Our Family's Favorite Taco Salad is a flexible recipe that your family can make to your liking. Add as little or as many toppings and vegetables as you would like to this Taco Salad to feed your family a healthy meal!
Taco Salad is a Real Meal
In the hot days of summer, I love a fresh delicious Taco Salad. However, my husband doesn’t really think that a “salad” is a main dish.
When I made him Taco Salad for dinner, I was so happy to find that he loved it. Of course, he piled on more meat than vegetables, but that is the great thing about this recipe: you can top it with whatever you like.
My kids love to assemble their own taco salad and add whatever toppings they desire. We have now made taco salad a couple of times because they are so simple to throw together and we all love them.
The meat is what makes this salad – a fun twist from your regular taco meat.
Related Recipe: If you like this taco salad be sure to try our 20 Minute Taco Salad Casserole!
Healthy Taco Salad with Ground turkey
Replacing ground beef with ground turkey can be an even healthier alternative to this recipe.
Using ground turkey will lower the fat and calories of this dish.
Ground Turkey cooks the same way ground beef does. We simply brown it in a pan over the stove.
It has a similar texture, but a different color. This will be a lighter grayish-brown color, compared to a deep ground beef brown color, when it is done cooking.
Tips for Healthy Taco Salad:
I am not a calorie counter, but lately, I have tried to pay better attention to what I am feeding my body. I don’t eat my food or check products to lose weight, but rather, to be healthy and fuel my body with good food.
I have found that taco salads can have crazy calories and amounts of fats that are not always the best for the body and its health.
- Cut back on sour cream. For a lighter option, try using plain Greek yogurt instead.
- Add more guacamole. Guacamole is a great topping for taco salads. You can even use it in place of the sour cream. It won’t have the exact flavor, but it will have a matching texture and guacamole is loaded with nutrients and good-for-you fats.
Here is our favorite Homemade Guacamole recipe! - Beware of the dressing. Salad dressings can have more calories in them than the actual salad. They also contain a lot of sugar.
Try making your own salad dressing (I love making salad dressing with olive oil, lime juice, apple cider vinegar, and honey), or simply squeeze a little lime juice over your salad for a bit of a kick. - Cut back on the carbs. Many taco salads are served with rice on them. Instead of white rice you could ask for brown rice, or just skip the rice all together, and get extra black or pinto beans.
Hard taco shells are often deep fried. We recommend trying a whole wheat soft taco or tortilla for your taco salads or tacos. - Cut back on the cheese. You don’t need a lot of cheese to get the taste you desire.
How to brown ground beef for Taco Salad:
When purchasing ground beef, it’s important to understand that a higher fat to meat ratio means the meat is going to shrink up a little more as it cooks.
The store sells it cheaper and this may seem like the more budget friendly option, but you are also getting less beef out of it. Either way, you get what you pay for.
When browning ground beef, you will want to use a nonstick skillet or spray a skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Add the uncooked beef to the pan, and cook over medium high heat.
Use a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula to evenly break up the meat as it cooks (or my favorite kitchen tool – the ChopStir!).
Cook until there is no pink left in the meat. Browning ground beef usually takes about 10-15 minutes.
Use constant rotations and flipping to make sure the ground beef is evenly cooked.
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Let us give you your time back. With the Six Sisters’ Meal Plans, we do the dinner planning, grocery ordering, and then all you have to do is decide whether to pick them up or have them delivered.
Try these Ground Beef Recipes:
- Korean Beef and Rice
- Easy Ground Beef Shepherds Pie
- Ground Beef and Macaroni Tomato Soup
- 5-Ingredient Ground Beef Enchilada Casserole
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Serves: 6
Family Favorite Taco Salad Recipe
Our Family's Favorite Taco Salad is a flexible recipe that your family can make to your liking. Add as little or as many toppings and vegetables as you would like to this Taco Salad to feed your family a healthy meal!
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
PrintPin
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1.25 ounces taco seasoning mix 1 package
- 16 ounces chili beans 1 can, drained
- 16 ounces Catalina salad dressing divided
- ½ cup water
- 1 head iceberg lettuce chopped
- 13 ounces tortilla chips
Toppings
- ¾ cups shredded medium cheddar cheese
- 2 tomatoes diced
- 2 avocados diced
- 1 cup sliced olives
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup salsa
Instructions
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef and drain excess grease.
Stir in the taco seasoning, chili beans, 1 cup of Catalina dressing, and water.
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
Set out meat mixture, lettuce, chips, and all other taco toppings.
Let everyone assemble their own salad.
Top with Catalina dressing.
Notes
TIPS FOR HEALTHY TACO SALAD:
- Cut back on sour cream
- Add more guacamole
- Beware of the dressing
- Cut back on the carbs
- Cut back on the cheese
Nutrition
Calories: 880 kcal · Carbohydrates: 71 g · Protein: 29 g · Fat: 56 g · Saturated Fat: 17 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 88 mg · Sodium: 2125 mg · Potassium: 1426 mg · Fiber: 15 g · Sugar: 12 g · Vitamin A: 2132 IU · Vitamin C: 20 mg · Calcium: 342 mg · Iron: 6 mg
Equipment
Large Skillet
See AlsoHoliday Pie Recipes with a TwistWooden Spoon / Spatula
Recipe Details
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Join The Discussion
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seejaneblog.com says:
I love it with Catalina dressing too!
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Aimee says:
We make the same taco salad, but we use French dressing :) YUmmmers!
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Kristin says:
We make a similar dish - same meat mixture, no lettuce, halved cherry tomatoes, cheddar cheese, penne pasta, and crushed Doritos. I like the salad idea!!
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Cole says:
ranch and salsa = Ralsa!!!! :)
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KatVonG says:
Made it tonight and it was great! I doubled it (for 3 adults and 2 kids) and there's just a little bit left. Also heated the beans and put them on the side because my husband doesn't like them. Thanks for sharing a great recipe!
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Tara says:
Just made this recipe for dinner. It was a huge success! Thanks for the recipe.
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Chris says:
This sounds great, I am putting on my meal plan for this week! But I will add one topping that sounds weird...banana. Its like little islands of sweet deliciousness surrounded by spice! YUM.
About The Author:
Camille Beckstrand
Camille Beckstrand is married to Jared and they have 4 kids. She loves a good true crime podcast, a big plate of cheesy loaded nachos, and going on adventures with her family.
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