Mexi-Ranch Chicken Salad

When I think of a yummy summertime dinner this is one that always comes to mind.  Inspired by a restaurant salad that I ordered one day I remember sitting there eating it thinking, "I can make this at home so easy!"  It's light and filling all at the same time.

There is a little more prep than actual cooking going on in this recipe, so if you are in a hurry you can do all the prep work ahead of time and then just toss it all together right before serving.  Weeknight meal, summer dinner outdoors with friends or just a fun salad to impress with.

So we basically have everything laid out here:

• Romaine lettuce
• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (1 lb shown, more if making a bigger batch)
• green onions
• 1 tomato
• 1 lime
• 1 handful of Cilantro (optional - you either love it or hate it)
• fresh corn (2 cups)
• Tortillas (I used spinach tortillas, but corn/flour would work fine)
• Mexi-Ranch dressing (equal parts Ranch dressing and salsa mixed)

I know it looks like a lot - but like I said above, it's more prep than cooking here.  If you enlist some help you've got this meal easy.

I start off by heating my oven to 425.  To add some crunch to the salad we are going to make our own tortilla strips.  This is the same way I make my homemade tortilla chips, (just cut into triangles).

Take 1 tortilla, (we are using a large tortilla) and then use your pizza cutter to cut strips.  Then cut across in 3's.  You have tortilla strips.

Lay out flat in a glass baking dish and spray with Olive Oil cooking spray.  Once the oven is pre-heated, throw in for about 10 minutes.  You have crunchy tortilla strips.

Now we want to get prepping on the veggies.

I start with Cilantro and do so by tearing off the stems so I just have the leaves.  Again, Cilantro is optional here.  I always find that people either love Cilantro or hate it.  No in between.  I love it.  My husband - not a fan.  Luckily for me he is working late tonight, so this salad is all me.

The easiest way to cut any leafy veggie such as Cilantro is to tear off the leaves and the bunch up as tight as you can.

Then just take your knife and run through.  You will have nicely chopped leafy greens.  (great technique for Basil, Parsley, Mint, etc)  once chopped, set aside in a bowl.

Next we want to dice up the tomato.  Put that in with your Cilantro and set aside.

Next, green onions.  Rinse thoroughly and cut off the root and tips.  Then chop.

Once chopped, place in the same bowl as your tomato and Cilantro.

Take your corn, (for a short cut I just grabbed a small bag of frozen from the freezer) and rinse in the colander to take the chill off.  Set aside.

Now we have all our veggies ready and waiting for us.  Now on to the meat.

I picked up 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts and then I want to trim off any excess fat that may be left on. To get the chicken to cook quickly and evenly I butterfly my breasts.

Best way to do this is to lay it out flat.  Place your hand on top of the breast and then take your knife and slice right through the middle to butterfly open.

Out of the two breasts I now have four equal strips of chicken trimmed and ready to saute.

Grab your skillet and pour in some Extra Virgin Olive Oil - sprinkle with Garlic Salt and place in the hot skillet.  These only take about 5-6 minutes per side.

Right before flipping over I take the lime, cut in half and squeeze all the lime out over the chicken.  My kitchen was smelling amazing right about now.  

Cook the chicken all the way through and then allow the excess oil to drain off before slicing.

I've got my crispy tortilla strips out of the oven and my chicken resting.  Almost temping enough to eat as is!

Grab the lettuce and rinse well.  Romaine can tend to 'hide' dirt inside the leaves so I like to make sure I rinse it all well and pat dry with a paper towel.

You can tear your lettuce or chop; I prefer to chop.

I prefer Romaine in this salad because I need a sturdy lettuce to hold up to all the goodies we are going to mix together.  Iceberg just won't cut it.

Finally we are ready to put all the pieces of this dish together!

Get a big mixing/salad bowl and put your lettuce in.  On top add your corn, tomatoes, Cilantro, and green onions.  Chop your chicken into bite sized pieces and toss on top.

Yummy!!  Now we want to add our dressing.  Remember, we took equal parts of Ranch dressing and salsa.  You can use your favorite brands here.  This is a fun and different dressing for a salad and also makes a good dip for a veggie platter.

Drizzle your dressing over the top of the salad.  I used about 2-3 cups of dressing.  If you don't like so much on your salad you can use less.  Normally I don't use a lot of dressing on a salad, but for this meal I like it to be coated completely.

Last, but certainly not least, throw in your crispy tortilla strips.  Now toss it all together and serve.

Yummy summer goodness is all throughout this salad.  For some fun add-in's you could use rinse black beans, shredded cheese, red onions instead of green ... the options are endless.  Summertime salads are a must on my meal plans and this is a salad that I love to pieces.  I hope you try it and enjoy it too!

 

*This batch is 4 servings and approximate cost for this meal was  $16.00 for all ingredients which breaks down to $4.00/serving.  

Cheers!

~Jacqui