Grab your favorite chips and make a Dorito Taco Salad! It is so versatile, and packed with colorful ingredients. Great for a party or potluck! You’ll love this bold, flavorful salad.
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A Fun Twist on Taco Salad
As the summer continues, I’m majorly into salad mode. Long days and high temperatures just cry out for cold, crisp meals that can be thrown together fast. But if you’re a mom, maybe not everyone in the household is eager for another round of quinoa Buddha bowls, know what I mean?
That’s when you need to reach for your secret weapon: taco salad! Even better, make a Dorito taco salad! With all the big, bold flavors of classic tacos and addictively delicious Doritos, this Dorito taco salad is practically as popular as pizza night. Who knew that a big healthy salad could be so… fun?
If you aren’t a Doritos fan, check out my Beef Taco Salad Bowls. They use a large tortilla to make a bowl for your salad!
The List of Ingredients
You can put almost anything in a big salad, and I’ll talk about some yummy variations in a minute – but for a solid basic recipe, that’s colorful and healthy, these are my favorite ingredients:
- Ground Beef: For making the taco meat, I usually use ground beef, but you could also use ground turkey.
- Taco Seasoning: This is my favorite store bought taco seasoning.
- Corn: Canned, frozen, or fresh.
- Lettuce: To make a salad that feeds a crowd, I use 2 – 3 Romaine heads.
- Black Beans: If you use canned black beans, like I do, be sure to drain and rinse them.
- Fresh Tomatoes: Diced.
- Doritos: A regular bag (about 10 ounces) of your favorite flavor Doritos. (Psst: you can also use corn chips or Fritos, if you prefer!)
- Black Olives: Sliced black olives add a special touch.
- Sour Cream: What would a taco salad be without a dollop of rich sour cream?
- Guacamole: I like to use this authentic guacamole recipe – it comes together in literally just a few minutes.
- Cheese: Shredded Mexican blend cheese is great, or you could toss in cubed cheddar, drizzle on nacho cheese, etc.
- Salsa: Your favorite tomato salsa definitely belongs here! Or go with some homemade pico de gallo!
- Onion: A little bit of diced red or white onion adds some bite.
- Lime: This is optional, but a lime is great for serving.
- Cilantro lime dressing: Bright, fresh, and herbal.
How to Make It
One of the great things about making a big salad? The method is so, so simple. You can arrange everything artistically, or just throw it all together and toss to combine. I like to serve mine in rings so that each “slice” has a little bit of everything.
- Make the Taco Meat. Get out a skillet, and start browning your ground beef. Sprinkle in the taco seasoning, and cook until there’s no more pink left and the beef is broken up into small pieces. Add the corn, and let that brown slightly before taking the skillet off the heat. Set it aside.
- Arrange the Salad Ingredients, Including the Meat. Next, set out a big serving bowl. Arrange the lettuce, the taco meat with corn, the black beans, and the tomatoes in the center. Add Doritos all around the edge of the bowl. Top with your olives, sour cream, guac, cheese, salsa, and diced onion. Drizzle with dressing.
- Enjoy! Serve your enormous, amazing salad with lime wedges for squeezing, and dig in!
Tips, Variations, and Substitutions
We already talked a bit about substitutions and variations in the Ingredients section – I couldn’t help myself. Still, let’s recap those, along with extra suggestions and some helpful tips. I hope you enjoy this salad as much as my family does!
- Meat Substitutions: You can definitely change up the meat you want to use. Ground turkey is a great substitute for ground beef – or you could go in a totally different direction, using pre-seasoned chicken or beef fajita meat, shredded chicken (like this crockpot salsa chicken), sausage, or ground pork.
- Veggie Options: For taco salad, the sky is the limit. You can add shredded carrots, celery, jicama, or any other vegetables you want!
- Dressing Ideas: You can also use any dressing you prefer. Good options include ranch, vinaigrette, or salsa mixed with some sour cream.
- Vegetarian Taco Salad: Want a meatless option? This salad doesn’t need any tweaking – just omit the beef. Beans add tons of protein. The guacamole, salsa, and other ingredients include lots of flavor, but bonus points if you use seasoned beans (like charro beans, ranch-style beans, or seasoned, canned black bean soup with the liquid drained out).
- Double Up: This is always a good idea when you’re doing taco-style meals: make a double batch of the taco meat, and freeze it for another meal!
Serving Suggestions
This salad is a complete meal, with its smorgasbord of protein, healthy carbs, and healthy fats. (And Doritos.) But wait, there’s more! If you really want to put things over the top, try adding one or more of these yummy sides:
- Tostones: Also known as crispy fried plantains, tostones are irresistibly snackable, and perfect with a hearty salad.
- Empanadas: Everything is better with a cheesy beef empanada on the side. Empanadas are small, handheld pies filled with all kinds of fillings – in this case, classic beef and cheese. A crowd-pleaser, for sure!
- Roasted Tomatoes: Cut the diced tomatoes, and swap in these garlic roasted cherry tomatoes. They are so simple, but so packed with flavor, you’ll want to eat them by themselves!
Storing Leftover Dorito Taco Salad
Each ingredient in this recipe may have a slightly different storing time, but for best results, store each one separately in airtight containers in the fridge (minus the chips).
Taco meat and most chopped vegetables are usually good for two to four days, if stored properly in the fridge. However, use your best judgment and always discard anything that looks or smells off. Better safe than sorry!
Dorito Taco Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef, or ground turkey
- 1 1 oz package taco seasoning mix
- 1 cup corn, canned, frozen, or fresh
- 6 cups shredded lettuce, approximately 2 – 3 Romaine heads
- 1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup diced tomatoes
- 10 ounces Doritos, or corn tortillas, or Fritos
- ½ cup sliced black olives
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 cup guacamole
- 1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 1 cup salsa
- ¼ white or red onion, diced
- 1 lime, sliced (optional)
- Cilantro Lime Dressing
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Instructions
- In a skillet, add the ground meat and taco seasoning. Cook until the meat is done, with no more pink. Add the corn, and brown it slightly. Remove from the heat, and set aside.
- In a large serving bowl, arrange the lettuce, the meat and corn mixture, the black beans, and the tomatoes. Place Doritos around the outside edges of the serving bowl.
- Top the salad with olives, sour cream, guacamole, shredded cheese, salsa, and onion.
- Finish with the dressing and serve with lime wedges, if desired.
Notes
- For taco salad, the sky is the limit. You can add shredded carrots, celery, jicama, or any other vegetables you want.
- You can also use any dressing you prefer. Good options include ranch, vinaigrette, or salsa mixed with some sour cream.
- You can change up the meat you want to use. Pre-seasoned chicken or beef fajita meat, shredded chicken, sausage, and ground pork are all great options.
- You can make this meatless – beans are a great source of protein! Black beans, pinto beans, or even pork and beans are great in this recipe.
Nutrition
Categories:
More Summery Salads
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