Chili Cornbread Salad
This Chili Cornbread Salad is a delicious layered salad that’s perfect for potlucks, family gatherings, summer cookouts, and holiday meals. It starts with homemade cornbread flavored with green chiles and a touch of seasoning, then layers it with pinto beans, sweet corn, fresh tomatoes, green peppers, green onions, crispy bacon, and shredded cheddar cheese. A creamy ranch dressing made with mayonnaise and sour cream brings all the flavors together. The best part is that you can make this easy cornbread salad ahead of time and let it chill in the refrigerator, making it a great side dish for feeding a crowd!
Happy Back to School to everyone! With school starting earlier these days, I find myself in an odd spot when it first begins. It’s like it’s fall, but yet it’s summer too! One of my favorite things about this part of summer is the bounty from the garden and farmer’s market. This Chili Cornbread Salad is one of my favorite ways to use some of that goodness this time of year!
I know Chili Cornbread Salad seems like an odd combination but rest assured, it is delicious! All of the ingredients work well together and make the best dish.
Is Chili Cornbread Salad hard to make?
No, it is not hard to make. It is a bit of a process, but the key is prepping as much as you can ahead of time. If you chop your ingredients and cook the cornbread and bacon ahead of time, assembling the salad takes no time at all! Just remember you will want to allow time for the salad to chill so all of the flavors have time to marry.
What should I serve with this salad?
This salad is great as a side dish for grilled meats or burgers. But it can also be eaten as a main dish. Think of it as a salad turned casserole, if you will. It makes a lot so I like to make it and take it to cook outs. It’s such a great combination of flavors and everyone enjoys it!
Does this have to be a layered salad?
I would recommend layering this salad because it keeps much butter that way. With so many moist ingredients it gets soggy quickly. If this is layered, it keeps for several days.
Give this Chili Cornbread Salad a try this weekend. It’s a perfect way to use some of those fresh garden tomatoes and green peppers. Enjoy!
Chili Cornbread Salad
Ingredients
- 1 box Jiffy cornbread mix + ingredients listed on box
- 4 oz chopped green chiles, undrained
- ⅛ tsp cumin
- ⅛ tsp oregano
- 1 c mayonnaise
- 1 c sour cream
- 1 envelope ranch dressing mix
- 2 15 oz cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 15 oz cans whole kernel corn, drained
- 3 tomatoes, chopped
- ½ c chopped green pepper
- ½-1 c chopped green onions, depending on taste
- 10 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
- 2 c shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Prepare cornbread batter according to package directions. Stir in chiles, cumin and oregano. Spread into a greaded 8 inch baking pan. Bake at 400° until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 20-25 minutes. Cool
- In a small bowl, combine mayonnaise, sour cream and dressing mix. Set aside
- Crumble half of the cornbread into a 9x13 dish. Layer with half of the beans, mayonnaise mixture, corn, tomatoes, green pepper, onions, bacon and cheese. Repeat layers.
- Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.
