is super tender thanks to the marinade massage it received. And, a taco/ranch combo? Say less. Then, finish everything with that slightly tart, slightly smokey, slightly savory, super creamy dressing. And, we have an absolute masterpiece on our hands. It’s SO. DARN. DELICIOUS!

Alright, everyone! The second place winner in the “which recipe should I post” poll was the burger. So, stay tuned!

And if you want to participate in polls like this one or see daily recipes, kitchen hacks, and food reviews that you don’t get here; make sure you’re following me on all the socials!

Anywho, I hope you guys enjoy. And, let’s eat!