If you love tacos and salad, this Beef Taco Salad with Salsa Ranch Dressing is the best of both worlds. It's loaded with juicy ground beef seasoned with homemade taco seasoning, fresh veggies, cheese, and drizzled with a creamy salsa.
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If you are looking for a taco salad side dish, try cauliflower Spanish rice, or if you're hungry for tacos, try our favorite shrimp tacos with slaw and pair with any of our shrimp taco side dishes.
This healthy, ground beef salad was inspired by the Mexican salad bowl from one of my favorite restaurants. I wanted a low carb keto taco salad recipe, so I chose to make this with no shell and no tortilla strips.
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Ingredients
- Ground Beef - seasoned with Low Sodium Taco Seasoning. The spice level is kid friendly, but don't worry, you can make it spicier by doubling the chili powder and adding cayenne. I cook the protein with onions, peppers, and garlic. You can also use ground turkey for a lower calorie option.
- Salsa Ranch Dressing - this easy creamy salsa dressing is a mixture of salsa, Hidden Valley Ranch, and chili powder. It has a mild kick, but you can make it a spicy ranch recipe by doubling the spice.
- Salad toppings - on a bed of romaine lettuce you can customize your taco salad toppings: tomatoes, mushrooms, cheese, avocado, black beans, sour cream, etc.
How to Make Salsa Ranch Dressing
I like to use salsa as salad dressing for a low calorie salad dressing. For this homemade taco salad, I wanted a creamy salad dressing. This is my favorite dressing for taco salad. This salsa ranch is delicious on tacos and nachos too.
Combining salsa, ranch, and spice creates the perfect Mexican Ranch. You can customize this easy Salsa Ranch Dressing by using any kind of salsa - mild, medium, or hot. Adding more chili powder to the salsa dressing will also give it an extra kick.
Storage
Store creamy salsa in an air tight container, like this salad dressing shaker jar, in the refrigerator. If you use store-bought ranch dressing and salsa, this taco salad dressing will last up to two weeks, if stored properly.
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Beef Taco Salad with Salsa Ranch Dressing
Save this Recipe!
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Equipment
- Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion chopped
- 1 green bell pepper chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- romaine lettuce or lettuce of choice
- salad toppings avocados, tomatoes, cheese, mushrooms, etc.
Taco Seasoning Mix
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Salsa Ranch Dressing
- ½ cup ranch dressing
- ⅓ cup salsa
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients for the Salsa Ranch Dressing in a bowl or shaker jar. Stir until well combined and refrigerate in an air tight container until ready to use.
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil. Saute onions and peppers on medium heat for 5 minutes until softened. Add garlic to the skillet and saute one more minute.
- Add ground beef and taco seasoning to the skillet. Cook on medium high heat, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until the ground beef is cooked through. Drain fat.
- Assemble the taco salad in a bowl and top with creamy salsa dressing.
Notes
- Make sure to drain the fat from the ground beef mixture. Use lean ground beef for less fat content.
- If using store bought taco seasoning - use 2 Tablespoons per one pound of ground beef.
- You can top the taco salad with sour cream, guacamole, beans, etc. The possibilities to customize your taco salad are endless.
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