What makes a Chicken Salad Mexican? Ingredients like taco seasoning, chopped jalapenos, and shredded Mexican blend cheeses, that’s what, mis amigos! Not your typical chicken salad, this recipe is a quick and flavorful cold chicken salad with a Mexican flavor!
Mexican Chicken Salad
Serves 4
Ingredients:
2 cups cooked chicken breasts, chopped into 1/2″ squares
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup mayo
1/2 cup Mexican shredded blend cheese
1/2 cup chopped tomato
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion tops
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp. finely chopped jalapeno peppers
1/2 tsp. taco seasoning mix
Directions:
In a small bowl, stir together chicken, celery, mayonnaise, shredded cheese, tomato, green onion, cilantro, jalapeno pepper and taco seasoning. Serve wrapped in a lettuce leaf or on a crisp bed of lettuce, a warm tortilla, or on a piece of flat bread! Muy deliciosa!
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Just as certain unique ingredients are the things that make a Chicken Salad Mexican, what unique ingredients make a human being Christian?
Followers of Jesus Christ were first called “Christians” in Antioch (Acts 11:26) because their behavior, activity, and speech were like Christ. What’s interesting is that Jesus himself never actually gave that name to His followers, and the early Church only a few times referred to themselves as Christians. In fact, the word “Christian” only appears three times in the entire Bible. The title which was most often used was “saints.” The Greek word for saints is hagios which means “consecrated to God, holy, sacred, pious”, and it is almost always used in the plural—“saints.” This reflects not just the individual, but the connection to a group of people set apart for the Lord and His Kingdom.
Unfortunately over time, even the word “Christian” has lost a great deal of its significance. Many people, in fact, consider themselves Christians simply because they go to church or they live in a “Christian” nation. However, going to church or living in America are not the “ingredients” that make people Christians any more than parking in a garage will make them automobiles. Outward action without inward change is simply a “slather of salsa on an empty taco shell”.
The word “Christian” literally means, “belonging to the party of Christ” or “ambassador or follower of Christ.” So what are the specific “ingredients” that cause a human being to become a Christian?
Realize You Are a Sinner
Romans 3:23 tells us, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” No human being in his or her own strength can remain sinless. Why? Because God’s “mark” is absolute, total, complete, flawless perfection! Jesus said, “Be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).
Repent of Your Sins
To repent means to “change” or to “turn.” It’s like driving down the highway, doing a complete 180 degree U-turn and heading the other direction. It’s more than simply being sorry; it is a word of action. Many people feel remorse for their sin, but never truly repent. Remorse is being sorry; repentance is being sorry enough to stop.
Believe in and Receive Jesus Christ Into Your Life
The Bible says, “But as many as received Him [Jesus], to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). Jesus said, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). You believe in and receive Jesus Christ in your life because you realize that He is the very Son of God. He is the One who loves you so much that He died on a cross for you over 2,000 years ago to pay the penalty for your sin, and then rose from the dead three days later.
That’s it in a taco shell, kiddos! Not only are these the ingredients that will help you recognize other Christians and be able to truly call yourself a Christian … it’s the complete recipe for eternal life!
— Cheri Henderson
Cookin' with Cheri 