Easy Taco Salad

Taco Salad. A Tex Mex classic that is always a big hit!! This EASY salad is loaded up with all the best taco toppings including ground beef, cheese, tomatoes, sour cream and salsa! This salad recipe is quick and easy to make and sure to be a new favorite. 

 

How to make an EASY and HEALTHY Taco Salad:

The best taco salads use simple ingredients! 

1. Cook up some Best Ever Ground Beef Taco Meat. A homemade taco seasoning and a bit of tomato sauce make this the most flavorful, and BEST EVER taco meat. Plus thanks to using a homemade seasoning you can cut out any unwanted ingredients and sugars from store bought mixes.
2. Prep the toppings by grating the cheese, slicing tomatoes, dicing cilantro, chopping lettuce, and cutting up the avocado. 
3. Assemble! Simply layer the lettuce, top with all the toppings. 
4. Create the dressing by combining the salsa and sour cream.
5. Mix all together. 

What Lettuce to use:

My personal favorite is to just use a basic green leaf lettuce. Other good options would be to use an iceberg lettuce, or romaine lettuce. 

Easiest Dressing:

My personal preference is to use a mixture of salsa and sour cream. You can use a homemade salsa which has the perfect amount of liquid for mixing. Or you can use your favorite store bought salsa. 

General rule of thumb is to use equal parts sour cream and salsa. 

To make things easy, I usually just spoon both the ingredients onto my salad as a topping and mix everything together. 

How to Customize this recipe:

Need to make this taco salad for a crowd?

• To make this salad for a crowd, simply adjust the amounts. If preparing this as a main dish a general rule of thumb would be to give 1 cup of lettuce per person. Plus 1/4 cup of cooked taco meat per person. 
• Adjust this recipe to include whatever toppings you prefer. If you want more veggies add more! Look below for some healthy substitutions and additions. 

How to make this HEALTHIER

• Use ground turkey instead of ground beef. OR if you want to go meatless you can opt for black beans or roasted chickpeas instead! 
• Use a homemade taco seasoning instead of the store bought versions. 
• Tortilla Chips. You can make your own using corn tortillas and a small amount of olive oil and salt. OR just cut them out of the salad completely. 
• Add more veggies!! It’s a salad! Go crazy. Add in some bell pepper, corn, roasted zucchini, pickled onions, or some radishes. 

Can this recipe be made ahead of time:

This salad can absolutely be prepped ahead of time, and then assembled when it’s time to serve. This recipe is perfect for meal prep, prepping one day a week and having throughout the week if needed.

• All of the veggies, except for the avocado can be chopped up beforehand. Store in a sealed container. 
• Cook up the meat following the instructions. Store in a sealed container in the fridge. The meat will keep for 5 days. Simply reheat in a skillet or in the microwave. 

What to serve with this:

Traditionally a taco salad is served as a main dish and doesn’t necessarily come with a standard side dish. Although if you’re looking for something easy to serve alongside this, some Grilled Mexican Street Corn would be a perfect side! 

More Recipes you may enjoy:

• Best Ever Ground Beef Taco Meat
• Homemade Restaurant Style Salsa Recipe
• Taco Soup