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Santa Fe Chicken Salad Wraps are a delicious tex-mex twist to classic chicken salad. Chunks of chicken, black beans, fresh veggies, and corn are mixed with a creamy Santa Fe sauce and then wrapped up in a flour tortilla with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado slices. It’s the best no oven dinner, easy lunch, and one of my favorite ways to use up a rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken.
For more southwest & Santa Fe favorites try my Creamy Southwest Chicken Salad, Southwest Chicken Pasta, and Crockpot Southwest Chicken Burrito Bowls.
Creamy Delicious Santa Fe Chicken Salad Wraps
I love making chicken salad to keep in the fridge for quick lunches, snacks, or busy weeknights when you need something that is grab & go. It also makes for the best dinner because you can easily make it ahead of time and then it’s ready when you are.
I love this Santa Fe twist to classic chicken salad. It has a creamy spiced dressing with cilantro, taco seasoning, and fresh lime juice. Then it gets mixed with chunks of tender chicken, corn, bell peppers, and black beans.
You can eat it as is, with your favorite crackers or tortilla chips, a croissant, or wrap it up in a flour tortilla with some shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, and avocado slices. That is my family’s favorite way to eat it!
It keeps well in the fridge so it’s perfect for gran & go lunches, or for dinnertime when you need something that is ready to serve. With all the different ways of serving chicken salad, it’s a versatile meal that is perfect for anytime.
Ingredients Needed
Santa Fe Creamy Dressing Ingredients
- Sour Cream : I prefer the taste and creamy texture of full-fat, but light or fat-free can be used if wanted.
- Mayonnaise
- Sliced Green Onions
- Chopped Fresh Cilantro
- Fresh Lime Juice : About 1-2 large limes, squeezed will be enough.
- Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Chili Powder, Garlic Powder, Cumin
Chicken Salad Ingredients
- Chopped or Shredded Chicken : I love using a rotisserie chicken for this recipe because it’s ready-to-use and already seasoned, and super tender!
- Black Beans : Drained well and rinsed.
- Fire-Roasted Corn : This is canned corn that has been fire-roasted. Another good option is a can of gold n’ yellow corn.
- Orange Bell Pepper
Wrap Ingredients For Serving
- Large Burrito/Wraps Flour Tortillas
- Halved Cherry or Grape Tomatoes
- Shredded Lettuce or Green Leaf Lettuce
- Sliced Avocado : Guacamole is another option.
How To Make Chicken Salad Santa Fe Wraps (Printable Recipe Card)
In a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the creamy dressing ingredients until well combined.
Add in the chicken, black beans, corn, and chopped bell pepper. Stir everything together until it’s well combined and all the ingredients are coated in the creamy sauce.
At this point the chicken salad can be served right away, OR if you prefer a chilled chicken salad, cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap, and allow it to refrigerate for up to 4-6 hours before serving. This is great for a make-ahead dinner if needed.
Lay a large burrito/wrap style flour tortilla onto a cutting board or plate. Place about 1/2 cup of the Santa Fe chicken salad mixture onto the bottom half of the tortilla. Add some shredded lettuce, halved cherry tomatoes, and avocado slices. Fold up burrito-style (fold in the sides and then roll it up tightly like a burrito). Cut in half and serve. Enjoy!
How To Store Leftover Santa Fe Chicken Salad
Store leftovers inside an airtight container, in the refrigerator, for up to 3-4 days.
This chicken salad keeps well in the fridge for a make-ahead dinner option, or meal prep it for lunches throughout the week (I would not recommend storing the already-made wraps in the fridge as the other ingredients and tortilla may get soft/soggy).
Serving Suggestions For Santa Fe Chicken Salad Recipe
- This chicken salad can be served wrap-style with some shredded lettuce, tomato, and avocado slices.
- Eat it as is with a spoon.
- Dip your favorite crackers, veggie sticks, or tortilla chips into it.
- Make bell pepper boats with it by placing some chicken salad inside a bell pepper wedge.
- Serve it over a bed of lettuce, or other preferred greens, along with your favorite toppings for a Santa Fe salad.
- Serve the chicken salad inside croissants and add some green leaf lettuce and avocado slices, and even a slice of cheese if wanted.
- Sounds crazy but the chicken salad makes really good quesadillas or taquitos for a dinner option with the chicken salad recipe or even with leftovers.
- The chicken salad makes a really good nacho topping as well.
Pro Tips For Success
- Make It Easy! : I highly recommend using a rotisserie chicken in this recipe. I love the Costco ones! The rotisserie chicken is already seasoned, ready-to-use, and the meat is tender and so flavorful.
- Want It Spicy? : Add some sliced fresh jalapeños into the wraps alongside the shredded lettuce and tomatoes. Add additional chili powder, add some hot sauce, or try adding a can of diced green chilies (drained) in with the chicken salad mixture. Another option is to serve the wraps with some medium or hot salsa for dipping.
- Lighter Option : I personally love the sour cream + mayo combo in this chicken salad. But feel free to experiment with using light sour cream, using plain greek yogurt in place of the mayo or use half plain greek yogurt + half mayo. Lots of different options to lighten up the calories if wanted.
- Chilled Chicken Salad : I personally think any chicken salad is better once it has had time to chill and the flavors to blend together and intensify. I highly recommend letting the chicken salad refrigerate for at least a few hours before serving. I love making it in the morning, and then letting it refrigerate all day, and then it’s ready for dinner when I need it.
Variation & Substitution Ideas For Chicken Salad
There are several ways that you can change up this recipe. No need to make it the same way twice if you don’t want to! Here are some things you can try to switch it up.
- Bell Pepper – Use a yellow or red bell pepper instead of the orange pepper.
- Beans – You can use any bean you love or leave the beans out entirely. Pinto beans or light red kidney beans are good options.
- Corn – Any canned corn will work but the fire-roasted corn tastes the best. Another option would be a can of gold n’ white corn.
- Green Chilies – Add a can of diced green chilies into the chicken salad mixture. If you want it extra spicy then try adding a can of chopped jalapeños (make sure to drain it if needed).
- Make It Meatless – Substitute the chicken with an additional can or two of beans for a meatless “chicken” salad recipe.
- Wraps – We love the tortillas, lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado slices but feel free to use whatever you prefer inside the wraps. You can use romaine lettuce, add some cilantro, guacamole, pico de gallo, chopped black olives, etc.
- Protein – If you have some leftover pulled pork, I think that would be a fabulous substitute for the chicken in this recipe.
More Must Try Chicken Salad Recipes
- BLT Chicken Salad
- Pineapple Chicken Salad
- Creamy Southwest Chicken Salad
- Classic Waldorf Chicken Salad
- Dill Pickle Chicken Salad
- Jalapeño Popper Chicken Salad
- Apple Walnut Chicken Salad
- Deviled Egg Chicken Salad Recipe
- Southern Style Chicken Salad Recipe
Santa Fe Chicken Salad
Ingredients
Santa Fe Dressing
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
Chicken Salad
- 3 cups chopped OR shredded cooked chicken (I use a rotisserie chicken)
- 1 can (15 oz) black beans drained & rinsed, patted dry
- 1 can (15 oz) fire-roasted corn drained
- 1 orange bell pepper finely chopped
Wraps
- 8-10 large burrito style flour tortillas
- halved cherry tomatoes
- shredded lettuce
- sliced avocado
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the creamy dressing ingredients until well combined.1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, ¼ teaspoon chili powder, ¼ teaspoon garlic powder, ¼ teaspoon cumin
- Add in the chicken, black beans, corn, and chopped bell pepper. Stir everything together until it's well combined and all the ingredients are coated in the creamy sauce.3 cups chopped OR shredded cooked chicken, 1 can (15 oz) black beans, 1 can (15 oz) fire-roasted corn, 1 orange bell pepper
- * At this point the chicken salad can be served right away, OR if you prefer a chilled chicken salad, cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap, and allow it to refrigerate for up to 4-6 hours before serving. This is great for a make-ahead dinner if needed.
Serving The Wraps
- Lay a large burrito/wrap style flour tortilla onto a cutting board or plate. Place a heaping 1/2 cup of the Santa Fe chicken salad mixture onto the bottom half of the tortilla.Add some shredded lettuce, halved cherry tomatoes, and avocado slices. Fold up burrito-style (fold in the sides and then roll it up tightly like a burrito). Cut in half and serve. Enjoy!8-10 large burrito style flour tortillas, halved cherry tomatoes, shredded lettuce, sliced avocado
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love to see it! You can share it with me on @togetherasfamilyblog and follow on Pinterest @together-as-family-blog-recipes or Facebook @togetherasfamilyblog for more!
Hi there, these look amazing! Do you know what the calorie count is?
Hi Kelly. Thank You 🙂 I am not sure of the calorie count, but if it’s something you are worried about then I would just replace the sour cream & mayo with plain yogurt and maybe use a low carb or whole grain tortilla. Greek yogurt is very bland so I would maybe up some of the spices to compensate for the lack of cream/flavor that the mayo and sour cream give. Hopefully that helps. Thanks so much for commenting and visiting.
I made these tonight and I was skeptical that all of my children would like them. It is a rare meal that everyone is happy ?. But to my surprise even my picky 9 year old, who usually hates main dishes, was half way through his wrap and said he liked it. So this is a great, nutritious meal. It’s also very versatile. I subbed with ingredients, I had on hand. Thanks!
Hey Anne! Your comments always make me smile 🙂 I think kids surprisingly like these wraps because they can eat with their hands! Your right, it’s super versatile which is nice too. Thanks for letting me know what you thought.
What kind of dressing is in the wraps or is it just mayo/sour?
Thank you!
It is just the mixture of mayo, sour cream and spices. If you want extra saucey wraps then maybe double the sauce recipe and reserve some of the dressing to drizzle on the wraps or dip the wrap into it. The recipe as is, is plenty “moist” for the wrap. I hope that helps. Enjoy!
Can you share the how to roll the wrap video
Hey Krissy. I actually don’t have a specific video. I just googled ‘how to roll a wrap’ and a youtube video came up 🙂 A short answer is to put the filling on the tortilla (there is a picture in the post that shows this) Fold the tortilla over the filling, fold in both sides and then continue rolling and tucking until you get to the end and you have a burrito. I then cut it in half to serve these. I hope that helps a little bit….
I just made them for a quick lunch and they were amazing! I didn’t have any chicken on hand or enough mayo so I kept adding sour cream and the dressing still turned out delicious. They are so filling and super easy to make! Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
Awesome! So glad you loved these. Thank you for commenting to let me know 🙂
Why do these have to be served right away?
Hey Lyndsey. These don’t have to be served right away. I prefer to make the chicken salad mixture and then let it sit in the fridge for a couple of hours before using. You can also just use it right away. Either way works 🙂
I can’t wait to make these! Your photo is sooooooo amazing and delicious looking I wish I could just jump into it and gobble it up!!!!! It’s not anything anyone else in my family would like so I’ll have left overs for myself. Mmmmm…
Thank you Myssi! Yes, there is plenty of this for leftovers all week 🙂
This looks amazing! How many servings will this make? It seems like only 1 burrito but I’m imagining that there is enough chicken mixture to make several….?
I love to make variations to chicken salad, and I can’t wait to try this one. The black beans should really be delicious.
I love chicken salad too! One of my favorite foods. I hope you enjoy this 🙂
Hey! Can I make these the night before serving them for lunch? Could I wrap them up and hold them in parchment paper?
Good question! I would probably just prepare it all separately and then make them the next day for lunch. When I make these, I leave the leftover creamy chicken filling in a bowl and then make one at a time as I need it. I hope that makes sense…. I am worried that if you prepare them and roll them up, the tortilla and salad would get soggy.
These look great, but would you recommend freezing extra burritos?
No I don’t. The ingredients would not freeze well at all. The filling can be put in the fridge for a few days, and the topping can just be added as you need another burrito. I don’t think there is any reason to freeze them.
These look so good! What a great lunch meal prep for the week. Easy to make GF too!
Thanks for sharing! Do you use the dressing in any other ways/recipes?
We made this 2 x and love it. We put some shredded cheese in when we build them, This last time I had no cilantro so we used parsley and garlic powder still good. I love how we have extra and eat it the next day too on rolls and crackers
I whipped this up after work and it was delicious!!! It was flavorful and not spicy. It was fresh and filling. I loved all the ingredients and the sauce is what makes it! Thank you so much! This is a new staple recipe in our house for sure!!
I just made these and they are absolutely delicious!! The dressing is soooo good I was eating it by the spoonful and dipping my wrap in it! I used canned chicken and a low-carb spinach tortilla and it was amazing!! Thanks for the great recipe! I will definitely be making again! 🙂
So happy to hear this! I actually love canned chicken in chicken salads so I have used that too. Have you tried the carb balance flour tortillas? Those are my favorite to use for these wraps. The spinach one sounds yummy!
I have to say that I never leave reviews for recipes but this turned out amazing! I halved the spices because I’m always afraid the spices will take over the taste of the food. Next time, I won’t do that. This salad was delicious as a wrap and as a bowl of salad and looked just like the picture. I was impressed!
Oh my goodness, thank you so much! It is wonderful to read comments like yours. I’m so happy it turned out great for you.