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I Make This Taco Salad Recipe Almost Every Week
At my house, busy days often mean easy, one-pan dinners that I can assemble in a flash. Like this taco salad! It’s packed with protein and fresh veggies, and checks all the boxes for a quick, healthy meal all by itself. Here’s why:
- All the right flavors and textures – Perfectly seasoned taco meat, sweet tomatoes, crisp lettuce, creamy avocado, cheddar cheese… there’s so much to love about this ground beef salad. There’s a reason it’s my most popular salad recipe!
- Fresh, simple ingredients – You can find them at any grocery store and feel good about eating them. Unlike many taco salad recipes, mine is gluten-free without any chips. Not to mention, what I use for the dressing is the easiest ever.
- Totally customizable – Use whatever you have on hand, or swap ingredients based on what you like. I have ideas for you below!
- Quick and easy one-bowl dinner – Possibly the best part of this salad is that the whole thing is on the table in 20 minutes. The only cooking involved is browning the beef on the stove, and there’s no fussy assembly of each taco.
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve made this taco salad, because it’s my go-to every time I don’t know what we’re having. Make it with me next time you’re in the same boat!
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here I explain the best taco salad ingredients, what each one does in my recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card.
- Ground Beef – I prefer 85/15 for a ground beef taco salad, but feel free to substitute ground turkey, ground chicken, or shredded chicken. I’ve also made this recipe before using barbacoa or chorizo for the meat — just omit the taco seasoning.
- Avocado Oil – Just a bit for browning the beef. Olive oil works, too.
- Taco Seasoning – I make homemade taco seasoning and use 2 tablespoons per pound of meat. (It takes just 5 minutes to make with chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, dried oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, and cayenne pepper.) A store bought packet of taco seasoning works just fine, though. I like this store bought seasoning that doesn’t have processed fillers, but it’s also missing salt — you’ll need to add a teaspoon of salt if your seasoning is unsalted.
- Romaine Lettuce – Feel free to swap in any greens you like, whether it’s simply iceberg lettuce or something a little different, like kale, arugula, or spinach.
- Veggies – I make this healthy taco salad with grape tomatoes (or sometimes cherry tomatoes), green onions, and avocado. Feel free to use larger chopped tomatoes, red or white onions, or even guacamole if you want to get fancy. Sometimes I toss in some fresh cilantro leaves or chopped bell peppers, too.
- Shredded Cheese – I usually use either cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend. Pepper jack is great if you like a kick. Just omit for a dairy-free option.
- Salsa – I like this pre-made one, which has medium heat and clean ingredients! Choosing different kinds is an easy way to get creative. You can totally make your own, too — try my simple fresh tomato salsa, salsa verde, or creamy blended avocado salsa.
- Sour Cream – I use salsa and sour cream in lieu of a dressing here, which works out surprisingly well. Why spend time creating a complicated taco salad dressing? When you mix it all up, it tastes like there’s dressing in there. If you need a dairy free option, swap the sour cream with thick coconut cream, a splash of lime juice, and a pinch of salt… or you can use the jalapeno lime dressing from my other Mexican salad.
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How To Make Taco Salad
I have step-by-step photos here to help you visualize the recipe. For full instructions with amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card.
- Brown the beef. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook until browned.
- Add the taco seasoning. Stir the seasoning into the ground beef, until combined. For juicier meat, you can also add 1/4 cup of water to the meat mixture and let it simmer.
- Assemble your taco salad. Place the lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, avocado, onions, salsa, and sour cream into a large bowl. When the taco meat is done, add it to the bowl. Toss together and enjoy!
My Recipe Tips
- Drain the beef if needed. I don’t usually need to if using 85/15 or 90/10 ground beef, but you’ll probably want to if you use 80/20.
- Let the beef brown enough. Obviously you want it cooked through, but I think it tastes even better when it darkens more and gets a few crispy edges. They’re so good! You’ll need the heat at medium high to achieve this, and a heavy bottom skillet.
- Customize it to your liking. Ultimately, what goes in a taco salad is very much up to you. Feel free to throw in any other veggies you have on hand, or omit anything you don’t like. That’s one of the great things about simple salads — you don’t have to be that precise!
- Want some crunch? Crumble some baked tortilla chips (or my low carb tortilla chips) over the salad.
- Want to make it more hearty? To make this taco salad recipe more filling, add canned black beans, sweet corn, or black olives. You can also swap the greens for rice or cauliflower rice, which is a lot like my taco bowl.
- Want extra heat? Drizzle your salad with hot sauce, or add extra jalapeños to your salsa.
- Try a taco salad bar! Serve all the components in separate bowls and let everyone assemble theirs in their own salad bowls. It’s a great way to scale this recipe up for a crowd, or to please everyone if your family is picky.
- Meal prep these in mason jars. See my mason jar salad for instructions. I’ve scaled it down per jar for convenience!
Taco Salad (Healthy, Easy Recipe)
By
Toss together my taco salad recipe in just 20 minutes, using common ingredients you probably have! It's easy, healthy, and family friendly.
Instructions
[ See step photos See my tips ]Tap on the times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer.
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Stir taco seasoning into the ground beef until well combined. If you like, you can also add 1/4 cup of water when adding the seasoning and let it simmer a bit.
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Meanwhile, combine all remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add the ground beef. Toss everything together.
Did you make it? Leave a review or tag me @wholesomeyum on Instagram!
Maya’s Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1/6 of entire recipe
- Tips: See my recipe tips above to help you get nice flavor and texture in your taco meat, ways to customize this taco salad, and how to serve it for a crowd.
- Store: Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. If you can, store without the sour cream, salsa, and avocado, as these are best added fresh. I also prefer to store the beef separately, so that I can reheat it later.
- Reheat: Warm up the taco meat in a hot skillet or in the microwave before adding to the salad.
- Meal prep: Brown the meat with taco seasoning and chop all your taco salad ingredients (except avocado). I recommend storing them in separate meal prep containers. Right before serving, heat the meat and add to the salad. Top with sour cream, salsa, and freshly cut avocado, and toss together. Alternatively, you can meal prep this taco salad recipe as a mason jar salad.
- Note on nutrition info: It’s based on 85/15 ground beef and typical tomato salsa. It will vary if your beef is leaner or higher fat, or with different brands of salsa.
📖 Want more recipes like this? Find this one and many more in my Easy Keto Carboholics’ Cookbook.
I provide nutrition facts as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see my nutrition policy.
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Taco Salad Recipe
More Healthy Mexican Recipes
I love this taco salad for Mexican night at my house! (I’m sure some of you do Taco Tuesday, but my planning is so random that it doesn’t always land on a Tuesday, lol.) We rotate this salad with these other dishes, or sometimes even serve them together:
- Dips – Try my layered taco dip, creamy Crock Pot queso, or fish ceviche. I usually set out a bowl of tortilla chips for people, but my fave is actually hollowed-out fresh mini bell peppers — they are perfect for scooping dips!
- Fajitas – Choose from my shrimp fajitas (the fastest), chicken fajitas (my personal favorite), or steak sheet pan fajitas (for a hands-off option).
- Stuffed Veggies – Like my taco stuffed peppers or stuffed poblano peppers.
- Soups – For a soup and salad combo when I have a little more time to prep, I like serving this salad with chili verde (inspired by one I had in Mexico) or Mexican chicken soup.
While it’s fun to experiment, this easy taco salad recipe is definitely the simplest — and it’s still packed with all my fave Mexican flavors — so I make this one most of all. Don’t forget the skinny margaritas!
348 Comments
Natalie
0Delicious salad. I will definitely make it again. Super easy to make.
Paula
0Even my finicky boys enjoyed this flavorful recipe!
Amy L Huntley
0This is one salad my entire family can get on board with! So simple to put together and has all the delicious flavors of a taco.
Vanessa
0This recipe will not disappoint!! Even my boyfriend really enjoyed this meal. A+ recipe for sure 🙂
Hmw
0I love how easy and refreshing this looks. I just got back from Mexico and I’m still craving Mexican food. Thank you!
Glenda
0Best lunch ever! The salad came together like a dream and it’s absolutely delicious!
Bernice
0YUM! One look at this taco salad and I was hooked. We all enjoyed it for dinner!
Beth
0Yummy! This was such a delicious and very tasty salad! My hubby and daughter loved this for lunch the other day! Definitely one of our favorite salads to make for lunch or dinner. Excited to make this again very soon!
Kara
0I made this with your homemade taco seasoning, and it was amazing! I added kidney beans and crushed tortilla chips for the rest of my family, but left them off my portion because I’m currently doing keto. It’s nice to find a recipe that is easily adaptable that we all can enjoy!
Michele
0This taco salad was so easy and delicious. Thanks for sharing
Stan
0Awesome recipe !! It was very easy to make and very yummy.
Thank You
Trista Passen
0I would like to try this recipe, but it says to heat oil in pan. How much an what kind ? I’ve not used any oil before, so this is something I don’t want to mess up cause all comments have been so positive.
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Trista, This recipe uses avocado oil, but whatever you have on hand will work fine. Please see the recipe card for specifics on the ingredients. Enjoy!
Arlene
0I have had this once already when a friend made it and it was delicious so had to get the recipe but I/we weren’t sure if you add the ground beef to the rest of the ingredients when its still hot or slightly cooled or even cold?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Arlene, This is really up to you! I add the ground beef right away and serve it, but you can also let it cool and serve your salad cold.
Jan
0I made this taco salad to take to my small group Bible study and it was a big.
I didn’t have the dry seasoning, but I had and organic liquid taco sauce.Then I added black beans and taco chips. That was served with the cheese on the side because so of the people cannot tolerate cheese. I would give it a 5 star rating.
WenofSF
0I made this tonight for my husband and who are doing intermittent fasting, this was our one meal for the day and I have to say it was delicious! It was easy to make & had lots of room for interpretation. I made it exactly as stated with the addition of sliced radishes and it had great mouth appeal, great taste & lots of crunch! We will be adding it to our “hearty” salad rotation! Thanks for the great recipe!
Sigrid
0This Taco Salad recipe is a winner. My family and I just love it!
Emily
0So delicious! I also added a can of rinsed/drained black beans, 1/2 cup of corn and roasted red pepper. I kept half for lunches tomorrow, so only added the salsa and sour cream separate to what we ate at the time. Highly recommend!
Dawn
0DEEElish and so easy! Have had it now 3 times this week, and it’s so easy to take for lunches – Love it!!
P.S. Still having issues with the videos – cleared cache & everything, & still can’t see any prep vidies – also, the printing of the recipes themselves are all spread out – all instructions are there, but big blank gaps. Printing is o.k. though!
Nicole
0I made it with ground turkey rather than ground beef and it came out great! Very easy and tasty low-carb recipe. Thanks!
Sigrid
0Great recipe! I like to add a can of drained black beans and some fresh cilantro.