Kittencal's Taco Salad for a Crowd

"I have made this many times to serve at get togethers and I always receive rave reviews from everyone! if desired the amounts may reduced to half --- to save some time the beef may be cooked a day ahead, and refrigerated overnight as it must be cooled completely before adding the ingredients in with it, you may want to purchase two bags of nacho chips and use one to serve on the side --- when cooking the ground beef, I always try to leave it into larger size chunks, it looks better in the salad, really you may use any size bag of nachos that you like, the 12 cups size is only estimated, you can add any amount desired in with the ground beef/salad mixture, just make sure to add them just before serving as they tend to get soggy --- see my recipe#76616 -- I sometimes add in a can of drained and rinsed black beans :)"
 
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Ready In:
30mins
Ingredients:
11
Serves:
20
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ingredients

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directions

  • Brown ground beef with the chopped yellow onion (not red).
  • Add in only 1 package taco mix (and water according to the package direction); set aside to cool completely.
  • In a large bowl, mix together chopped lettuce, tomatoes, cheddar cheese (can use more than 2 cups if desired, and the cheese may be cubed small instead of shredded) avocados, red onion, olives, and the second package of taco seasoning mix.
  • Add to cooled beef mixture; toss to combine.
  • Just before serving toss with the salad dressing.
  • The last step (JUST BEFORE SERVING) is to mix in about three-quarters of the package of crushed Doritos, leaving the rest on the side for your guests who want extra (they will get soggy if you mix them in too early!).

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Reviews

  1. Oh kitten this salad was AMAZING!!! We fell in love with it!!!<br/>We don't eat beef so subbed kidney beans and skipped the avocado. <br/>Used your taco seasoning mix and your catalina dressing. <br/>I have already made this so many times in the past few days and have requests for more!<br/>Thanks kitten I know I can always look up to your recipes for the best ones!!! :)
     
  2. I made a vegetarian version with pinto beans instead of beef. I used half the listed amount of taco seasoning and thought it perfect. Thanks for sharing another great one!
     
  3. My SIL made this for a bridal shower yesterday and it was VERY good. I'd never had taco salad with cold taco meat and was pleasantly surprised. Thanks for a great recipe!
     
  4. I made a half recipe of this for a Mexican Themed dinner party and it was a hit! I've just started to try entertaining friends and family at our house and I found that this was a very low stress main course. I loved that I could do all the prep ahead of time then just toss it together right before we ate. It was a big plus to not have to worry about timing the food to be hot with the arrival of the guests. And we all loved it, even my three-year-old, who ate 2 servings! (a miracle!) I left out the onions and the second packet of taco seasoning with good results. Thanks Kittencal!
     
  5. I made this for a family winter party. We have them after the 1st of the year. (Our family has grown so much that we no longer have Christmas parties together because we are all so busy.) This was the hit of the party, a real crowd pleaser. I made as directed. I just kept everyting in separate containers and threw it all together right before we ate. I did leave out the chips, just served them on the side so that nothing got soggy. Kittencal you have done it again! Thanks.
     
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Tweaks

  1. I made a vegetarian version with pinto beans instead of beef. I used half the listed amount of taco seasoning and thought it perfect. Thanks for sharing another great one!
     
  2. We made this as written-ish. I didn't want to heat up the kitchen, so I subbed 1 can of black beans for the beef. I was wonderful! I put the beans (drained and rinsed) in a microwave-safe bowl, sprinkled it with the taco seasoning and microwaved it for a minute or so. A wonderful twist on a great salad. Thanks!
     
  3. My sister served this at a recent party and it was a huge hit. She did a few things a little different, but the results were outstanding! She added 1 can of black beans to the ground beef and taco seasoning mixture. For the taco seasoning, she used a hot and spicy packaged mix which gave the salad a nice bite. Instead of Doritos, she used regular tortillas. And, to make it lighter, she served light Catalina dressing on the side. My only complaint is that the salad was so good there are no leftovers!
     
  4. Really like this recipe. It is great for a potluck. Always gets finished off. I also have used cut up ham instead of hamburger meat when I didn't feel like cooking at all. I also add kidney beans. And I usually use 2 bottles of dressing.
     
  5. You were right! Everyone loved this salad at the luncheon I had! I tweaked it a bit - used grilled chicken instead of beef and served guacamole on the side instead of putting avocado in. I also added two cans of black beans and two cans of Mexicorn. It was awesome and everyone wanted the recipe. Thanks for making a lot of people very happy!
     

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