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Would you look at that? I finally made us a summer salad! This peachy chipotle chicken tortilla and avocado rice salad…with pan fried halloumi, just had to be shared!
And yes, to be expected, I left nothing out of the recipe title…Typical.
So you guys, when I dream up a salad in my head, I don’t just dream up a bowl of lettuce with some chicken, and dressing. NOOO. That’s the worst. I can’t do a boring chicken salad for the life of me. Nope, I’m all about the salad that’s a MEAL. A salad that is loaded with veggies, proteins, grains, and okay…maybe just a little cheese too.
This is that salad.
For weeks now, I’ve been wanting to create a peach salad that was delicious, but different from anything I already have on the blog (….see all the salads here). Last summer I made this balsamic chicken and peach salad, as well is this Thai peach quinoa salad. <– both are really good and you should probably check them out if you’re up to your ears in summer peaches. Just sayin’.
Not going to lie, for this summer’s peach salad I was a little stumped. So stumped that I actually gave up trying to come up with an idea and decided on a chicken tortilla salad instead. It sounded good and I was happy with the idea, but then I made it, photographed it and decided it was just boring. I mean, it was good, but not good enough. The thing about me is that if I don’t 100% love a recipe, you guys are never going to see it, and that was the case with the previous salad.
But then I got to thinking (on a hike of course, because this is when I come up with the best recipes). Chipotle, honey, and peaches are a delicious combo, and you know, they might just work in salad form. Then my wheels started turning and the idea of an avocado rice came to mind. Like avocado rice, meaning not rice topped with avocado, but avocado mixed into the rice. And then, somehow fried Halloumi cheese flew into my head, and just like that this salad was born and it pretty much stomped all over the previous (and rather colorless) salad.
I made it, loved it, and now I am showing it to you guys, and I am 100% excited about it.
Here is the gist of this salad.
Start out by making the vinaigrette –> a mix of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, a little lime, a little honey, chipotle peppers, and cilantro (use basil if you hate cilantro). Mix this up in a glass jar and shake, shake, SHAKE.
Next make the rice –> brown rice + perfectly ripe avocado + lime juice + flakey sea salt. PERFECTION…I could eat just this rice and be pretty happy.
Last up –> pan fried halloumi cheese (my favorite).
Then just toss your salad ingredients together…hello to mixed greens, bell peppers, fresh peaches, jalapeño, and shredded chicken. Drizzle with the vinaigrette, top with rice, halloumi, and some tortilla chips for crunch.
Picture perfect salad = complete.
I really cannot express how good this salad is. The layers of flavor, the texture, the sweet peaches with the spicy vinaigrette, the salty halloumi cheese with the savory avocado rice. It’s so delicious all together!
It really is a salad like no other, and I love it.
Whoever defined a salad as a boring bowl of lettuce could not have been more off. Salads should be wholesome, fun, and crave worthy, and this salad is totally that.
Enter in the fist pump emoji now.
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ps. from here on out all rice now needs to be avocado rice…it’s beyond good.
WOW, this was amazing….
Hey Katy,
Happy Wednesday! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for making it! xTieghan
Delicious, made it with what I had in so I rice and avocado just lots of lovely leaves and lemon instead of lime but all absolutely delicious love all your recipes! 🙂
Hey Hannah,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad that it was enjoyed! xTieghan
I made a few modifications (quinoa instead of rice, peas instead of peppers, shredded harvati instead of hallmoui) but omg this was beyond amazing and very filling. I will DEFINITELY make again.
I am so glad this turned out so well for you Kim! Thank you!
My family loved this! Amazing recipe. Thank you
Hey there,
Awesome! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and appreciate you giving it a go! Have a wonderful week:) xTieghan
As a salad HATER I am nervous about any salad I try. I’ve only found 1-2 I enjoy eating, and I can now add this one to my list! I was nervous about the peaches in the salad, but they were absolutely delicious and a must! It was also easy to meal prep this for work, as all I needed to do was prep the vinaigrette and the rice, then pack it all up each morning.
Though I still like pasta and pizza more than salad, I definitely am keeping this salad in mind for when I need to be healthy(ish). It had everything you could need in a meal and was super filling!
That is SO amazing to hear! Thank you so much Emma!
Absolutely love this salad. It doesn’t only taste very good but it looks impressive on my table to.
How long before dinnertime can the halloumi cheese be fried and add to the dish?
So happy you love this salad! You can fry the cheese a day or so ahead and then just add to the salad. Please let me know if you have other questions. Thanks! 🙂
This was such a great recipe, really unique with lots of great flavors. One of the better salads I’ve ever had.
thank you so much!