Don’t let the word ‘skinny’ turn you off. This ground turkey Skinny Taco Salad with Avocado Dressing is delicious, healthy, and filling. With only 300-calories per serving, the amount of flavor this taco salad recipe has is amazing! This taco filling has a mildly spicy Southwestern flavor. Made with ground turkey, black beans, corn, and tomato salsa, it is great in tacos, burritos, or this skinny taco salad. The taco salad is my favorite though. Many taco salads don’t have a dressing, which I find odd. I dress the Romaine lettuce with a creamy avocado dressing that has lots of great flavors and is a great compliment to the skinny taco filling.
Taco Salad for Taco Tuesday? Yes, please!
I came up with this skinny taco salad recipe a few years ago. We love having tacos on “Taco Tuesday’, but many tacos are high in calories, fat, and super unhealthy. I wanted this skinny taco filling to have great flavor and not need a lot of extra cheese, sour cream, or other unhealthy toppings. The great thing is that this skinny taco salad doesn’t even need those other toppings.
I need to make the hashtag #skinnydelicious trend!
The skinny taco salad recipe isn’t complete without the amazing avocado dressing. I have used both avocados and guacamole as the base for this dressing, and both work great. It’s a quick and easy dressing to put together and it only takes a couple of minutes. Honestly, I don’t know why people don’t dress the lettuce in their taco salads?!?
Skinny Taco Salad with Avocado Dressing Ingredients
- Ground Turkey: Much healthier than ground beef, it is high in protein and low in fat, ground chicken or bison are good substitutes! I have made a vegetarian version of this taco salad recipe using cauliflower instead of the turkey, it is also really good.
- Black Beans and Corn: This gives the taco salad a nice Southwestern look and taste. The black beans add additional fiber and protein. And corn is a good source of fiber and carbs.
- Tomato Salsa: The salsa adds a nice kick of spice and moisture. I use the red salsa, but the green tomatillo salsa is excellent as well.
- Onions and Garlic: A simple rough chop is all the need, throw them in with the turkey as it browns.
- Spices: I make my own taco seasoning, it’s really easy: oregano, cumin, paprika, and chili powder is all it needs. There are some good prepackaged taco seasonings in the grocery stores. I’m sure they would work, although I’ve never tried them (I’m a food snob, lol).
- Avocado Dressing: Avocado, (or guacamole), garlic, olive oil, and lime juice. It’s a super simple recipe that adds amazing flavor to the lettuce.
- Salad: I use Romaine lettuce and grated carrots because I like a little crunch. However, any green leafy salad will work. A combo of baby spinach and arugula is delicious.
This is my recipe for a Skinny Taco Salad with Avocado Dressing
Skinny Taco Salad with Avocado Dressing
Ingredients
Taco Filling
- 1 Pound Turkey -Ground
- 1/2 Cup Onion -Diced
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic -Crushed and chopped
- 1 15 Ounce Can Black Beans -Drained and rinsed
- 1 Cup Corn
- 1 Cup Tomato Salsa
- 1/4 Cup Water
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Paprika
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Chili Powder -Ancho chili powder
Avocado Dressing
- 1/4 Cup Avocado -Guacamole works great
- 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic -Crushed and chopped
- 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 Teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Lime -Juice only
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
Salad
- 8 Cups Romaine Lettuce -Chopped
- 1 Cup Carrots -Shredded
Garnish
- Fresh Cilantro
- Fresh Tomatoes or Salsa
- Chopped Onions
Instructions
Taco Filling
- Heat a large covered nonstick skillet. Add the ground turkey and onion. Break up the ground turkey and cook until onions are translucent.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients, and stir to combine. Cover and let simmer for 15-minutes.
Avocado Dressing
- Combine all ingredients
To Assemble
- Place the Romaine lettuce in a large bowl and pour all of the dressing over it, toss the salad to combine
- Place a serving of salad on a plate and top with the hot taco filling. Garnish with cilantro, chopped onions, and fresh tomatoes
Nutrition
