Chopped Tex Mex Salad With Chipotle Ranch Dressing
This chopped Tex Mex salad is packed with bold Southwestern flavors and topped with a creamy chipotle ranch dressing. It’s a perfect little lunch, or a great side for Tex-Mex dinners.
If you love the flavors in this salad, you will love this elote pasta salad with creamy elote dressing!
Recipe Ingredients: Chopped Tex-Mex Salad
For the dressing:
For the salad:
Ingredient Notes, Additions & Substitutions
Romaine lettuce: Iceberg lettuce always makes a great chopped salad, too!
Tortilla chips: My kids love using Doritos in place of the plain tortilla chips! You can also use crushed corn chips, crunchy wonton strips, or even pepitas for crunch.
Milk/buttermilk: I love the tang from buttermilk in this dressing, but regular milk work just fine (2%, whole milk, whatever you have on hand).
Veggie additions: Feel free to load this salad up with more veggies like cucumber, red onion, or bell peppers.
Cheese: You can’t go wrong adding cheese (cheddar, jack, cotija).
Protein: Make this chopped salad a hearty meal by adding grilled chicken, steak, taco meat, or quinoa.
Dressing: Swap out the chipotle ranch dressing for regular ranch (more mild), or a light vinaigrette. Catalina dressing is also delicious!
Expert Tips
- Don’t add avocado and dressing too early: Add the diced avocado and chipotle ranch dressing just before serving.
- Chill the dressing: This dressing is best if it’s chilled at least 30 minutes before serving.
- Storage: With the dressing on, this salad doesn’t last too long in the fridge. However, you can store leftovers without the dressing in an airtight container for about 2-3 days.
How to serve
Side for Tex-Mex meals: If you need something other than beans and rice to serve with your tacos and enchiladas, this salad is the perfect, fresh side!
Added protein: Top this salad with grilled chicken, shrimp, or steak for a full meal.
Taco salad: Add ground beef or turkey taco meat for an easy taco salad.
Salad bar: This salad is a total crowd-pleaser! Set out all the ingredients and a few dressing options, and let guests build their own custom salad.
Layer it up: This salad is so pretty layered in a glass trifle bowl like this one! This is a perfect party and potluck side dish!
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Thank you! ~ Casey
Chopped Tex Mex Salad
Ingredients
For the dressing
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup sour cream I use light
- 2 tbsp ranch seasoning mix such as Hidden Valley
- 1 chipotle in adobo, chopped PLUS one tbsp. of the adobo sauce from the can/jar
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 1/4 cup regular milk or buttermilk
- pinch of salt, as needed
For the salad
- 6-8 cups romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
- 1 cup corn frozen or canned
- 2 ripe avocados, diced
- 1 15 oz. can of black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- crushed tortilla chips can also substitute Doritos or corn chips
Instructions
- Make the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk all the dressing ingredients together. Set aside or place in the fridge. The dressing is best if refrigerated for an hour or more.
- Assemble the salad: In a large bowl, add all salad ingredients. Toss with the dressing and serve right away.
Notes
Expert Tips:
- Don’t add avocado and dressing too early: Add diced avocado and chipotle ranch dressing just before serving.
- Chill the dressing: This dressing is best if it’s chilled at least 30 minutes before serving.
- Storage: With the dressing on, this salad doesn’t last too long in the fridge. However, you can store leftovers without the dressing in an airtight container for about 2-3 days.
This might be one of my all time favorite salads! The chipotle dressing is SO GOOD and super easy to make! Enjoy! XO ~ Casey