This chicken taco salad recipe is so easy to make and full of flavor. Cooked chicken breast is mixed with black beans, corn and a tonne of veggies for a hearty salad main course. A salsa dressing ties the dish together for a delicious and tasty Mexican meal.

Mexican is one of my favorite cuisines, but in the hot whether I don’t really want to be turning the oven on for any huge amount of time! This yummy salad is packed full of all of my favorite Mexican flavors and is perfect for dinner on a hot evening!
How to make Chicken Taco Salad – step by step
(Be sure to see the recipe card below for full ingredients and instructions.)
For the Chicken Taco Salad:
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Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a grill pan (or skilleset over medium heat. While the oil heats, dry the chicken breasts and brush them with the remaining 1-tablespoon oil. Liberally season the breasts with chili seasoning, taco seasoning, salt & black pepper. Place the breasts in the hot skillet and cook until the underside is golden brown and beginning to crisp (5-7 minutes). Flip the breasts over and cook until the internal temperature reaches 162°F on a meat thermometer. Transfer the breast to plate; set aside.
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The salad can be plated as individual servings or as one large serving to be shared.
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Place the chopped lettuce in a bowl (or serving platteand arrange the corn, beans, black olives, onion, avocado and tomatoes on top. Drizzle the avocado with juice from ½ lime. Thinly slice the chicken breasts and carefully place the chicken breasts on top of the salad. Drizzle the entire salad with the remaining ½ lime. Sprinkle with the shredded cheese and cilantro. Add the crumbled Cotija cheese and drizzle with Taco Salad Dressing.
For the Dressing:
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Stir together the salsa and sour cream. Add a bit of canola oil if you’d like to thin a bit.
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Serve with tortilla chips and…
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Enjoy!


Salad as a meal!
This delicious chicken taco salad is loaded with flavors and ingredients, it’s a perfect option for a filling main course salad. It’s full of texture and color and is perfect to serve to a crowd.
This recipe serves four, and comes in at under 600 calories per serving. If you have leftovers, it will be great for lunch the next day!
Chicken Taco Salad with black beans and corn
The flavors in this awesome salad are from some of my favorite Mexican ingredients;
- corn
- black beans
- avocado
- tortilla chips
- cotija
- salsa
- cilantro
This mixture of ingredients means every mouthful is different and packed full of yumminess! The black beans are a great source of protein and fiber and you get tonnes of vitamins and minerals from all of the veggies!
Creamy Taco Salad Dressing
The delicious dressing that really brings the chicken taco salad together is a simple mix of sour cream and salsa. I used a mild salsa, but you can use a spicier one if that’s your thing!
This salad is so fresh, it’s one of our favorite things to eat right now – I can’t wait to hear what you all think of it!


Make it healthy
If you want to cut down on the calories, you can make this recipe with low fat cheeses and low fat sour cream.
More Top Tips
- You can make this salad ahead of time, just hold off on adding the dressing until you are ready to serve it.
- Use the freshest ingredients you can
Be sure to check out these other great chicken salad recipes!
Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad Recipe
Mexican Street Corn Chicken Salad
Cilantro Lime Chicken Breast with Mango Avocado Salsa

If you have tried this chicken taco salad recipe, or any other recipe on my blog, then please rate it and let me know how it turned out in the comments below

Best Chicken Taco Salad Recipe
Ingredients
For the Chicken Taco Salad:
- 8 ounces chicken breasts
- 3 tablespoons canola oil divided
- 1 teaspoon chili seasoning
- 1 teaspoon taco seasoning
- Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 head romaine lettuce cleaned, dried and chopped
- 14.5 ounces fire roasted corn 1 can, drained
- 11.5 ounces pinto or black beans 1 can, drained
- 2.25 ounces sliced black olives 1 can, drained
- ½ red onion thin-sliced
- 1 avocado peeled, pitted and sliced
- 1 cup chopped cherry or Glory tomatoes cut into ¼ths
- 1 lime cut in-half
- ½ cup shredded cheddar of Mexican blend cheese
- 2 tablespoon freshly chopped cilantro
- 2 ounces Cotija or Queso Fresco cheese Mexican crumbling cheese
- Tortilla chips
For the Taco Salad Dressing:
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup salsa
Instructions
For the Chicken Taco Salad:
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a grill pan (or skilleset over medium heat. While the oil heats, dry the chicken breasts and brush them with the remaining 1-tablespoon oil. Liberally season the breasts with chili seasoning, taco seasoning, salt & black pepper. Place the breasts in the hot skillet and cook until the underside is golden brown and beginning to crisp (5-7 minutes). Flip the breasts over and cook until the internal temperature reaches 162°F on a meat thermometer. Transfer the breast to plate; set aside.
- The salad can be plated as individual servings or as one large serving to be shared.
- Place the chopped lettuce in a bowl (or serving platteand arrange the corn, beans, black olives, onion, avocado and tomatoes on top. Drizzle the avocado with juice from ½ lime. Thinly slice the chicken breasts and carefully place the chicken breasts on top of the salad. Drizzle the entire salad with the remaining ½ lime. Sprinkle with the shredded cheese and cilantro. Add the crumbled Cotija cheese and drizzle with Taco Salad Dressing.
For the Dressing:
- Stir together the salsa and sour cream. Add a bit of canola oil if you’d like to thin a bit.
- Serve with tortilla chips and…
- Enjoy!
Trang says
I love taco salads! This brings back good memories of my favorite school lunch.
Becky Hardin says
Yes! Agree 🙂
Krissy Allori says
I love Mexican crumbling cheese! I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Becky Hardin says
ME TOO!
Kristyn says
Oh, my, this looks amazing!! I love all the flavors going on. I will be making this asap!!
Becky Hardin says
Thanks Kristyn!
Melissa says
This was so delicious!
Becky Hardin says
Thanks Melissa 🙂
Katie says
I always love a good chicken taco salad and this one did not disappoint!
Becky Hardin says
So glad 🙂
Stephanie Myatt says
I loved this recipe!!
Becky Hardin says
So happy to hear that!