Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing

I love a great salad. I love the taste and I feel that I am doing something positive for my health when I eat one. This recipe for Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing has everything I love in it and the dressing is over-the-top good!

For those who like a colorful dinner plate, this salad is perfect for you. Assorted greens, orange pepper, red tomatoes, black beans, yellow corn, green onions in addition to the wonderful green cilantro dressing that tops it off. It really is a pretty salad.

This salad could easily be served as a side to many dishes but I like eating it as the main attraction, perhaps with a slice of crusty bread to go along with it. If you want, you can easily add a protein to it but really, it does not need that. I love eating a salad for dinner and I try to do this at least once a week.

The original recipe is about 6 years old. It comes from The Garden Grazer, a wonderful blog by Kaitlin McGinn. She shares plant-based recipes that are full of flavor. Be sure to check out her great blog!

I first made this salad for Christmas dinner in 2013. It was a huge hit and I have been making it ever since. The original recipe calls for chopping the greens, romaine in particular. I like my salad greens assorted, and torn as opposed to chopped. The salad can be made either way, without affecting the flavor. Kaitlin makes her salad dressing with half an avocado instead of Greek yogurt. You are welcome to experiment and try that if you prefer.

What is cilantro?

Cilantro refers to the leaves of the coriander plant. The seeds of the plant are called coriander and taste far different from the cilantro leaves. The cilantro leaves look like parsley and you need to be careful when buying it since many grocers feature it next to flat-leaf parsley. It is can be used as a seasoning in food. In addition, all parts of the plant are edible, so go ahead and chop the stems along with the leaves.

Meal planning (or what to serve with this Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing):

Appetizer:

• Tater Tot Potato Skins OR
• Sam’s Spicy Grilled Shrimp

Dessert:

• Anne’s Cheesecake OR
• Cocoa Drop Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting

Print Recipe

Southwest Salad with Cilantro Dressing

I can across this recipe about 5 years ago and made it for Christmas Eve. It was a big hit and I have made it a number of times since. The original recipe calls for chopped romaine but I prefer torn assorted greens. Either way, it is delicious!

Prep Time25 minutes mins

Total Time25 minutes mins

Course: Salad

Cuisine: American

Servings: 6

Calories: 360kcal

Author: Kaitlin McGinn

Ingredients

Salad

• 8 cups salad greens, washed and torn into pieces (original recipe calls for romaine but I stay away from romaine and prefer a mix of other greens)
• 15 oz. black beans, rinsed and well-drained (we always use the low-sodium black beans)
• 1 large orange bell pepper (you can substitute red or yellow bell pepper)
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 2 cups corn, frozen and thawed or fresh, cut off the cob
• 5 green onions, chopped

Cilantro Salad Dressing

• 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt (you can substitute ½ of an avocado for the yogurt)
• 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice (about ½ of a lime)
• 1 – 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 ½ tsp. white vinegar (you can substitute your favorite flavored vinegar)
• ⅛ tsp. salt

Instructions

Salad:

• Toss together the lettuce greens, drained and rinsed black beans, chopped orange pepper, halved cherry tomatoes, corn, and green onions.

  Cover and keep cold until serving.
  

Cilantro Salad Dressing:

• 1. Puree all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.

  2. This will be thick, you will probably need a small rubber spatula or wooden spoon to help mix it.

  3. Adjust seasoning and keep in a covered glass jar until ready to serve.

  4. Add to the entire salad and toss gently or serve alongside individual salads and let your guests add their own dressing.
  

Notes

Kaitlin from The Garden Grazer also will add a little cumin to her dressing to amp up the flavor. I have not tried this but I bet it would be a great addition to the salad dressing.