Super Simple Taco Salad

Taco salad is a quick and easy meal packed full of all the flavors and textures everyone loves in a classic taco, like tomato, lettuce, onion, and avocado! 

Who doesn't love a good taco salad, really?

All the tasty elements of a taco sprinkled over a crisp bed of lettuce just waiting to be forked into your mouth. There are so many great tastes and textures all put together - crisp fresh lettuce, juicy ripe tomato, bite from the onion, seasoned taco meat & hearty beans, and just a little bit of the classic toppings like creamy cheese, avocado & sour cream. Add some broken up tortilla chips for that crunch factor and I daresay this salad is pretty close to taco perfection.

The thing that really makes THIS taco salad stand out to me is using the garlicky red wine vinaigrette - it's so simple, but not something I've often seen on taco salads! It adds a really nice punch of flavor but in a really light way. Shout out to my mother-in-law for that genius revelation!

Making taco salad at home is super simple and a lot healthier than getting it at a restaurant. The crunched up tortilla chips replace the insanely calorie-packed tortilla bowl with WAY less calories and fat (and so much easier to eat). I also like using ground turkey instead of ground beef to lighten it up a little bit - with all of the other flavor-packed ingredients you wont miss the beef at all.

To help with meal planning, you can reuse a lot of these ingredients to make this Taco Pizza or these Insanely Easy Refried Bean Tostadas!

Yummy noises await you!

5 from 1 vote

Print

Super Simple Taco Salad

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

17 mins

Total Time

27 mins

 

Taco salad is a quick and easy meal packed full of all the flavors and textures everyone loves in a classic taco! 

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: Tex-Mex

Servings: 4 to 6

Ingredients

For the turkey taco meat

• 1 lb lean ground turkey
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 cup water

For the salad

• 1 head romaine lettuce, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 cup red onion, finely diced
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 medium avocado, diced
• tortilla chips, lightly crushed, for serving
• salsa, for serving
• sour cream, for serving

For the Garlicky Red Wine Vinaigrette

• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed or finely minced
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions

For the turkey taco meat

1. In a large skillet sprayed with nonstick spray, cook & crumble the ground turkey until no longer pink. Add spices and 1/2 cup water, simmer and stir until the water is fully evaporated. Set aside. 

For the salad

1. In a large serving bowl, add the lettuce, cooked turkey taco meat, beans, tomatoes, onion, cheddar and avocado.

For the garlicky red wine vinaigrette

1. Combine olive oil, red wine vinegar, dijon mustard, garlic, salt & pepper in a jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake well to combine. 

Serving

1. Add dressing to taste and toss well to combine. Divide among individual bowls and top with crushed tortilla chips, salsa and sour cream to taste.

Recipe Notes

I like to make a big batch of the taco seasoning and keep it in my spice drawer to make the process even easier. You can swap out a packet of taco seasoning if you like, but I really love this combination of spices! 

 

This recipe is super flexible, so feel free to swap out ingredients based on your preferences or what you have on hand. 

 

If you don't think you're going to eat the whole batch, I would recommend adding the dressing, crushed tortilla chips, salsa and sour cream individually, that way the salad wont get soggy.