Mexican Chopped Salad with Honey Lime Vinaigrette Recipe
A vibrant and refreshing Mexican Chopped Salad tossed with a zesty honey lime vinaigrette, packed with fresh vegetables, creamy avocado, black beans, and crumbled queso fresco. This salad offers a perfect balance of tangy, sweet, and mildly spicy flavors, ideal as a light lunch or side dish.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: No-Cook
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Scale
Honey Lime Vinaigrette
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon lime zest
- 2 tablespoons honey
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 clove garlic (finely minced)
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or to taste)
Salad
- 2 ripe Hass avocados (diced)
- 1 fresh jalapeño (seeded and finely diced)
- ½ medium red onion (finely diced)
- 1 orange bell pepper (seeded and finely diced)
- 1 English cucumber (small diced)
- 4 medium tomatoes (seeded and diced into ¼-inch pieces)
- 4 ears corn (kernels cut off the cob)
- 1 (15.5-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1 (14.5-ounce) package queso fresco (crumbled)
- 1 (3.5-ounce) package tortilla strips (optional, for garnish)
Instructions
- Make the Dressing: In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine lime juice, lime zest, honey, cumin, onion powder, chili powder, minced garlic, olive oil, kosher salt, and black pepper. Shake vigorously until well combined, creating a smooth and flavorful dressing.
- Assemble the Salad: In a large bowl, add the diced avocados, finely diced jalapeño, red onion, orange bell pepper, English cucumber, seeded and diced tomatoes, corn kernels, rinsed black beans, half of the crumbled queso fresco, and chopped cilantro. Toss gently to evenly mix all ingredients without mashing the avocado.
- Dress and Serve: Just before serving, drizzle the honey lime vinaigrette over the salad. Toss carefully to coat all the ingredients evenly with the dressing. Top the salad with the remaining crumbled queso fresco and optional tortilla strips for a delightful crunch and extra flavor.
Notes
- For a spicier kick, keep some jalapeño seeds or add sliced jalapeños as garnish.
- To make this salad vegan, omit queso fresco and tortilla strips or substitute with vegan cheese and vegan chips.
- Prepare the dressing ahead of time and refrigerate for up to 2 days for convenience.
- Ensure all vegetables are diced uniformly to create a pleasing chopped texture.
- The salad is best served immediately after dressing to avoid sogginess, but can be prepped and kept separate until ready.
Keywords: Mexican chopped salad, honey lime vinaigrette, avocado salad, black bean salad, queso fresco salad, fresh vegetable salad, healthy Mexican recipe, no-cook salad
