Chipotle Chicken and Bean Quinoa Salad Cups

Prep: 25 min | Yield: 4 servings

(Family Features) A great salad is always a welcome choice. Bean salads are perennial favorites, and this simple, satisfying, prize-winning recipe won’t disappoint.

To recreate a winning recipe from the recent Seneca Foods Mystery Box recipe contest, begin with a pantry staple, READ 3 or 4 Bean Salad. Smart cooks keep a couple of cans or single-serve cups in the refrigerator, ready to serve as a side dish or to kick start a salad, like this Chipotle Chicken and Bean Quinoa Salad.

The ready-to-eat combo of green, wax and kidney beans is delicious mixed with cooked quinoa, chicken and a subtly spicy, smoky chipotle dressing accented with lime juice and cilantro. Spooned into lettuce cups to serve, it’s the easiest main dish ever, and it’s a tasty way to use rotisserie chicken or leftover grilled chicken.

Double the recipe if needed or if opting for a single serving, it couldn’t be simpler. Start with an individual serving cup of salad and decrease dressing ingredients as the recipe directs.

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can Read 3 or 4 Bean Salad
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 tablespoon adobo sauce (from canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce)
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 1/2 cups cooked quinoa
• 1 cup diced cooked chicken
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
• 1 chipotle pepper, minced (from canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce)
• 4 leaves Bibb lettuce

Instructions

1. Drain bean salad; reserve 2 tablespoons liquid.
2. To prepare dressing: In small bowl, whisk together reserved liquid, lime juice, adobo sauce, mustard, salt and pepper.
3. Whisk in oil until completely combined. Stir in cilantro; set aside.
4. In medium bowl, combine bean salad, quinoa, chicken, onions and minced chipotle pepper.
5. Add dressing; toss gently. If chilled salad is desired, cover and refrigerate 2 hours, or as long as overnight.
6. To serve, divide bean salad mixture equally among lettuce cups.

Notes

To make salad for one, drain single-serve cup of bean salad; reserve 1 1/2 teaspoons of liquid and place bean salad in small bowl. Add 1/2 cup cooked quinoa, 1/4 cup diced cooked chicken, 1 tablespoon sliced green onion and 1 teaspoon minced chipotle pepper. Whisk together reserved bean liquid, 1 1/2 teaspoons lime juice, 3/4 teaspoon adobo sauce, 1/4 teaspoon mustard and salt and pepper, as desired. Whisk in 2 teaspoons olive oil. Add dressing to bean mixture and toss. Spoon into 1 Bibb lettuce leaf.

Nutrition

Per serving: 300 calories; 14g protein; 28 g carbohydrate; 14 g total fat; 390 mg sodium; 30 mg cholesterol; 4 g dietary fiber; 3 mg iron; 0.11 mg thiamin; 590 IU vitamin A; 7 mg vitamin C

Attribution

Seneca Foods

Look for other seasonal salad ideas and recipes at readsalads.com.