Taco salad with spicy avocado dressing is a filling, flavorful, healthy main course salad. This taco salad recipe combines lean ground turkey, your favorite taco toppings, and homemade avocado salad dressing.
Ryan and I do not eat a lot of big salads. Sure we eat simple salads as a starter, but very rarely is salad all that we have for dinner. However, this week has been really busy, both at work and at home, so I was looking for some quick fix meals. This taco salad with spicy avocado dressing fits the bill perfectly. It is loaded with all of my favorite taco fixins, like beans, tomatoes, cheese, tortilla strips and seasoned ground turkey.
But the star of this easy main course salad is the spicy avocado dressing the taco salad is tossed in.
When it comes to salad dressings, more often than not, I am a vinaigrette kind of girl. But I got the idea for an avocado dressing after going to lunch with my mother-in-law a couple of weeks ago. We went to a favorite Tex-Mex style restaurant while we were visiting family. My mother-in-law ordered a salad that came with ranch avocado dressing. While I like the idea of avocado ranch, I’ve had a lot of ranch lately.
So, I decided to take the avocado element and make a spicy dressing for my taco salad. The dressing is thick, creamy and dresses this salad nicely. And I must confess, maybe now I am a spicy avocado dressing kind of girl.
You can add whatever toppings you like to your taco salad, but don’t skip the spicy avocado dressing!
Come over and visit my Facebook page and let me know what toppings you add to your taco salad!
Servings
Ingredients
- 1 large avocado (pitted, skin removed)
- 2 tablespoons minced red onion
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- juice of 1/2 lime
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 jalapeno (chopped)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt to taste
- 1/2 pound ground turkey
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt to taste
- 2 corn tortillas cut into strips
- oil for frying
- 1 head green leaf lettuce (washed and chopped)
- 2 to matoes (seeded and diced)
- 1/2 15 ounce can kidney beans, drained
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 green onions (chopped)
Instructions
- Combine dressing ingredients in a food processor. Process until smooth. Cover and chill for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- In a skillet brown ground turkey. Season with chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and salt to taste.
- Heat 1/2 inch of oil in a saucepan. Once hot, fry tortilla strips until golden brown. About 3-5 minutes. Transfer to paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle with salt and set aside.
- Depending on how much dressing you like spoon about 1/3 to 1/2 of the dressing in the bottom of a large salad bowl. Add lettuce, meat, tomatoes and kidney beans. Toss to coat. Top with tortilla strips, cheddar cheese and green onions. Serve.
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[…] One of the things we strive for when planning our menus is making everything fit together into one nice, neat little package. We look to use ingredients in different ways throughout the week so that we’re benefiting from the ability of do-aheads and being able to buy in bulk. We also benefit from a well-stocked pantry. Last week was my oldest daughter’s week to have the TV off, so we kicked it off with a family bowling day. We followed that up with numerous trips to the park, some less successful than others, and much more time spent reading and swinging in the backyard. Personally, I did not miss it one bit, and when she came home Friday and could watch TV again, she ran outside to help watch the second garden box be built instead, so I’m guessing she didn’t miss it much either. Monday – Brick Grilled Chicken with Scallion and Lime Butter Tuesday – Black Bean and Sweet Corn Soup with Cilantro and Lime Wednesday – Grilled Chicken Quesadillas with Chile Pepper Spread Thursday – Steak Fajitas Friday – Leftover Taco Salad […]
Des, I just made this dressing tonight…it was delicious!! And much lighter, I’m sure, than the green goddess dressing that I usually use to dress my taco salad (which is also very good but has 3/4 cups of olive oil in it..yikes)
Thank you for sharing your recipe..it’s definitely a keeper for me :-)
[…] Ambrosia – Spinach, Arugula, Cranberry & Walnut Salad; Taco Salad w/ Spicy Avocado Dressing; Filet Mignon w/Peppercorn Sauce; Sparkling Strawberry Lemonade; Herb & Garlic Shells w/Spinach […]
nfmgirl: You’re welcome! :)
[…] Taco Salad with Spicy Avocado Dressing Adapted from Life’s Ambrosia […]
This salad looks hands down wonderful and I wish I was having some right now! My tummy’s rumblin’!
I can’t wait to try this….the dressing sounds like one at our favorite Mexican restaurant-I loved the salad it was on and didn’t they go and take it off the menu? Now I’ll be able to make it at home….WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!!! :) Yep-I’m happy……
I’m eating this now. Yum! My boyfriend loves it, too. Thanks for the recipe!
Looks so delicious. I make my salad almost the same as yours, but I love your avocado dressing, I will definitely try!
Well, I am the kind of guy who will make a meal out of a salad and this sounds really good. I am particularly keen on the spicy avocado dressing you give the recipe for us to try. I probably would be curious to kick it up some with an habanero.
Don’t you just love cumin? It makes all things yummy. Nice salad!