This post may contain affiliate links.

This Mexican Salad is everything we all want in a summer side dish – fresh, colourful, full of texture, flavour and not too much chopping. Not a soggy lettuce leaf in sight!

A big bowl of Mexican Salad topped with feta and tortilla chips.

I don’t know about you, but for me, in the past, side salads have been a bit of an afterthought. Hi LIMP LETTUCE. 🤦🏼‍♀️

I have made it my mission to change that and remind myself that with a bit more imagination (but no more effort, thankfully), we can indeed serve a big bowl of deliciousness up for a vegetarian family meal or as part of a bigger meal when entertaining guests (I’m thinking fajita night or a barbecue for starters).

For this easy salad recipe, we’re simply chopping the fresh peppers and red onion, adding tins of sweetcorn and black beans, plus a tub of salsa, then jalapeños to your own taste into a big bowl.

Then mix together your dressing and pour over the salad just before serving. Crumble the feta and tortilla chips over the top. Done!

You can also make this in advance for when friends are over. Always a win.


Why you’ll love this Mexican Salad recipe

⭐️ Packed with fresh flavour

⭐️ Budget-friendly and simple

⭐️ Impressive and colourful!


A close up of Mexican Salad ingredients in a bowl, mixed together.

How we came up with this recipe

This is my take on a salad, using some ingredients found in Mexican or Tex Mex cuisines

I’ve used feta cheese here as it’s the closest I think I can get to ‘white cheese’ used in Mexican dishes.

Did you know that if any kind of yellow cheese is used in a recipe it points to a Tex Mex cuisine rather than Mexican? You can read more about the differences here in an article on Spoon University which is super informative.

All that said, this recipe is also similar in style to the Cowboy Caviar (recently doing the rounds on TikTok), which is Tex Mex cuisine. 

Cowboy Caviar (or Texas Caviar) originates from the 1940s when a New York chef, Helen Corbitt, visited Texas and made it as a tongue-in-cheek nod to real caviar!


Mexican Salad Ingredients Notes

Ingredients of a Mexican Salad - A colourful rainbow effect in a bowl.
  • Dressing – This is made up with natural yoghurt, honey, salt and lime juice. The recipe has 2 limes but if it’s looking runny enough with less, just use 1 
  • Mint – You can use coriander if you prefer (which would be more authentic) but I think it’s the food of the devil, sorry
  • Salsa – We’re using the fresh kind, from the fridge section, rather than long-life jars
  • Black beans – Be sure to drain and rinse these before adding 
  • Jalapeños – The quantity for these are to your own taste

How to make a Mexican SAlad bowl

  1. Chop everything and add to the bowl.
  2. Make the dressing but leave in a separate small bowl or jug. Add just before serving and mix well.
  3. Sprinkle tortilla chips, feta and mint on top.

Make in advance

The fact you can get this all set to go ahead of time is one of the reasons I love it. 

Simply do all of the chopping in advance, then cover the bowl well and refrigerate until it’s time to serve.

At this point, add the dressing, tortilla chips and feta.

Top tip

Spice level

The addition of the jalapeños gives it a bit of heat, but you can choose the kick to your liking by adjusting how much you put in. 

If you think your kids won’t like any heat, just omit or add a very small amount. Similarly, load it up if you love the tingle!

FAQs

What can I serve with Mexican Salad?

This works as a stand alone salad for a lunch or even as a dip of its own with tortilla chips. ]

But it’s also perfect as part of a bigger Mexican-style meal, perhaps with Mexican Chicken & Rice, Chicken Fajitas or Pork Carnitas, Chilli Loaded Wedges or Beef Enchiladas, Salmon Tacos or Chicken Quesadillas?

Is this a healthy salad recipe?

It is full of colourful, vitamin-packed ingredients from the veggies to the beans, and even the dressing is quite light as it’s made with yoghurt. So yes, it’s healthy.

Let me know how you got on and what you thought of these recipes. Please rate the recipe using the ⭐️ below.

Also I’d LOVE to see your cooking creations. If you’d like to share yours with me, you can tag me on Instagram (@tamingtwins).

5 from 26 votes

Mexican-Style Salad {with Zesty Lime Dressing}

This is a super easy, healthy, budget-friendly, colourful and crunchy Mexican Salad that's perfect as an impressive side dish or main salad meal.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 4 as a main dish or 6 as a side dish

Ingredients 

  • 1 Red pepper
  • 1 Yellow pepper
  • 1 Large Red onions, Or 2 small
  • 340 g Sweetcorn, Drained
  • 200 g Salsa, The fresh kind, from the fridge
  • 400 g Black beans, Drained and rinsed
  • Jalapeños, To taste

For the dressing:

  • 150 g Natural yoghurt
  • 2 Limes, Juice and zest
  • 2 tsp Honey
  • Salt

For the top:

  • Handful of tortilla chips
  • 100 g Feta, Crumbled
  • 2 tbsp Fresh mint, Finely chopped

Instructions 

  • Chop everything and add to the bowl.
  • Make the dressing but leave in a separate small bowl or jug. Add just before serving and mix well.
  • Sprinkle tortilla chips and feta on top.

Notes

Dressing: This is made up with natural yoghurt, honey, salt and lime juice. The recipe has 2 limes but if it’s looking runny enough with less, just use 1 
Mint: You can use coriander if you prefer (which would be more authentic) but I think it’s the food of the devil, sorry
Salsa: We’re using the fresh kind, from the fridge section, rather than long-life jars
Black beans: Be sure to drain and rinse these before adding 
Spice level: The addition of the jalapeños gives it a bit of heat, but you can choose the kick to your liking by adjusting how much you put in. If you think your kids won’t like any heat, just omit or add a very small amount. Similarly, load it up if you love the tingle!
To make in advance: Simply do all of the chopping in advance, then cover the bowl well and refrigerate until it’s time to serve. At this point, add the dressing, tortilla chips and feta

Nutrition

Calories: 358kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 18gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 5gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 27mgSodium: 648mgPotassium: 1003mgFiber: 14gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 1662IUVitamin C: 112mgCalcium: 240mgIron: 4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Lunch, Salad, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: Mexican
Like this? Leave a comment and rating below!Mention @myusername or tag #myhashtag!

new cookbook!

Featuring 100 delicious recipes that can be cooked in one pot, you can open any page in this book and find something that will give you not only a meal that the whole family will eat and enjoy, but also one that makes your life a little simpler in the process.

More Recipes

Sarah Rossi founder of TamingTwins.com and author of 'What's for Dinner?' books.

Welcome!

Hi, I'm Sarah. I help busy people decide 'What's for Dinner?' Find hundreds of recipes here, and also in my bestselling recipe book. Hope my recipes make your life easier ❤️

5 from 26 votes (12 ratings without comment)

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

18 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Very tasty salad. Left out the tortilla chips as served it with cold roast chicken drumsticks so not so Mexican for us but zingy, crunchy and delicious:)

  2. 5 stars
    Hi Sarah, loved this recipe and only just realised that I can have the photo on ‘print recipe’
    My life is complete, thank you

  3. 5 stars
    We had this for dinner last night with some steak and it was epic!! So so tasty, absolutely loved the zingy dressing and the crunch of the crisps was a nice touch. Definitely a family favourite in the making.