Zesty Mexican Chicken Quinoa Salad Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup of fresh water
• 1/2 cup of quinoa
• 1 portion of taco seasoning mix, divided into two
• 2 pieces of chicken breasts, diced into small cubes
• 1 spoonful of butter
• 1 ripe avocado, peeled and diced
• 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
• 1 cup of freshly chopped spinach leaves
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper, finely diced
• 1/3 cucumber, chopped
• 2 jalapeno peppers, deseeded and chopped
• 1/2 cup of salsa

Step 1

To start, bring a pot of water to a boil and add quinoa along with half of the taco seasoning mix. Let it simmer on low heat until the quinoa is tender and has absorbed the water, roughly 15 minutes.

Step 2

In a separate bowl, mix the chicken with the remaining taco seasoning mix, allowing it to marinate for about 10 minutes.

Step 3

Next, melt some butter in a skillet over medium heat and cook the seasoned chicken until it's no longer pink in the center, which should take around 5 to 10 minutes. Then, transfer the cooked chicken and quinoa to a bowl and pop it in the freezer for a quick chill, approximately 5 minutes.

Step 4

In a large mixing bowl, combine diced avocado, red onion, celery, spinach, carrots, red and yellow bell peppers, cucumber, and jalapeno peppers. Add the chilled chicken-quinoa mixture, along with salsa, and give everything a good toss to mix it all together thoroughly.