So Zack and I went to Tocaya for the first time a couple of years ago and we were pretty impressed. We got tacos, tamales, and brussels sprouts… I think lol. We didn’t go back for a while but recently, like a couple of months ago, we went back. This time we both got the Tocaya salad, we went a healthier route this time around. We did indulge in some $1 margaritas though 🤫(it was special for June).
Basically, we loved them enough that I am now here writing a blog post recreating it at home.
INGREDIENTS
- 6 Romaine Lettuce Leaves, chopped
- 2 tbs. Onion, chopped
- 1 tbs. Cilantro, chopped
- ¼ cup Tomatoes, diced
- ¼ cup Black Beans
- 1 Avocado, diced
- 1 Lemon
- ¼ Jalapeno, sliced
- 1 Chicken Breast
- 2 tsp. Lemon Pepper Salt
- 2 tsp. Ancho Chili Pepper
- 1 tbs. Olive Oil
INSTRUCTIONS
Depending on if you are using chicken, you can start with that first. Season it and coat it in olive oil.
Bake it at 450 degrees F for 30 minutes or throw it on the grill.
Then chop the greens of your choice. For this recipe, I used romaine lettuce.
Dice your tomatoes, onion, and avocado.
Chop cilantro finely and slice jalapenos.
crush up your tortilla chips or use the presliced strips. I highly recommend the Santa Fe strips from Ralphs.
Heat up your black beans a little and set them to the side.
Dice your chicken and arrange your ingredients in your bowl.
Top with the juice of one lemon or your favorite dressing and enjoy!
First, you want to begin with your lettuce. I prefer romaine lettuce in my salads but you could use whatever is your fave greens.
Chop them all at once into small bite-size pieces.
Once chopped, place them in the bowl you are going to serve the salad in.
We got the Diablo Chicken on our salads but I honestly have no idea what they used spice-wise. I used olive oil, lemon pepper seasoned salt, and ancho chile pepper.
I just made a basic chicken recipe. You can either bake this in the oven at 450 degrees F for 30 minutes or throw it on the grill.
You can use the entire chicken breast or just use half like I did, depending on how hungry you are.
Next, you wanna slice up the rest of your ingredients.
This recipe calls for cilantro, onion, tomato, black beans, avocado, tortilla strips, and jalapeno.
For the black beans, I like mine to be a little warm so I heat them up on the stove before plating it all.
I didn’t have tortilla strips on me, so I just used some tortilla chips and crushed them with my hands.
The Tocaya salad uses red onions but I didn’t have that on hand so I just used a regular white onion.
Once you put everything together all pretty this is what you should end up with.
It is totally up to you and your bowl how you lay everything out. I won’t lie the whole jalapeno slices aren’t my fave. If you actually want to bite into them easily, I would dice those up.
To top it all off, my “dressing” is just lemon juice over the top. Tocayo uses a bomb cilantro lime dressing but I just didn't have the time to make a whole dressing. Maybe in the future, I will make a little recipe blog post for the dressing. For the dressing, you could also use salsa or a chipotle mayo dressing. Equally delicious.
The recipe has the perfect balance of spice, texture, crunch, and softness. It is also pretty easy to put together. Something you could totally prep the night before.
I hope you guys like this recipe! I love it because it is super versatile. You could make it vegan or add any veggies you like. Let me know if you guys try it and tag me in photos on any of my social media accounts! I would love to see 🥗