Grilled Chicken Jalapeno Popper Salad

A southwestern style grilled chicken salad with a spicy and creamy jalapeno popper inspired dressing.

Now that I had my brand new jalapeno popper dressing I needed a salad to test it on and it could not just be any salad, it needed to be one that was strong enough to stand up the the total amazingness of the dressing. One of the first salads that came to mind was a southwestern style chopped salad filled with plenty of hearty and tasty ingredients including grilled corn, black beans, tomatoes and avocado. Continuing with the dressings jalapeno popper theme I added pickled jalapenos to the salad along with cheddar cheese that the poppers are sometimes filled with, bacon that they are sometimes wrapped in and crumbled tortilla chips for the crunchy popper coating. I wanted this salad to eat more like a meal so I topped it off with some seasoned grilled chicken. All of the flavours and textures in this salad work wonderfully together from the creamy beans and avocado which temper the jalapenos heat to the juicy tomatoes, the salty bacon, the crunchy tortilla chips and of course the super tasty jalapeno popper dressing!

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

• 4 (6 ounce) chicken breasts
  
  
  
• salt and pepper to taste
• 6 cups romaine or other lettuce, shredded
• 1 cup tomato, diced
• 1 large avocado, diced
• 1 cup corn (~2 ears), preferably grilled or charred
• 1 cup black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup green or red onion, sliced
• 1/4 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)
• 1/4 cup crumbled tortilla chips (optional)
• 1/4 cup jalapeno popper dressing
• fresh or pickled sliced jalapenos to taste
• 4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled (optional)
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Directions:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and grill over medium-high heat until cooked, about 4-6 minutes per side, set aside, let cool and slice.
2. Assemble salad and enjoy!