Made with simple and healthy ingredients, this Southwestern Grilled Shrimp Salad makes a fantastic meal loaded with lots of flavour. This recipe can be prepared in just about 30 minutes which makes it perfect for weeknight dinners or casual entertaining.
Sometimes it seems like I have a new favourite salad every week. This week it’s definitely this Southwestern Grilled Shrimp Salad. I just love the ingredients, spices and herbs used in Southwestern cuisine and if you do too then this salad will surely become one of your favourites as well.
This Southwestern Grilled Shrimp Salad is hearty and can definitely be served as a main. The salad is made up of perfectly seasoned grilled shrimp, black beans, corn, tomatoes, avocado and lettuce. The dressing for this salad is super flavourful and tastes even better if you make it a little ahead. Use your favourite lettuce, and pile on the rest of the ingredients on top. Top the salad with some goat or Feta cheese and the grilled shrimp skewers. Drizzle the dressing on top of the salad and shrimp and get ready to enjoy your delicious meal.
Finally, if you prefer you can also use chicken breast instead of shrimp, just make sure to use approximately the same weight in chicken (as the shrimp in the recipe) or else adjust the marinade ingredients for the amount of chicken you have. You can easily double the recipe for the marinade and the salad dressing if you’re looking to serve a larger crowd. Enjoy!
Southwestern Grilled Shrimp Salad
Ingredients
For the shrimp:
- 200 to 225 grams peeled and deveined shrimp (Approximately 7 to 8 oz.)
- 1 tsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. honey
- 1 tsp. lime zest
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp. ground coriander
- 1 clove small garlic minced
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the salad dressing:
- 6 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tbsp. fresh lime juice
- 2 tbsp. finely chopped red onion
- 1/2 small jalapeno finely chopped
- 1 clove small garlic minced
- 1 tbsp. finely chopped cilantro
- 2 tsp. honey
- 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp. chili powder
- 1/8 tsp. ground coriander
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
For the salad:
- 6 cups of mixed spring lettuce or lettuce of your choice
- 3/4 cup canned black beans rinsed
- 2/3 cup corn kernels (canned or frozen and thawed or kernels from grilled corn on the cob)
- 1/2 medium avocado sliced or cubed
- 1/2 ripe tomato sliced
- 1 tbsp. finely diced red onion
- 4 tbsp. crumbled goat cheese optional
- cilantro leaves for garnish optional
Instructions
For the salad dressing:
Combine all the ingredients together in a jar with a tight fitting lid, shake well and set aside to let the flavours meld.
For the shrimp marinade:
- In a small bowl, combine all ingredients, add the shrimp, mix well and set aside while you prepare the salad.
For the salad:
- Pile on the salad ingredients starting with the lettuce, beans, corn, avocado, red onions, and tomatoes.
- Top salad with fresh cilantro leaves and some crumbled goat or Feta cheese.
To cook the shrimp:
- Heat grill to medium-high heat.
- Thread shrimp on wood or metal skewers.
Place shrimp on grill, grill shrimp 2-3 minutes on each side or until cooked.
- When shrimp skewers are ready you can top the salad with skewers, or remove shrimp from skewers and add to salad.
- Shake the salad dressing well and drizzle on salad and shrimp.
More salad recipes you might enjoy:
Greek Salad with Grilled Chicken
Roasted Beet and Orange Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette
I think I will try this one tonight! Been eyeing it for a while!!! 🙂
Yay! Hope you liked it!
Now THIS looks like the perfect salad…fabulous ingredients, hearty yet healthy and dressed to perfection!
Thanks Nancy, I’ve already made this salad several times this summer and I have to say I have not tired of it yet!
Big, delicious, flavorful salads are my favorite way to do lunchtime in the summer and this one looks PERFECT! Seriously, I’m drooling. Cannot wait to give this a try!
Thank you Karly! This salad is just perfect for summer, I’ve had it several times already and love it every time. I hope you enjoy it as well!
Love the looks of the southwestern salad…perfect for a hot summer evening.
Thanks so much Karen!
Wow, what a great summer salad! I got hungry looking at this…
Thanks so much Amanda, hope you got to eat something delicious!
Beautiful salad, love the shrimp and the southwestern flavors.
Thank you! I’m a huge fan of southwestern food also, the shrimp was so delicious in this salad that I’m thinking of using the same marinade for some shrimp tacos!