Taco Salad Recipe – Downshiftology

A taco salad is the perfect summer salad with a fresh Mexican twist. It’s healthy, easy to make, and layered with all the good stuff — chopped lettuce, seasoned ground beef, tomatoes, red onion, black beans, and avocado — with plenty of room for customization.

A big bowl of taco salad. — *Photo: Gayle McLeod*

Why You’ll Love This Taco Salad

Taco salads have gained in popularity thanks to fast food restaurants like Wendy’s and Taco Bell, but this homemade version is simply better! I also love that you can transform a classic ground beef taco into completely different meals, like my taco soup and this taco salad, depending on the season. Here’s a few more reasons why I love this recipe:

It’s light yet filling. I love my salad greens as much as I love tacos, so this salad is the perfect way to mesh the two together for a healthy lunch or dinner that’s light yet filling.
It’s endlessly customizable. Mexican cuisine serves up many fresh toppings to choose from. So have fun with it! I’ve got plenty of ideas below, including vegetarian options.
You can meal prep it for the week. Just prep and store the ingredients separately and toss them together when you’re ready to eat. That way each meal is fresh every time.

Taco Salad Recipe Ingredients

A leafy green base: A sturdy and crunchy base is ideal for the amount of toppings you’ll be adding. Romaine or iceberg lettuce are my go-to’s. But other hearty greens such as radicchio or green leaf lettuce will also work.
Seasoned ground beef: I’m using lean ground beef today, but you can also use ground chicken or turkey. The most important thing is to season the meat with my homemade taco seasoning for that unmistakable taco flavor!
Fresh toppings: It’s not a taco salad without tomatoes, black beans, avocado, onion, homemade salsa, and shredded cheese. But you can also add corn, radishes, jalapeños, bell peppers, guacamole, or crumbled tortilla chips. And to add a bit of creaminess, dollop sour cream or drizzle lime crema or chipotle sauce.

How To Make Taco Salad

First, cook the meat. In a pan over medium-high heat, add the ground beef. Break it up into small bits and sauté for about 8 to 10 minutes until it’s mostly browned. Then drain any fat.
Season the meat. Add the taco seasoning and mix everything together for another minute or two.
Assemble the salad. Add the chopped lettuce to the bottom of a bowl. Then, layer the ground beef, beans, tomatoes, cheese, red onion, and avocado. And for the final touches, dollop the homemade salsa, sour cream, a squirt of lime juice, and a few leaves of fresh cilantro.

Ingredient Substitutions

Feel free to customize this taco salad to your liking! Here are a few ideas:

Different protein options: You can top it with carnitas, carne asada, barbacoa, or salsa verde chicken.
Vegan mushroom walnut option: Sauté diced mushrooms and walnuts in a pan for 4 to 6 minutes. Then, stir in some tamari and taco seasoning, which gives it a savory and smoky flavor.
Vegan lentil option: Cook two cups of lentils. Sauté diced onion in a pan and add the lentils with a bit of water. Toss everything in taco seasoning until it’s well coated. Add in a bit more water if the lentils start to dry out.
Whole30 option: Make this salad Whole30-friendly by leaving off the chips and cheese. Then, swap sour cream for cashew sour cream.

Storage Tips

You can prep many of the ingredients in advance (such as the ground beef, salsa, taco seasoning, diced red onion, and beans) and then create a buffet-style salad bar. These items can be stored in individual containers in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Then, the rest can come straight from the fridge and be prepped in under 10 minutes.

More Mexican-Inspired Recipes

I can’t wait for you to try this taco salad recipe! If you make it, I’d love your feedback in the comment box below. Your review will help other readers in the community!

Description

This taco salad is the perfect summer salad with a fresh Mexican twist. Plus, it’s much healthier than one you’d get at a fast food restaurant like Wendy’s or Taco Bell – homemade is best! Watch the video below to see how I make it in my kitchen.

Cook the ground beef. In a pan over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and break it into small pieces with your spatula. Cook for about 8 minutes or until it starts to brown. Then drain the fat from the beef.
Add taco seasoning. Add in the taco seasoning, stir everything, and cook for another minute or two.
Assemble the salad. In a large salad bowl, layer the chopped lettuce with browned beef, black beans, tomatoes, avocado, red onion, and cheese.
Add toppings. Dollop some salsa, sour cream, a squeeze of lime juice, and cilantro leaves on top. If you’d like, serve with tortilla chips.

The nutrition info above is for four large and hearty portions. But you could easily get six smaller salads out of this recipe.
To store for the week: You can prep many of the ingredients in advance (such as the ground beef, salsa, taco seasoning, diced red onion, and beans) and then create a buffet-style salad bar. These items can be stored in individual containers in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Then, the rest can come straight from the fridge and be prepped in under 10 minutes.

©Downshiftology. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

Recipe originally posted June 2020, but updated to include new information and photos for your benefit!