Let’s get our taco salad on with this super tasty tutorial to help you build the ultimate taco salad in a crispy baked tortilla bowl!
Once the weather starts to warm up, we go taco salad crazy around here.
I intentionally grown boatloads of cilantro, scallions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and jalapeño in my garden so that any night can be taco night with just a few extra ingredients.
Can you tell taco night is my favorite? Love it so!
Sometimes we’ll opt for a conventional taco salad in a bowl but other times we get a little fancy schmantsy and make it in an edible tortilla bowl!
tortilla bowl tutorial
I use a handy dandy ruffled Tortilla Pan to make easy baked edible taco bowls – we’ve had a set of two for years now and love piling tortilla bowls with all our taco salad favorites.
In a pinch, you can also make a tortilla bowl using a medium round oven-safe baking dish (like pyrex or corning-ware) and simply shape your tortilla into it and bake until crispy. Easy peasy!
To make the tortilla bowl, microwave a large (burrito-sized) flour tortilla for 10 seconds to soften.
Rub or spray with a little bit of your favorite healthy oil and place it in the non-stick tortilla pan shell.
Bake at 350 F for 6-10 minutes or until crispy.
Now you have a crispy baked tortilla bowl to fill with all your favorite taco bowl or taco salad ingredients!
VEGAN taco bowls
For plant-based protein, top your taco salad with black beans, pinto beans, taco-style lentils, and/or taco roasted chickpeas.
You can also use roasted cauliflower and walnuts to make a faux-meat. It’s delicious!
Skip the optional cheese and sour cream entirely or use your favorite vegan swaps for a scrumptious salad that rocks your socks.
T-REX taco salad
If you’re day dreaming about adding protein to your taco salad, go for it!
Taco-seasoned ground beef, ground turkey, pulled pork, or salsa shredded chicken all work great.
Sometimes I go all out and make Buffalo Chicken Taco Salads!
MEAL PREP TIPS AND TRICKS
I’ll frequently make batches of crockpot black beans, black bean salsa and pico de gallo all in advance, then mix and match them to make multiple meals throughout the week.
We’ll alternate between taco salads, cheesy bean, veggie quesadillas, queso-drizzled sheet pan nachos, tacos, rice bowls, burritos, or really anything that sounds good that day.
You can also use pre-shredded cheese and chopped lettuce to make things easy or prep them yourself at home.
Once you have all the elements prepped for the week, simply pile them all into your taco bowl and get ready to faceplant!
Taco Salad Toppings
- grated cheese
- salsa
- diced tomatoes
- fresh or pickled jalapeño peppers
- cilantro
- pico de gallo
- sliced avocado or guacamole
- cabbage slaw
- fresh chopped onion or pickled red onion
- sour cream or Greek yogurt
- hot sauce
- avocado salsa verde
- black bean salsa
- black beans
- corn
- zucchini
- scallions
- hot sauce or taco sauce
- tortilla chips or strips
Taco Salad with Homemade Tortilla Bowls
Let’s get our Taco Salad Taco Bowl on!
Below is a printable base recipe to get you started. Feel free to add all your favorite toppings and mix-ins.
I’m a big fan of using salsa, guacamole, and sour cream as my “dressing” but you can also use your favorite taco salad dressing here too!
Taco Salad with Homemade Tortilla Bowls
Ingredients
- 2 large flour tortillas (burrito-sized)
- 3 cups chopped/shredded lettuce
- 1 cup black beans or taco meat/protein of choice
PROTEIN OPTIONS
- black beans (vegan/vegetarian)
- taco seasoned ground beef/turkey
- taco seasoned roasted chickpeas (vegan/vegetarian)
- cauliflower walnut taco meat (vegan/vegetarian)
- salsa shredded chicken
- seasoned shrimp or salmon
TACO SALAD TOPPINGS – CHOOSE YOUR FAVORITES
- grated cheese
- salsa
- diced tomatoes
- sliced jalapeño peppers
- cilantro
- pico de gallo
- sliced avocado
- guacamole
- cabbage slaw
- fresh chopped onion or pickeld red onion
- sour cream or Greek yogurt
- hot sauce
- avocado salsa verde
- black bean salsa
TOOLS NEEDED
- 1 non-stick toritlla pan to make the crispy baked tortilla bowl
Instructions
- To make the tortilla bowls, preheat oven to 350°F. Microwave tortilla for 10 seconds to soften. Rub or spray with a little bit of your favorite healthy oil (for extra crispiness) and place it in a non-stick tortilla pan. Bake on center rack 6-10 minutes or until desired crispiness is reached.
- Choose your favorite protein option followed by all your favorite taco salad toppings and mix-ins.
- Fill each bowl with shredded lettuce and top with cooked protein and choice of toppings.
- For the dressing, you can either follow my lead of using salsa, sour cream, and guacamole to "dress" the salad or pair your taco salad with your favorite homemade or store bought dressing. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
If you get a chance to try these tasty taco bowls, let me know!
Leave some love in the comment form below or tag your photos with @peasandcrayons on Instagram so I can happy dance over your creation! I can’t wait to see what you whip up!
Questions & Reviews
Loooooooove! There can never be too many taco salads in life. Thank you so much for the pickled red onions feature!