Chicken with Mango, Corn and Black Bean Salad

22 Apr Chicken with Mango, Corn and Black Bean Salad

This salad reminds me of summer and is full of beautiful and surprising flavors and textures and lots of the “good stuff” your body loves.  Think sweet mango with a bite of salty cotija cheese and meaty black beans with crisp red onion in a citrus garlic vinaigrette…well, you get the point.   Black beans are obviously high in fiber but they also have folic acid, magnesium, potassium and iron.  Mango, one of my favorite fruits, is high in Vitamin A and all of the citrus juices are excellent sources of antioxidants.  And as always, this recipe has a great balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat to keep you satisfied, energized, lean and sexy.   I recommend marinating the chicken over night for a ton of flavor and for ease of prep.  If you are making this in bulk for the week (rather than having all 6 servings at once), keep the dressing separate so your salad stays fresh. If you’re dairy free, simply skip the cotija cheese- it’s just as delicious without! Enjoy and feel free to share!

Chicken with Mango, Corn and Black Bean Salad

Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

For the marinade/dressing:

• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced (I like to mince until it’s a paste-like consistency)
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1 large orange, juiced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 to 1 small jalapeno (depending on desired heat), minced
• handful of fresh cilantro, leaves chopped
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 to 2 tablespoons honey
• 6 thin chicken cutlets (if you can’t find chicken cutlets, just ask the butcher at your local market to butterfly and pound 3 breasts into 6 cutlets)
• 1 can organic black beans, rinsed and drained well
• 1/2 small red onion, diced small
• 1 mango, chopped
• 1 ear of grilled corn, kernels removed or 1 cup of frozen corn (defrosted)
• 4 handfuls of chopped romaine lettuce

Garnish:  1/4 cup cotija cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make the marinade/ dressing: whisk together the first 6 ingredients in a bowl (garlic through cilantro).  Drizzle in olive oil while whisking continuously to form a dressing.  Set aside.
2. Place chicken cutlets in a shallow dish and pour about 1/3 of the marinade (set aside the rest) over the chicken and move the chicken around to coat evenly.  Marinate chicken at least one hour or overnight.
3. Whisk in a tablespoon or two of honey into the remaining marinade/ dressing and set aside.
4. Cook chicken on the grill or in a pan until no longer pink inside.  Let rest for at least 5 minutes.
5. While chicken cooks, combine salad ingredients (mango, black beans, corn and romaine lettuce) in a large bowl.
6. When ready to serve, add salad to each plate and top with chicken.   Drizzle each plate with dressing and garnish with cotija cheese if desired.   Enjoy!Chef’s note:  If you are planning on saving some of this delicious recipe for the week, keep the dressing separate and add when serving so the salad stays crisp!

SO, WHAT’S THE NUTRITION BALANCE?

This recipe has a great balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat and is a complete meal.