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This easy taco salad is the perfect dinner sized salad! Made with taco spiced ground beef, fresh vegetable toppings, crunchy tortilla strips, and topped with your choice of delicious dressing!
When I think of taco salad, I think of Ohio. Which is not a statement I think most people would make or say. However, for me, this is a quintessential Midwest taco salad. Perfect for dinner, lunch, or even parties!
Our family always topped our taco salad with either Catalina or Western dressing. Both are similar, with Catalina being a bit sweeter and Western being more savory. Pick which one you love the most. Or change things up and use my Greek Yogurt Green Goddess Dressing, or try my Greek yogurt cilantro lime dressing I used on my Southwest steak salad!
For this salad, I just used basic crushed corn chips, but other fun options are tortilla strips (like I used in my Max & Erma’s Tortilla Soup Recipe), cool ranch or nacho Doritos, and Fritos corn chips. Use what you have on hand! All options are crunchy and delicious!
Ingredients needed
- Spiced taco meat
- Chopped Romaine lettuce
- Red onions
- Cherry tomatoes
- Black olives
- Jalapenos
- Fresh lime
- Crushed corn tortilla chips
- Shredded cheese
- Salad dressing
How to make taco salad
If you have ever made a salad – you can make this easy taco salad! I like to mix and match the toppings to use what I have on hand, but for this recipe, I’m using a classic mix of tomatoes, onion, olives, spicy peppers, tortilla chips, and delicious dressing!
- Cook your ground beef with taco seasoning according to package directions and cool slightly while preparing your salad ingredients.
- Wash, chop, and dry your lettuce. I like to use my salad spinner.
- Add lettuce to a bowl, add on your chopped vegetables, slightly cooled ground taco meat, a sprinkling of cheese, and drizzle with your preferred dressing.
My Pro Tips
Taco Salad Recipe Tips
If you want to make this leaner, use ground chicken or turkey over ground beef.
Romaine is the best lettuce for this salad, but crispy iceberg will work well here, too. You want a crispy lettuce!
Spring mixes, arugula, or baby spinach are not as sturdy and may not hold up to the meat and vegetable toppings.
More topping options include sliced sweet peppers, minced fresh cilantro, and sauteed peppers and onions.
Basic salad dressing options include sour cream and salsa or mix them for a delicious faux dressing.
Bottled options include Catalina French dressing, Western dressing, Greek Yogurt Green Goddess Dressing, or a simple vinaigrette.
More dinner sized salads
Easy Taco Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 (1 ounce) packet taco seasoning
- 8 cups chopped Romaine lettuce
- 1 cup shredded cheese
- 1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
- 1 sliced jalapeno pepper, sliced
- 1 quartered lime
- ½ thinly sliced red onion, or diced
- 1 (2.25 ounce) can sliced black olives, drained
Instructions
- In a 12-inch skillet add ground beef and set over medium-high heat. Break up the meat and let it brown.
- Once browned, add the taco seasoning and cook according to package directions. Once cooked, remove from heat and let it slightly cool while you prepare the salads.
- If you're making a large family style salad make this in one giant salad bowl. If not, spread the ilettuce across 4 lagre salad bowls.
- To the top of the lettuce, add taco ground beef, shredded cheese, cherry tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, lime wedge, red onion, and sliced olives.
- Top wiht your prepfered dressing and enjoy immediatly!
Notes
- One serving is based on 2 cups of lettuce with a quarter of each topping ingredient.
- Top your salad with salsa, sour cream, Catalina dressing, Western dressing, or a simple oil and vinegar.
- Feel free to mix up any toppings you desire – sliced bell peppers, leftover roasted vegetables, fresh cilantro, etc.
- Instead of ground beef, you could use ground chicken or turkey.
- Use a storebought or homemade taco seasoning.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This easy taco salad recipe looks absolutely delicious! The combination of spiced ground beef, fresh veggies, and crunchy tortilla strips makes it a perfect meal for any time of the day. I love the flexibility with dressings and toppings – so many ways to customize it! Definitely adding this to my recipe list.
Easy and full of flavor! LOVEE
Delicious! My kids loved it with the western dressing!
Hi Morgan – Western dressing is the best! I think I’m going to have to make a homemade version for the blog since it’s difficult to find in North Carolina.