Taco salads are great warm-weather meals that come together quickly and can be made for a crowd. They're perfect for spring and summertime when the kids are out of school. We have frequent visitors and need a flavorful, low-stress meal that can be customized to suit everyone's tastes.
Years ago, as our family grew, I began adding corn and black beans to the meat for taco salads to make the meat stretch further and to add more color, texture and flavor. It's a trick I learned from my mother-in-law, who always adds kidney beans to her taco salads. Now we prefer it this way.
I also love making taco salad with lean, healthy ground turkey in exchange for the standard ground beef you'll find in the classic versions. You can do this with ground moose as well. You can put all the ingredients out and let everyone assemble their salads themselves. This simple lunch or dinner option is a family-style favorite at our house.
Ground turkey taco salad with corn and black beans
Serves 4
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 1/4 pounds lean ground turkey
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons taco seasoning, or to taste
1 14.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups corn (fresh, frozen or canned)
For the salad:
4 cups corn tortilla chips
12 ounces salad greens (I used a combination of spinach and green leaf/romaine)
1 large tomato, chopped
1 large ripe avocado, sliced
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
2 cups colby jack or cheddar cheese, shredded
Ranch dressing
Mexican hot sauce and/or salsa
Lime wedges
1. Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Season the turkey with salt and taco seasoning and brown the meat, breaking it up with a spatula as you go. When cooked through, add the black beans and corn, heating through. Taste for seasoning and add more salt or taco seasoning, as needed, to taste. If the mixture seems too dry, add water by the 1/4 cup to loosen up. Keep warm.
2. To assemble the salad, place chips (I like to crush them a little), then a big handful of salad greens and tomatoes, followed by meat/corn/beans mixture, then cheese. Top with avocado, cilantro, and green onions. Drizzle with dressing and hot sauce. Serve with lime wedges.
Maya Evoy lives in Nikiski and blogs about food at alaskafromscratch.com. Have a food question or recipe request? Email maya@alaskafromscratch.com and your inquiry may appear in a future column.