When you’re in the mood for the bold flavors of a signature Mexican dish but want something that’s a little bit on the lighter side as well, you can’t go wrong with a refreshing Mexican chopped salad. With crisp lettuce and fresh ingredients, you can create a salad that’s out-of-this-world as a meal, on its own or served up as a side with common Mexican food. Plus, you can feel a little less guilty enjoying this healthy dish than you would a heaping serving of rice and refried beans.

For the Dressing

For this chopped salad recipe, we encourage you to make your own from-scratch dressing, though you can always save yourself some time and hassle by using your favorite store-bought dressing as well. This particular dressing is a delicious lime vinaigrette. Here’s what you need:

• two tablespoons of honey
• a quarter cup of fresh lime juice
• a half teaspoon of cumin
• a half teaspoon of salt
• a clove of minced garlic
• two tablespoons of olive oil
• two tablespoons canola oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Create this simple yet flavorful dressing by combining all ingredients except the oils into a small bowl. Once those ingredients are well mixed, gradually stir in the oils, using a whisk to combine everything well. Taste-test and add more salt and pepper as needed!

For the Salad

Okay, now it’s time for the fun part: making the salad! You’ll need lots of fresh ingredients for this salad, so we recommend stopping at your local market the day you plan on making this for the best results. Here’s everything you need to make a large enough serving for several people:

• a head of Romaine lettuce, chopped
• a medium bell pepper of your choosing, chopped
• half of a diced red onion (more or less to taste)
• one diced zucchini
• four medium tomatoes, diced and seeded
• black beans, drained and rinsed to your liking
• four ears of cooked corn, chopped into small pieces
• fresh chopped cilantro to taste

Make sure all of your ingredients are chopped up as finely as you’d like them, then combine them in a large bowl (we recommend using a salad spinner). Add dressing to your liking or allow your guests to add their own as desired. Store leftovers in an airtight container; without dressing, the salad should keep for a few days!

Delicious Variations

There are all kinds of fun variations to this chopped Mexican salad recipe that you may also want to consider. For example, if you’re looking for a little more of a crunch in your salad, consider making your own tortilla strips to add. You can do this by cutting flour tortillas into small strips, brushing them with olive oil, drizzling them with salt, and popping them in the oven at 350 degrees until brown and crispy!

This Mexican chopped salad recipe is great for your summer gatherings. Light, refreshing, and fresh, it’s an easy salad to make that people will think you spent hours on. Plus, this recipe makes a large enough batch so that you might even have some leftovers to save for yourself!