Taco salad – Eat Healthy For Less
Time: 35 mins
Serves 4
Mince beef is the classic, but if you’re looking for something lighter, mince chicken or turkey would be just as good. Looking to make this vegetarian? Sub out the meat for sliced mushrooms or your favourite plant-based ground meat alternative.
Ingredients
1 lb. ground beef
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. taco seasoning
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
Vegetable oil – enough to fry tortilla strips
2 (4″) corn tortillas, cut into 1/4″ strips
2 heads romaine lettuce, chopped
500G halved cherry tomatoes
Tin can black beans, drained, rinsed
85G grated cheddar
Handful chopped fresh coriander
125ml sour cream
For the pico de gallo
4 tomatoes, chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp jalapeño peppers from a jar, drained and finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
small bunch coriander, roughly chopped
juice 1 lime
Method
In a large pan over medium-high heat, cook beef, breaking up into small pieces with a wooden spoon; season with salt and pepper. Add taco seasoning, tomato paste, and 2 tablespoons water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
Into another large pan, pour oil to a depth of 1/2″. Heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Fry tortilla strips until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; immediately season with salt.
In a large bowl, season lettuce with a pinch of salt. Add tomatoes, beans, and beef and toss to combine. Top with cheese, pico de gallo, coriander, and tortilla strips. Dollop with sour cream.
For the Pico de Gallo
Stir all the ingredients together in a medium bowl with some seasoning then put it into the fridge to chill. You could do this the day before. About 20 mins before you are ready to eat, take the salad out and bring it back to room temperature.
