Easy Mexican Chicken Salad
At Healthy Kitchen, we love quick, high protein recipes that make healthy eating simple, and this Mexican Chicken Salad might be one of the easiest lunches ever. It’s fresh, flavorful, and absolutely perfect for meal prep! 🌶️🥗💪
Last week I made a big batch of this and it was the perfect healthy lunch to grab in the middle of the day. I love that you can change up how you eat it depending on what you’re craving. It’s naturally low carb, so you can enjoy it over a salad, with sliced veggies, or just eat it by itself!
It’s creamy, full of flavor, and packed with lean protein, crunchy veggies, and fresh herbs. The lime juice and taco seasoning give it that bright, zesty kick while the Greek yogurt keeps it rich and creamy without any mayo or seed oils.
This one is also amazing for meal prep. Just mix it up once and you’ll have healthy, balanced lunches ready to grab all week. Serve it over greens, cauliflower rice, or with sliced veggies for a lighter meal, or pair it with chips, crackers, or toast if you want something more filling. However you enjoy it, this Mexican Chicken Salad is one of those quick, healthy recipes you’ll keep coming back to. 🙌
If you love this one, check out the other chicken salad flavors at the bottom of this post. They’re all high protein, simple, and perfect for meal prep!
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- High protein & satisfying – 30 g of lean protein per serving
- Seed-oil & mayo free – made with creamy Greek yogurt
- Bright & fresh flavor – lime juice, cilantro, and taco seasoning bring it all together
- Meal prep friendly – keeps well for 3–4 days in the fridge
- Gluten-free & low carb – just pair with your favorite gluten-free sides
- Versatile – scoop it with chips, toss on greens, or wrap it up in a tortilla
Ingredients
- 10 oz cooked chicken breast, shredded
- ½ green bell pepper, diced
- ½ red onion, diced
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves, chopped
- ½ cup corn kernels (fresh, canned, or thawed from frozen)
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp taco seasoning
- Salt + pepper, to taste
How to Make It
- Shred the chicken: Add cooked chicken to a large bowl and shred using two forks or your hands.
- Chop the veggies: Dice the bell pepper, onion, and cilantro. Add them to the bowl with the corn.
- Mix it up: Stir in Greek yogurt, lime juice, taco seasoning, salt, and pepper until creamy and evenly coated.
- Chill & serve: Eat right away, or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3–4 days.
Ways to Serve
- With tortilla chips or sliced veggies for a low-carb option
- In a wrap with lettuce, tomato, and avocado
- Over mixed greens for a high-protein salad
- On toasted bread or rice cakes for a balanced lunch
- As a meal-prep bowl with rice, quinoa, or cauliflower rice
Substitutions & Tips
- Chicken: Rotisserie or leftover grilled chicken both work great.
- Yogurt: Use full-fat Greek yogurt for extra creaminess.
- Corn: Fresh or frozen both work — just thaw before mixing.
- Seasoning: Add chili powder or smoked paprika for extra spice.
- Add-ins: Diced avocado, black beans, or jalapeño slices make fun upgrades.
Nutrition (per serving, ~½ recipe)
- Calories: ~230
- Protein: ~30 g
- Carbs: ~15 g
- Fat: ~3 g
Macros may vary slightly depending on brands and ingredients used.)
WHY WE LOVE THIS MEXICAN CHICKEN SALAD
This Mexican Chicken Salad is rich, creamy and full of flavor – it’s so delicious you won’t believe it how healthy it is! The base of the salad is shredded chicken which is high in protein and will keep you feeling full. Next there is lot’s of fresh, colorful veggies that add volume and nutrients to the salad without adding a lot of calories!
The key to making healthy chicken salad is to replace the mayo with plain greek yogurt. This is such an easy swap, and greek yogurt is so rich and creamy that you won’t even miss the mayo! Greek yogurt is also high in protein, so this is a lunch that you will keep you feeling satisfied all the way until dinner.
Other Popular High-Protein Chicken Salad Recipes on Healthy Kitchen
- Buffalo Chicken Salad
- Apple Cranberry Chicken Salad
- Dill Pickle Chicken Salad
- Jalapeño Popper Chicken Salad
- Hot Honey Chicken Salad
Mexican Chicken Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cooked chicken breast (about 10 oz)
- 1/2 of a green bell pepper
- 1/2 of a red onion
- 1/4 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
- 1/2 cup corn kernels
- 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp taco seasoning
Instructions
- Add cooked chicken breast to a large bowl and shred using two forks or your hands.
- Dice the bell pepper, red onion and cilantro into even sized pieces.
- Add the diced veggies and corn to the bowl.
- Add greek yogurt, lime juice and taco seasoning and mix well so that everything is evenly combined.
- Eat right away, or store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Enjoy!
Hi Claire
How long do you cook the chicken for in the airfryer and at what temp please?
Thanks Jo 😊
Hi Jo! For this recipe I seasoned the chicken breast with garlic powder, salt and pepper, then air fried at 375F for 7-8 minutes per side.
How many servings does this make? I am counting carbs.
This recipe makes about 2 servings!
What are you eating the Mexican chicken salad with? Tostados? Tortilla chips? Thanks!
Martha L
Fort Worth
Hi Martha! I love eating the chicken salad with tortilla chips, I really like the brand Siete Foods because their tortilla chips are made with healthy ingredients. I will also sometimes add the chicken salad to a wrap, or eat it with sliced veggies for a lower calorie option!
So sorry to hear you didn’t love this one! I use full fat greek yogurt so it is rich and creamy, but you can definitely sub with mayo!
Made some adjustments that made it so good!
-Seasoned 1 chicken breast with Garlic and onion powder, salt, pepper, AND 1Teaspoon of Taco Seasoning.
– Cubed chicken instead of shredded (Preference)
-Added remaining Taco seasoning in recipe to mix
– Took 1 Serving of Mission Corn tortillas (3 small tortillas) and cut them into triangles and pop them in the airfrier for 5-6 minutes and OMG! So good! And much less Carbs than regular chips. For even more carb friendly you can make The chips with carbs balanced tortillas!
I’m so glad you are loving this recipe! I really need to try making tortilla chips in the air fryer…. that’s a great idea!!
Do you use canned corn? I don’t normally buy canned vegetables, do you have a
brand you recommend?
Hi Heidi! I buy frozen organic corn kernels to keep in my freezer. When I need corn for a recipe, I measure out the amount I need, put it in a bowl and microwave for 30 seconds-1 minute until it’s thawed. I haven’t tried canned corn, but I’m sure it would work for this recipe!
I’ve had it for lunch 3 days in a row now. Absolutely delicious! I use fat free Greek yogurt and scoop it up with rice crackers as I’m watching my calories. Recommending it to others!
I’m so glad that you are loving this recipe! Great idea to use rice crackers – I will have to pick some up!
I loved this recipe! 5 stars! I made my chicken in the insta-pot and followed the recipe. The veggies and cilantro give it such a fresh crispness, which is balanced by the creaminess from the yogurt. I had this with chips, or I’ve put it in a flour tortilla. Thanks for such a healthy and delicious recipe!
I’m so glad that you loved the chicken salad!! 🙂
I love this! I have been having such a hard time getting protein in at lunch! Working from home and momming from home have me grabbing whatever the kids are eating! This will really help me be prepped for the week to have higher protein lunches! Thanks!
I’m so glad that this recipe was helpful! Having lunch prepped and ready to go makes the day so much easier and helps me eat healthier! Enjoy 🙂
This was a delicious and easy meal! I will make it again for sure. I also love how easy it to personalize it with what ingredients you like more or less of. I was a little nervous about the Greek yogurt because my husband does not like Greek yogurt. I can’t normally sneak it in in uncooked form, but he did not even notice on this one! We ate this with HEB tortilla chips :).
Yay!!! So glad you loved it 🥰