Mexican Chicken Salad Lettuce Cups
by Katie Webster
May 4, 2015 (updated 5/20/21) Jump To Recipe
Mexican Chicken Salad Lettuce Cups with Avocado, jalapeno, cumin and cilantro in tender Bibb lettuce leaves. It is grain free and primal.
#SaladMonth is here my people! For those of you who weren’t here last May when I shared this Simple Cucumber Salad, I just want to catch you up, real quick like.
May is national salad month. For real, I didn’t make that up. (Though I wish I could claim credit, since how freakin’ cool is a whole month dedicated to the love of salad?) I am a lover of salads dating back to my time pre-birth, and ran strong while through the lunchbox packing years and continues today. So for May, I will be sharing salads all month.
How To Make This Recipe
To start things off this month I have these Mexican Chicken Salad stuffed lettuce leaves. Since Cinco de mayo is tomorrow, and I just took a Mexican cooking class, I thought I best start off with a Mexican recipe.
I love the way this chicken salad came out. Like I usually do for chicken salad, I lighted up the dressing by cutting the mayo with yogurt. It is super creamy from the avocado that is mixed in.
I also added in red pepper for color and crunch and a sprinkle of pepitas on top for added texture.
More Healthy Lunch Ideas
This high-protein Mediterranean Tuna Salad is bulked up with lots of fresh veggies to make a satisfying no-mayo tuna salad.
This Creamy Waldorf Chicken Salad with walnuts and apples is a healthier version of the classic.
This Spinach, Beet and Chicken Power Salad is a great meal prep lunch to make for busy work days.
This high-protein Vegan Chickpea Salad is dreamy and creamy from the luscious avocado lemon and basil dressing.
This Wasabi Glazed Salmon Power Salad is another meal prep recipe to add to your menu.
Thanks so much for reading. If you are new here, you may want to sign up for my free weekly email newsletter for healthy recipes delivered right to your inbox. Or follow me on Instagram. If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review! It is very appreciated. Happy Cooking! ~Katie
Mexican Chicken Salad Lettuce Cups
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
Description
Mexican Chicken Salad with Avocado, jalapeno, cumin and cilantro in tender Bibb lettuce leaves. It is grain free, high protein and primal.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast
- salt for poaching plus 1 teaspoon
- ¼ cup fat-free Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh jalapeno (or to taste)
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into cubes
- 1 bell pepper (any color), diced
- ¼ cup minced red onion
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 8 leaves Boston or Bibb lettuce
- Toasted pepitas for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- 1. Place chicken in a medium skillet. Cover with cold water and set over high heat. Bring to a simmer, add a generous pinch salt, reduce heat to medium-low and cook until the chicken is cooked through, and no longer pink in the center, 13 to 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the poaching liquid and let cool on a cutting board. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut into bite-sized cubes.
- 2. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, lime juice, jalapeno and cumin in a large bowl.
- 3. Gently stir the chicken, avocado, pepper, red onion and cilantro into the dressing to combine. Place two lettuce leaves on each plate. Fill the lettuce leaves with chicken salad, dividing evenly.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 lettuce cups, with 1/2 cup chicken salad each
- Calories: 233
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 829 mg
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Carbohydrates: 6 g
- Fiber: 4 g
- Protein: 25 g
ThIs salad sounds delicious and great for lunches. The only problem for me is I hate Cilantro. Is there anything else I could use in place of it? I tried your simple green beans last night and they were very good.
Thanks,
Tracy
You can simply leave it out if you don’t like it. It should work just fine without. Thanks for letting me know you liked the green beans. Yippee!
Hi Katie, I love the idea of putting chicken and lettuce in one salad. Lettuce can be use also as rolls with the chicken salad inside and it will be a perfect appetizer.
Mmmmmmm these look amazing! Love the addition of pepitas to the mix!
Thank you so much Chris. Have a fantastic day!
This sounds like such a refreshing salad. I love a Mexican spin on pretty much all recipes, so this is right up my alley!
We love Mexican recipes around here too Sam. Have a great day.
LOVE the addition of pepitas! So authentic and different than almonds or sunflower seeds that I usually put in my chicken salad.
They are great because they add some crunchy texture. Thanks so much Emily. Have a great day.
Mmm…love chicken salad and can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you! Consider it pinned!
Thank you so much Holley! Have a great day.
WOA -what a flavor and texture explosion! Loving the creaminess of the yogurt matched up with the crunch of the pepitas and the smoky cumin against the avocado – YAY for Salad month – I had no clue till I read your post!
Exactly! The texture contrast is really great.
I love that you lightened up and spiced up plain old chicken salad- definitely pinning this recipe to make. This would be a great thing to bring to a picnic 🙂
That’s a great idea Lauren. I loved having it for lunch.
Yes to salad month! I am a big salad lover. All day, every day! This looks perfect for Cinco de Mayo. And I never use mayonnaise anymore. I’ve always disliked it – even as a kid. So Greek yogurt for me in pretty much all my recipes.
Glad you’re into the idea of salad month Liz. 🙂 It seems to fall right at the perfect time of year too, when so many greens are in season, and we are all looking for lighter meals.
I love this recipe because I usually have all of the ingredients on hand— minus the Bibb lettuce. Picking some up at the grocery store this morning!
Hope you enjoy it Katie. Have a great day!