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Marissa Bolden

Cilantro Pesto Chicken Corn Salad Bowl

This bowl layers tender, chicken breast marinated and cooked with vibrant homemade cilantro pesto over a fresh, zesty corn salad. It’s a bright, herbaceous, and satisfying meal perfect for a light yet flavor-packed lunch or dinner.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 3
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • 3 chicken breast slightly pounded
  • Cilantro pesto
  • 1 bunch cilantro
  • 2 tb almonds
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1/4 c olive oil
  • 2 tb red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 c parmesan cheese
  • Corn salad
  • 2 c sweet corn
  • 1 Tb cilantro
  • 1 roma tomato diced
  • 1 jalapeño seeded and minced
  • salt to taste

Equipment

  • Food Processor
  • Cutting Board
  • Knife
  • Skillet
  • Mixing bowl
  • Tongs

Method
 

  1. To make the corn salad
  2. Combine the 2 cups of sweet corn, 1 Tbsp of cilantro, 1 diced roma tomato, and 1 seeded and minced jalapeño in a mixing bowl. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt.Set aside.
  3. To make cilantro pesto
  4. Combine the 1 bunch of cilantro, 1/2 tsp sea salt, 2 Tbsp of almonds, 4 garlic cloves, and 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Slowly stream in the 1/4 cup of olive oil and pulse until smooth. Stir in the 2 Tbsp of red wine vinegar. Adjust salt to taste
  5. Cooking the chicken and building the bowl
  6. After pounding the chicken, season each piece of chicken with 1/2 tsp of sea salt on both sides. Gently toss the slightly pounded chicken breasts with a generous amount of the prepared cilantro pesto. Let sit for 20 minutes or overnight. Heat a skillet over medium heat with a tablespoon of oil and cook the chicken until done on both sides for 8 minutes or (internal temp 165°F). Let sit for 5 minutes. Slice the chicken into strips. To assemble, place the corn salad into a bowl and arrange the sliced pesto chicken on top, top with additional pesto and tortilla chips for crunch.