This healthy Taco Salad can be prepared really quickly with everyday real food ingredients. Have fun choosing your favorite toppings, while creating a colorful, nutrient-dense meal.
We all love taco night! In fact, every Tuesday in our house is “Taco Tuesday” and boy do we look forward to it. It’s one of my favorite healthy dinner ideas for kids, especially picky eaters.
It could take the form of actual tacos (changing up the type of meat and toppings), quick-fix tacos (using leftovers from previous meals), or Taco Salad!
As a mom, I love that taco salad pulls together in a snap, and as a nutritionist, I love seeing the variety of real food colors on my family’s plates.
The boys enjoy the spread of toppings that we lay out across the counter because they get to choose how much of what yummy additions they want. When I apply the “taco bar” strategy to other meals it’s also effective for increasing the excitement kids have around their plate. Getting healthy food into picky eaters is easier when they get to choose what goes on the plate.
If you have big eaters in your house, this taco salad recipe is also tasty served over a baked sweet potato, or with grain-free tortillas (we love Siete Foods brand) to wrap up your fresh ingredients.
We can’t wait to see YOUR Taco Salad creations — make sure to share with us @primalpeak.
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Zesty Southwestern Taco Salad
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 10 min
- Total Time: 25 min
- Yield: 4–6 1x
Ingredients
- 1–2 Tbsp. coconut oil
- 2 lbs. ground beef
- 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 2 tsp. paprika
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 1/2 of a green (or purple) cabbage, shredded
- 8–10 cups mixed salad greens
- 1 red pepper, sliced or diced
- 1–2 cup(s) halved cherry tomatoes
- 1–2 avocado(s), sliced or diced
- 4–6 green onions, chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Hot sauce, to taste
- Drizzle of avocado oil and lemon juice
Instructions
- In a sauté pan over medium heat, melt coconut oil. Crumble ground beef into pan to brown, stirring occasionally. Once meat is no longer pink add paprika, chili powder, oregano, and salt and mix well.
- Set up a taco bar with cabbage, greens, meat, and toppings.
Notes
Options:
- Serve meat mixture and toppings over a baked sweet potato.
- Serve taco salad with a grain free tortilla.
Simplify:
- Add a pre-made taco seasoning blend to the meat mixture.
