I’m not a huge fan of your standard chicken salad, but I love the idea of a cold sandwich that’s a break from your standard deli meats on a hot day or just as a change of pace. That’s what originally led us to create our Craisin Chicken Salad and it’s also why I was inspired by this recipe by The Cookie Rookie to put my own spin on a Mexican version of a chicken salad.
A Mexican inspired mayo based dressing, with green enchilada sauce and my homemade taco seasoning? Yes, please. Toss in some fresh sweet corn, bell pepper, an onion and you’ve got a little bit of crunch bursting with fresh flavor. To make it even easier use a rotisserie chicken – the leftovers work great. In fact, I planned to do that. I had leftover rotisserie chicken already shredded and ready to go for this salad in the fridge. And then when I went to take the picture, I grabbed a bag of chicken breasts from the fridge. It wasn’t until I was chopping them after cooking and reaching into the fridge for something else that I saw the rotisserie chicken. Oops. This ‘mistake’ worked great though and I was left with the fixings for another easy dinner in the fridge.
Here’s what you need:
Plus some fresh cilantro.
The first thing I did was whisk together my dressing mix so everything could hang out and get to know each other while I prepared the rest of the meal. You’ll need mayo, green enchilada sauce, taco seasoning (I prefer to use homemade because I control the sodium and adjust to my taste), green chilies, and the juice of a lime.
Lightly pound two boneless, skinless chicken breasts to an even thickness and season generously with taco seasoning.
Grill chicken over medium high heat until the meat reaches 165 degrees, this is usually about 4 minutes per side for me on my grill. Grill the corn at the same time, turning to char all the sides. The corn will take about 8 to 10 minutes, again depending on the heat of your grill and how dark you want it.
If you are using a rotisserie chicken you can always just use the corn fresh and raw and then this is a ‘no cook’ meal. Or grill extra corn the night before.
Allow the chicken and the corn to cool. Strip the corn off the cob. Chop the chicken into small pieces. Add to a large bowl along with finely diced red onion and green pepper and some chopped cilantro.
Add the dressing and stir everything together. We like things saucy in this household, if you don’t then hold back a little dressing and add it slowly until it’s the consistency that you like.
We served this on a croissant – one of my favorite sandwich breads because of how buttery and flaky it is. You could also use a wrap, bread, or even lettuce cups too!
Because the fresh lime juice will pull the moisture out of the other veggies as this sits, it’s best enjoyed the same day it’s made. If you want to make extra, keep the dressing separate until you’re ready to enjoy.
- ¾ c mayo (I like Hellman’s light)
- ¼ c green enchilada sauce
- 2 T taco seasoning
- 1 (3.5 oz) can green chilies, drained
- 1 lime, juice of
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
- Taco seasoning (or other Mexican style seasoning) for sprinkling on chicken
- 2 ears of sweet corn
- ⅓ c green pepper, finely diced
- ⅓ c red onion, finely diced
- ¼ c cilantro, chopped
- 4 large sandwich size croissants
- Whisk together the mayo, enchilada sauce, taco seasoning, green chilies, and lime juice in a bowl and set aside.
- Preheat grill to medium high.
- Lightly pound chicken to an even thickness. Season both sides generously with taco seasoning.
- Grill chicken for about 4 minutes per side until it reaches 165 degrees.
- Grill corn for about 8 to 10 minutes until lightly charred, turning frequently.
- Remove both corn and chicken from the grill and allow to cool.
- Strip kernels from corn cobs and place in a large bowl.
- Dice chicken into small pieces (I did slightly larger than the onion and pepper) and add to bowl with the corn.
- Add green pepper, onion and cilantro to the corn and chicken. Pour dressing over the chicken and veggies and fold together until combined.
- Serve on a croissant.
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