Easy Taco Salad

This Easy Taco Salad is the perfect combination of savory and crunch. It is perfect to take to summer picnics and is so simple to whip up! #womenLivingWell #salads #taco #mexican

This salad is perfect to take to any gathering and is so simple to make!

Doritos Taco Salad Recipe
1 lb. ground beef
1 head iceberg lettuce, cleaned and torn into bite site pieces
1 envelope of taco seasoning
1 medium sized tomato, diced
1 bag of nacho Doritos
1 bottle French Dressing
1 ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
Brown ground beef. Drain fat. Toss with dry taco seasoning. (Please note: this recipe does not call for water.) Set aside until cool. In a large bowl add lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese. Then right before you serve it add the beef, Doritos and dressing and mix.

Mmmm… a sure crowd pleaser!

Walk with the King!

Courtney

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83 Comments

  1. We love taco salad! But instead of french dressing, we pour thousand island over the top. Ken’s brand is the best! And we add dark red kidney beans (rinsed and patted dry with a paper towel), too. Yummy!

    ~Susan

        1. you can use as big as bottle as you want. you add the dressing yourself. so whatever your preference is. it is so yummy!!!

      1. so glad you mentioned the Catalina dressing …. I was given this recipe years ago and lost it ….. but I am pretty sure it did have this dressing.

    1. My mom always made it that way, though she would make her own dressing by mixing mayo, garlic salt and chili sauce. It was always our favorite growing up and now it’s my kids favorite as well! This is a great meal for teaching kids to cook!

    2. I love the taco salad. I also use red kidney beans. I use a pkg. of zesty italian dry salad mix and mix as directed on pkg. and a pkg. of ranch dry mix according to package. Pour over salad before serving and it is delicious. I don’t normally add my doritos to salad. Each individual can on their plate, That way they don’t gt soggy, for leftovers.

      1. I have all the fixins set out and each can make
        their own. Taco meat, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, etc. We love 1 part each Ranch dressing, Dorothy Lynch and Wishbone Italian and add salsa or taco sauce for added heat but optional. Crushed Nacho Doritoes on top of each salad that gets made. OMGoodness. Just try it, seriuosly you just might like it.

  2. Oh girl, have you got my number!! I love Mexican food and this looks so DE-lish! Copy & pasting to Pages doc right now.

  3. Did you know that taco salad (and french fries) are my favorite foods. Yes, quite the combination but I could have taco salad every night of the week. Thanks for sharing with Tasty Tuesday. 🙂

  4. This looks really good! I wouldn’t think to use French dressing on taco salad so thanks for the idea!

  5. I love this recipe except I add kidney beans and chopped up hard boiled eggs. I also use western dressing instead of the french. I don’t know difference between the two but I always used Western and with these added items it make it just that much better than it already is.

  6. We eat this quite a bit. We use Catalina dressing instead of French. And Fritos instead of Doritos. I think I wanna try Doritos though. Mmm!

    1. I have always used fritos, try the chili cheese fritos, smaller bite size then doritos, I also add ranch style beans just rinse them , diced red onions gives it a pretty look as well as I good taste.

    2. We love Taco salads here too and have found that using 1 part Dorothy Lynch to 1 part Ranch to 1 part Wishbone Italian and salsa or taco sauce if you like some zip. Excellent dressing and Nacho Doritoes are really good. Just try it.

  7. This is the best taco salad! I have been making it since my then-boyfriend’s mom taught me how in high school! (I am 40 now! LOL) I use regular tortilla chips and CATALINA French dressing, which makes it, IMO. Also I warm the dressing slightly in the microwave before adding, which helps it absorb and keeps the salad from getting too lukewarm. Thanks for posting. Love your site!

  8. I make this quite a bit and everyone loves it. Although I have a few variations. Instead of ground beef weuse ground turkey. I also do a can of crisp corn, a can of sliced olives and a can of drained and.rinsed black beans. And as for the dressing, I take a jar of Pace salsa, mild,medium or hot depending on your preference and then mix it with about half a bottle of thousand island dressing and mix them. Omg it is so yummy and very craveable. Also, for a little kick sometimes ill add some shredded pepperjack cheese on top! So delicious!!

  9. We just had this the other night! Except in my recipe that I’ve had for years, it calls for regular Doritos (corn), Ranch style beans added to the meat mixture when done to heat thru and we have used both French and Catalina dressing. Always a family favorite!! 🙂

  10. Oh, and just recently we tried cilantro in it too. Major plus in my book. I am going to add that every time in the future. Plus, salsa of your choice and sour cream as needed to top! Yum

  11. I have made this taco salad for years. The only 2 differences is I brown the meat with one packet of seasoning. Then add an extra one after I am done browning for more flavor . An I use Westerns French dressing it is a bit tangier.

  12. I make it the same but with kidney beans drained mixed w/ the taco meat, avocado, and black olives and use thousand island dressing………sooooooo good. 🙂

  13. I love this recipe, but of course we tweak it just a little. I add green onions to the top, use Catalina dressing because it sooooooooo works with the taco seasoning and then I prefer Frito corn chips. They are a little easier to eat. Also a spoonful of sour cream and wholly guacamole and OH MY HAPPY MOUTH!!!!!

  14. I made this a few weeks ago for supper and it was a huge hit! I am making it again next week and the kids asked me if we could have it again after that. I loved that it was simple and fast. It makes a great church night supper.

  15. I had the original dish in the mid 70’s and the dressing of choice was Catalina! I’m sure it would be great with any dressing. This recipe is a keeper!

  16. I make the almost exact same recipe (stolen from my husband, who stole it from his mom) the difference is we use Ranch dressing…I use Hidden Valley specifically and oh my goodness there WILL be no leftovers!!!

    1. I use ranch as well! I have never tired other dressings on my taco salad. Going to try some of these other suggestions in the near future. I also use Frito’s. Great recipe!!

    2. I used ranch as well~I would in fact mix the ranch with the taco seasoning then mix into the taco salad right before serving 🙂 OMG DELISH!!

  17. For the dressing I use even amounts of Dorothy Lynch Dressing (if you are not in the midwest may not be able to find) and Western Dressing. This salad is always a hit at any potluck, salad luncheon, or Summer Bar-B-Que. I get special requests to bring this salad.

    1. Oh my goodness! I haven’t had this in years! We always used Dorothy Lynch salad dressing too! Guess I need to pick up the ingredients to make this again. Easy, yummy meal.

  18. I love this salad. I add a can of drained and rinsed black beans. I love it with Catalina Dressing, also.
    It is yummy!

  19. We make a similar taco salad at home. We use western dressing instead of french and add kidney beans and black olives. And have some sour cream to go with it… absolutely delicious!

  20. Been making a salad just like that for a long time; but I use a good creamy Ranch dressing! It’s delicious with a different zing!

  21. My ex-mother-in-law gave me a simular recipe, but this one is MUCH better. I dont like soggy chips so I don’t mix them in. This salad is amazing! We love it and will have it often!

  22. We use Western brand dressing. We also a rotini pasta. I take it to pot lucks and never have left overs. We put your usual taco toppings in it too. My friend uses Italian dressing mixed with taco sauce, which is great also.

    1. I also use Western Dressing. I never thought of adding pasta but I think I like the idea. I also add chopped ripe olives. This is a summertime favorite for oure family get togethers.

  23. the recipe i have, we use western dressing, 1/3 c. sugar, and onion. i received this recipe from a prior co-worker who was a fabulous cook. I also add peppers of various colors, radishes, or anyother veggies in season.

  24. This is delicious! The sodium content for this recipe is way out of the park for heart-healthy though :/ You can omit the taco seasoning and use cumin, garlic powder, and pepper though 🙂 To further decrease the sodium you can use sour cream for your dressing and it is just as delish. Thank you, I just love Mexican

  25. I absolutely LOVE cucumbers on my taco salad!! (Green olives, tomatoes, lettuce, green peppers, just a dash of meat, with salsa and ranch.. Lime tortilla’s are good! or any tortilla chips. Doritos are best but whatever is on hand. Looking forward to trying some suggestions listed here: (wholly guac, chili cheese fritos, corn, black beans, red onion, Thousand Island and salsa mixed, zesty italian mixed with taco sauce sounds interesting. Thanks for the recipe post and shares.

  26. I made this recipe exactly as indicated. We liked it, however I think next time I will use 2lbs. Ground beef and leave off the French. I will provide hot macho cheese and salsa on the side.

  27. Sounds good, I use romaine lettuce and it’s so easy to make your own taco seasoning – no preservatives! Plenty of recipes on Pinterest.

  28. I make something like this, but I add a med red onion chopped, can of hormel chili with beans, can of hormel chili without beans and a bottle of Catalina. Cook that the hamburger and taco sauce together on low for about 30 mins and serve it over Doritos. With all the normal taco tacoppings

  29. This was so very good. EVERYONE loved it. And in a family of 5 people all with very different tastes and likes that is not something that I can say about a lot of meals. This is going into the monthly rotation of meals. Thanks so much for posting.

  30. i lost the recipe for toco that my Mom used to make . put in oven mix beef,corn ,olives, tomato sauce, onions chopped and a bag of Frits crushed?. am I forgetting anything? does anyone know about this recipe from the 60’s you mix all together and put in casserole dish but I don’t know how long on what temp. I am on pinterest as Nancy Laverick. thanks

  31. This sounds so delicious, but honestly with the doritos, iceberg and full bottle of salad dressing, (and the pic with sour cream as topping), it is pretty unhealthy. I wouldn’t serve it to children as a nutritious meal. However, it can be modified with better choices and would still be (perhaps even more) yummy: romaine lettuce or spinach, whole grain corn chips, less than half a bottle of dressing (homemade is best!) and, as many people have suggested, add some beans for another dose of protein! Also other tasty additions would round it out–kerneled corn, cilantro, peppers, avacado, the options are endless….

  32. Love this recipe but always has to be Dorothy Lynch for the dressing for me and my family! Its a great dish to take to any get together!

  33. This has always been a Great Recipe… I have done this for years and I do use a 50/50 blend of Catalina Dressing and Salsa mixed together, this is good even if you omitted the tomatoes. Use a dollop of sour creamfor each individual serving. Thanks for Posting.

  34. I got a very similar recipe froma dear friend probably 20 yrs ago and still make it today. After cooking the beef, let it cool and mix with it mild or hot taco sauce and then let chill. Just before serving, chop up lettuce, chop to,atones, spread cheese,mcheddar is the best, then mix on the beef. Top it off with as much Catalina dressing as you like. Serve with Doritos chips crunched up into bite size pieces. If you put the chips directly on the salad, they will get soggy.
    My kids loved it when they were little and still love this as grown ups!

  35. Yum! My mom also did the kidney beans and seasoning, but mixed with Catalina. for some reason she always added green pepper and cauliflower and radishes as well. I think probably to make it a bit more substantial.

  36. This is SO crazy! I am sitting here making my grocery list for the week. I have this recipe “pinned.” It is one of our staple recipes and I use this page to help me remember the ingredients. As I was jotting down the ingredients, I looked up and saw your picture, Courtney. I just met you 2 days ago at the MomHeart Conference in Dallas. I’m currently reading your book (I’m the one that just had to take a “selfie” with you!). 😉 Thank you again for your help in my life, first with your book, and now with this recipe.

  37. There are two sets of clickable buttons on the handle to include speed settings high, low, and off; temperature settings hot, warm, and cold; and then a cold shot button by itself.

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