This classic taco salad recipe is a great leftovers recipe after Taco Tuesday Mexican food night, easy recipes for dinner salads, or when you need cheap meals or quick dinner recipes when you’re tired!
How To Make a Classic Taco Salad
You can easily adapt this vintage recipe as a taco salad for one or triple the recipe for a large fiesta taco salad for party foods or potluck recipes.
This is one of those easy salad recipes that I make when I need last minute ideas for dinner or if I need ideas for what to do with leftover taco meat.
Easy Taco Salad Ingredients
To make a classic taco salad, you’ll need:
- Ground beef
- Taco seasoning mix (plus, ingredients as listed on packaged recipe)
- Iceberg lettuce
- Shredded cheddar cheese (or shredded Mexican cheese blend)
- Green onions
- Tomatoes
- Salsa
- Tortilla chips (or Doritos chips)
- Sour cream (optional)
- Salad dressing (optional)
Traditional Taco Salad Recipe Tips & Recipe FAQs
I like to to think of taco salad recipes as a deconstructed taco, so you can vary the ingredients that you put in this salad recipe.
Just think of what you like on your tacos or what you like when you eat Mexican food and put it in your salad.
Other Toppings for Taco Salad
- Pico de gallo
- Homemade guacamole
- Black beans
- Red beans (kidney beans)
- Chili beans
- White onions
- Red onions
- Avocado
- Peppers
- Jalapeno peppers
- Black olives
- Cherry tomatoes
- Cotija cheese
- Doritos
- Fritos
& MORE!
RECIPE TIP: Our Mexican street corn recipe (elotes cut off the cob or esquites) is a yummy topping for taco salads!
What kind of dressing do you put on taco salad?
Taco salad dressing is definitely a personal preference. Like, for me, I just like salsa or homemade pico de gallo like this recipe on mine most of the time.
However, I will drizzle Ranch dressing, Southwest Ranch salad dressing, or salsa Ranch dressing on my taco salad sometimes, too.
I know other people that swear by French dressing or Russian dressing on their taco salad.
You can also try Catalina dressing, cilantro lime salad dressing, or mixing sour cream and salsa together for a creamy salsa dressing.
Again, think about the flavors that you like with other Mexican recipes or for your tacos and expand from there! It’s an easy recipe to play around with and experiment because you really can’t ruin it.
Free Printable Homemade Taco Salad Recipe
I make this recipe as a hamburger taco salad (ground beef taco salad is the traditional taco salad recipe), but you can make it with ground turkey, too.
This a great Mexican salad for a lunch recipe or dinner recipe alone, as a soup and salad recipe, or you can make it as a side salad for dinner sides or to go with other Mexican dishes.
MORE RECIPES TO MAKE NEXT:
Classic Taco Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 1-ounce taco seasoning mix -plus ingredients to make the taco meat
- 1 head iceberg lettuce -rinsed and then shredded or chopped
- 1/2 cup salsa -flavor/heat of choice (I use mild)
- 1/2 cup green onions -chopped (about 4-6 green onions)
- 1 cup tomatoes -chopped
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 12 ounce bag tortilla chips (you may not use all of them)
- sour cream optional
- salad dressing optional (Southwest Ranch, Catalina, French, Chili Lime, etc.)
Instructions
- Prepare ground beef according to the taco seasoning packet. After prepared, set aside.
- In a large serving bowl, place shredded lettuce and spread out in bowl.
- Spoon prepared taco meat onto the shredded lettuce. Drizzle with salsa (you may need to add more salsa than 1/2 cup).
- Top with chopped onions, chopped tomatoes, and shredded cheese.
- Crush tortilla chips and sprinkle on top of salad. (We use a lot of tortilla chips, usually almost the whole bag, but you can adjust to your personal preference.)
- Add more salsa, if desired.
- OPTIONAL: Drizzle with desired dressing and add a dollop of sour cream before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition Note
Nutrition calculations are approximate. If you're following a special diet, please calculate your own nutrition values.
I hope you enjoy this classic taco salad recipe!
