Taco Salad

Taco Salad is a classic and festive salad assembled with traditional taco filling ingredients. This Taco Salad Bowl is not only tasty but very healthy; we substitute meat for quinoa in this recipe. Our Taco Salad Recipe also includes pinto beans, corn, lettuce, red onions, avocado slices, tomatoes, cilantro, salsa, and tortilla chips. This recipe comes together in only thirty minutes and it’s sure to be a crowd pleaser around your dinner table.

What We Love About This Recipe

• Perfect healthy substitute for those taco cravings. While it’s true that I love salads, if I had to pick between a salad and some good tacos, tacos win every time. However, this recipe is perfect because it satiates those taco cravings in a healthy way. This is truly one of my favorite salads and there are so many great recipe variations for this one that you can truly get creative and make it the way you want it!
• Comes together in 30 minutes. This is one of the easiest recipes to make. Minimal preparation is required as you’ll only be cooking some quinoa and cutting up some tomatoes, cilantro, onions, and avocado. The rest is just opening up some cans of corn and pinto beans.
• Healthy ingredients. This recipe is loaded with fresh and healthy ingredients. Let’s take a look at just a few of the ingredients and some of the health benefits associated with them. Quinoa is not only a complete protein because it contains all essential amino acids, but it’s also a great source for kaempferol and quercetin, plant compounds which have anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have shown that cilantro may promote healthy digestion. Lastly, avocados are an excellent source for many important nutrients such as magnesium, B6, folate, vitamin E, and vitamin C. (1)(2)

How To Make Taco Salad

1. Cook quinoa. Pour one cup of quinoa and two cups of water into a medium-sized pot, cover it with a lid, and bring to a boil over high heat. Then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes until all water has evaporated.
2. Let quinoa cool. Remove cooked quinoa from heat and let it sit to cool.
3. Assemble salad. Add quinoa, pinto beans, corn, lettuce, and tomatoes into individual servings bowls. Garnish Taco Salad Bowls with salsa, red onion, avocado slices, cilantro, and tortilla chips.

Storage Tips

Taco Salad is a great recipe to make for meal preparation because most of the ingredients in this recipe keep well for up to a week in the refrigerator. To make this recipe in advance, you will simple cook your quinoa, cut up your onions and tomatoes, and once you’re ready to assemble your taco bowl, simply open a can of pinto beans and corn, cut up some fresh avocado, lettuce, and cilantro and you’re all set!

Recipe Variations

• Substitute black beans for pinto beans.
• Add guacamole instead of avocado slices.
• Cook quinoa in taco seasoning.
• Add vegan cheddar cheese.
• Substitute sliced green onions for red onion.
• Use Fritos instead of tortilla chips.
• Substitute cherry tomatoes for diced tomatoes.
• Use Spanish Rice instead of quinoa. Here’s How To Make Spanish Rice.
• For extra plant-based protein, add Chipotle Sofritas.

Check out these great salsa recipes to use with your Taco Salad: Serrano Salsa, Salsa Taquera, or Fire Roasted Salsa!

More Simple Vegan Salads

• Shirazi Salad
• Tomato Cucumber Salad
• Mixed Berry Salad
• Chopped Kale Salad
• Greek Quinoa Salad
• Southwest Quinoa Salad
• Vegan Macaroni Salad
• Mango Avocado Salad

Looking for more? Check out our salads page!

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Yield: 2 Servings

Taco Salad

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Taco Salad is a classic and festive salad assembled with traditional taco filling ingredients. This Taco Salad Bowl is not only tasty but very healthy; we substitute meat for quinoa in this recipe. Our Taco Salad Recipe also includes pinto beans, corn, lettuce, red onions, avocado slices, tomatoes, cilantro, salsa, and tortilla chips. This recipe comes together in only thirty minutes and it's sure to be a crowd pleaser around your dinner table.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) Can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 Cup cooked quinoa
• 1 (15 ounce) Can sweet corn, drained and rinsed
• 3/4 Cup salsa
• 1/3 Cup red onion, diced
• 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 3 Cups lettuce, finely chopped
• 1/3 Cup cilantro
• 1 Avocado, sliced

Instructions

1. Add one cup of quinoa and two cups of water into a medium pot, cover with lid, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 minutes or until all water is removed.
2. Remove quinoa from heat and set aside to cool.
3. In individual serving bowls, add quinoa, beans, corn, lettuce, and tomatoes. Garnish with red onion, cilantro, avocado, salsa, and tortilla chips.

Notes

Recipe Variations

• Substitute guacamole for avocado slices.
• Use black beans instead of pinto beans.
• Cook quinoa in taco seasoning.
• Substitute green onions for red onion.
• Add vegan cheddar cheese.
• Substitute Spanish Rice for quinoa.
• Substitute Fritos for tortilla chips.
• Use cherry tomatoes instead of tomato slices.
  

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

2

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 534Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 14gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 990mgCarbohydrates: 79gFiber: 15gSugar: 12gProtein: 20g

The Vegan Plate attempts to provide accurate information. However, this nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. The nutritional information provided comes from online sources and calculations.