Can I use tortilla chips instead of Fritos?

You can, however corn chips are a little thicker and will stand up better to the other ingredients and the tossing. But tortilla chips will still work! If you have big ones, you will want to crumble them a little into bite sized pieces.

How do I know when an avocado is ripe?

The age old mystery! It should give a little (but not feel mushy) when you press on it, and if you pick the short brown stem off it should be green underneath.

Can I make this ahead of time?

You can prep all the ingredients ahead of time, but wait to toss them all together until right before you serve so things don't get soggy.

Can I leave (whatever it is that someone doesn't like) out?

Ha! The great thing about this recipe is that as long as you have the meat cooked with the taco spices, the lettuce and the corn chips. After that, you can get as creative as you want. SOME people in my house don't like avocado, so I pass that around separately. You can add corn, black beans, chopped bell peppers, black olives, chopped sweet onions, a spoonful of salsa, a squeeze of lime juice...you be you!

Have a question that I didn't cover?

Pop your question in the comments section below and I will answer pronto!

Corn Chip Taco Salad

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

There are taco salads. And then there is this recipe for corn chip taco salad that has all the great taco salad ingredients and a corn chip crunch!

Author: Kate Morgan Jackson
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 6 servings 1x
Category: Dinner
Method: Stovetop
Cuisine: Mexican
Diet: Gluten Free

Ingredients

Scale

1 pound ground beef
1 one ounce packet taco seasoning mix (or two tablespoons homemade taco seasoning)
1 head iceberg lettuce, chopped
3 chopped tomatoes (or 2 cups halved/quartered cherry tomatoes)
2 peeled and chopped avocados
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 cups corn chips

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Prepare taco meat with ground beef according to taco seasoning mix directions. If you are using your own taco seasoning, add it along with a cup of water once the beef is brown and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
Combine all remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl, including the chips. The taco flavoring in the meat juices will serve as the “dressing” for the salad.
Throw caution to the wind and have seconds.

Notes

- Taco Seasoning: You can find this in the International Foods section of your supermarket…or in about five minutes you can make your own with this super easy taco seasoning recipe!

- Corn Chips: We love the regular size Frito chips for this recipe, but any corn chips will work! Do get the regular small ones – the scoop kind are a little big for this salad. But if that’s all you can find, just crunch them up a little before adding them.

- Avocado: These are notorious for being super hard when you buy them (you can find them in the produce section of your supermarket) so I always try and get mine a few days ahead to give it time to soften up. You can also swap out the avocado for guacamole, either the already prepared kind, or you can make your own – here’s my favorite guacamole recipe!

Find it online: https://www.framedcooks.com/corn-chip-taco-salad/