Beef Taco Salad with Avocado Lime Dressing

5 from 11 votes

Beef Taco Salad with Avocado Lime Dressing

This beef taco salad with homemade avocado lime dressing is a delicious salad that has it all: Mexican food flavors, fresh colorful vegetables, and lots of flavor. Make this recipe for weekday meal prep or using leftover taco meat.

Servings:

Ingredients

Taco Meat

3 tablespoon homemade taco seasoning or taco seasoning packets, see note 1
1 lb ground beef
¾ cup water

Avocado Cilantro Lime Dressing

2 large avocados
4 lime
1 cup cilantro leaves
salt to taste
1½ cup water
2 fresh garlic cloves optional

Salad

3 romaine hearts different from a whole head of lettuce, see note 3
2 bell peppers
2 green onions
20 grape tomatoes
tortilla chips

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prep the salad: Wash and chop the lettuce, bell pepper, grape tomatoes, and green onion. Set aside.
Make the taco meat: In a large skillet on medium heat, add the ground beef. Cook the beef while continuously breaking up the clumps. Once the meat is browned, add the taco seasoning. Mix together. Add the water. Simmer the taco meat for about 5 to 7 minutes.
Make the dressing: Add water, cilantro leaves, and garlic (if using) into the blender. Blend on high until you have a fluffy mixture.
Assemble salad: Add all of the veggies to a salad bowl. Top the salad with avocado lime dressing and taco meat.

Video

Notes

Alternatively, use store-bought taco packets. One store-bought packet is equivalent to 3 tablespoons of homemade taco seasoning used for 1 lb of ground meat.
If homemade taco seasoning doesn't have cornstarch already mixed in, I recommend using 2 teaspoon of cornstarch for every 3 tablespoons of taco mix.
Romaine lettuce hearts are just the center of a romaine head of lettuce. They are crisp, which is why I like to use them for salads. Substitute a whole head of lettuce in lieu of 2 romaine hearts. Alternatively, use iceberg lettuce.
Storage: Store the meat, avocado dressing, and vegetables in separate containers. When ready to serve this flavorful salad, reheat the taco-seasoned ground beef (separately), then assemble the salad. The avocado lime dressing stays green- yay! Just keep it in an airtight container in the fridge.
Substitutions:
1. Substitute red onion for green onion.
2. Use lean ground turkey or ground chicken instead of beef. If using very lean meat, I recommend using a tad bit of olive oil to brown the meat.
3. Make your own dressing or use store-bought creamy salsa dressing.
4. Pour the taco salad ingredients into a taco shell instead of using chips. Alternatively, bake some corn tortillas and use those instead of fried chips.
5. Add some hot sauce or sour cream on top!

Nutrition