Skip to main content

spicy turkey taco salad with baja dressing.

spicy turkey taco salad with baja dressing.


Making Thursday night tacos a thing, with this Spicy Turkey Taco Salad with Baja Dressing. Chipotle chili seasoned turkey taco meat, mixed with fresh greens, black beans, avocado, mango, and a little cheddar cheese too. Topped with tortilla chips for crunch, and finished with a creamy Baja style dressing that’s spicy and cooling. SO GOOD. If you’re looking for a non-boring salad, this is it!


Raise your hand if you ate tacos at least once or twice a week growing up? My brothers and I were served ground beef tacos all the time as kids. Tacos were an easy, quick dinner that my dad could make in under 30 minutes. They were a dinner that every single one of his kids would eat. So all 7 of us…

OK. So back then Asher was non-existent (which is soooo weird to think about life without Asher!), and Red was just a baby. So I guess it was more like 5 of his kids. Still, we all ate them, and we all loved them. Mom and I preferred hard shells with melted cheddar. While the boys ate theirs rolled up in a flour tortilla burrito style. Absolutely nothing fancy about it, but we loved them.



And no, we definitely were not eating mango salsa back then. Though it would have been really good, and I wish we did.

It’s really hard to believe, but I don’t have a ground beef taco recipe on HBH. I have plenty of other taco recipes, but nothing like the tacos we ate as kids. Probably because they were nothing that special. But I don’t know, maybe I can come up with something good to share some day soon.

In the meantime, I have this taco salad. It’s DELICIOUS, and much, much better than the tacos we ate as kids. Both mom and dad agree.

It’s big, it’s green, and loaded with spicy homemade turkey taco meat, black beans, mangos, avocado, cheese, tortilla chips, and topped with the best Baja style dressing. Again…delicious! And not boring, which is very important when it comes to salad eating around here. I like my salads loaded, colorful, sprinkled with carbs, and always topped with cheese.
Here are the details.

For the taco meat, I seasoned it with smoky chipotle chili powder, smoked paprika, and cumin. I love this combo, as it leaves the meat really flavorful, a touch smoky, and not too spicy.

For the greens, I know romaine is traditional in a taco salad. But I wanted to use a green that would hold up well for meal prepping, and also be good for taking on the go. So I went with kale. It’s a little thicker and tends to wilt less than romaine. It’s the perfect green to make a salad with the night before. That said, you can of course use whatever leafy green you love most!

To finish this salad off, I went with a Baja Dressing. Oh how I love this dressing! It’s creamy, cooling, spicy, extra limey, and addicting. The dressing alone makes you want to eat salad. It kind of reminds me of a spicy ranch, but so much better. I used plain greek yogurt to keep it creamy, fresh jalapeños for some spice, a little honey to balance everything, and then fresh cilantro and chives for a somewhat herby flavor.

Trust me, it’s one of the better salad dressings I’ve ever made.
This is the perfect salad to meal prep with too! You can make everything ahead of time. Even tossing the salad together and then packaging it up in glass containers (these are my favorite). I recommend keeping the meat and greens separate, just in case you might want to reheat the meat (which I like to do).

Just as much fun as a desk salad as it is as for a nice weeknight dinner!

PS. I’d love to know if you guys are enjoying these healthy January recipes. I’m trying to keep them, fun, fresh, and filling, all at the same time! Let me know if you’d like to see more salads! Or maybe some meal prep?
If you make this turkey taco salad, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!

spicy turkey taco salad with baja lime dressing
Chipotle chili seasoned taco meat, fresh greens, black beans, avocado, mango, and a little cheddar cheese too. Topped with tortilla chips for crunch, and finished with a creamy Baja style dressing that's spicy and cooling, delish!

 prep time 20 minutes
 cook time 20 minutes
 total time 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS


2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound lean ground turkey or chicken
2-3 teaspoons chipotle chili powder
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon cumin seeds (or 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
kosher salt and pepper
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
6 cups mixed leafy greens
1 cup cooked black beans
1 avocado, sliced
1 mango, diced
3/4 cup cubed cheddar cheese
crushed tortilla chips or strips

BAJA DRESSING

1 cup plain greek yogurt
juice of 2 limes
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
1 jalapeño, seeded if desired
1/4 cup fresh cilantro

kosher salt

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the turkey and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the chipotle chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Add 1/2 cup of water and cook, stirring occasionally, until the water has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro.

2. To make the dressing. Combine all ingredients except the chives in a blender and pulse until mostly smooth. Stir in the chives. Dressing will keep for 1 week in the fridge.

3. In a large salad bowl, combine the greens, black beans, avocado, mango, and cheese. Top the salad with the turkey taco meat and then drizzle with the dressing (below). Toss to combine and then top with tortilla chips. Enjoy!
source:https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/spicy-turkey-taco-salad-with-baja-dressing/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

blueberry macarons with blueberry mascarpone cream

blueberry macarons with blueberry mascarpone cream Blueberry macarons flavored with freeze-dried blueberry powder and filled with a barely sweet blueberry mascarpone filling. There’s no better time than the afternoon before your daughter’s first birthday party to figure out whether your ELECTRIC (<–GROAN) oven can handle macaron baking. I mean, it’s not like you have an 18-inch sheet cake and a sugar free triple layer smash cake and DINNER still to make, or anything like that. Yeah, about that….. But guys! Good news! My oven makes BEAUTIFUL macarons!!! I’m so happy to have found that out a month before we have to move out and I have to get used to a whole new oven. I have the best timing. Really. See above. Or maybe the oven has nothing to do with it and somehow by  not  making macarons for almost two years, I’ve somehow refined my skillz? Or born-again beginner’s luck? Whatever kind of hocus pocus was in the air that day, hey! I’ll take it. As I’ve mentioned only  ad ...
Post a Comment
Read more

CREAMY CAJUN SHRIMP PASTA WITH SAUSAGE

CREAMY CAJUN SHRIMP PASTA WITH SAUSAGE Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta with Sausage is easy to make weeknight one pot pasta dish! With only 30 minutes of total work, this shrimp pasta dinner recipe is simple, fast and delicious! Quick and easy dinner is always something I have on my mind. I happen to love shrimp and sausage combination because it’s so flavorful and delicious. Besides, there’s nothing better than having a restaurant quality pasta dish on the table for my family and friends!  This creamy pasta dish disappeared quickly from our dinner table!
Post a Comment
Read more

easiest coconut cauliflower adobo.

easiest coconut cauliflower adobo. Sharing my vegan twist on a traditional Filipino dish with this Filipino Coconut Cauliflower Adobo. I’ve swapped the chicken for nutrient-packed cauliflower and slow-braised it in soy sauce, vinegar, and bay leaves. Coconut milk adds a touch of creaminess to this sweet and tangy adobo sauce making it especially delicious. This is best served over steamed rice with fresh avocado and a side of beans. The perfect healthy, 30-minute dinner, any night of the week. It’s officially the deep, deep, deep winter around here. We had a cold, but beautiful, snow-filled weekend. At this point, I’m not yet sick of the snow and still very much embracing the cozy weather. Hoping you all are too, because it’s only mid-January and we still have a ways to go before spring! As I mentioned Sunday, I decided to cancel a quick NYC trip to be able to spend some time with my mom for her birthday on Saturday. It was good I did because all the snow would have caused so...
Post a Comment
Read more

EDIBLE COOKIE DOUGH

EDIBLE COOKIE DOUGH Edible Cookie Dough recipe with no eggs is better than the cookies themselves! I love how this egg free cookie dough looks as good as it tastes! It’s the perfect addition to your favorite ice-cream. Or, simply a great snack! This edible cookie dough is 100% safe too eat. Because it has no eggs and no uncooked flour! I also stuffed it full of chocolate chips! So be sure to really restrain yourself from finishing it all right away. But if you run out, you can always make a new batch!  Use it in brownies or cupcakes. Add it to ice cream or a cheesecake. As long as there is enough room in your fridge or freezer for chocolate chip cookie dough! If you are like me, you maybe obsessed with cookies. Recently I have been obsessed with making cookie dough first thing in the morning. Basically, what I do now is get out of bed and start making cookies! Isn’t it what everyone else does?
Post a Comment
Read more

crispy chipotle chicken tacos with cilantro lime ranch.

crispy chipotle chicken tacos with cilantro lime ranch. Weeknight style Cheesy Baked Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch…and all the toppings. Because loaded tacos are just better. Ground chicken seasoned with a smoky chipotle chili spice mix, stuffed into hard shell tacos, topped with cheese, and oven-baked. These tacos are crunchy on the outside, but spicy and cheesy inside. Serve each taco with a creamy, cooling cilantro lime ranch sauce, and a mix of your favorite taco toppings. They come together in minutes and are so delicious…the perfect weeknight dinner. Bonus, the chipotle chicken is great as a leftover. Pile it high onto your favorite tortilla chips for some seriously delicious nachos or serve it up atop greens for a Mexican inspired salad. As a kid, tacos were a weeknight staple in our house. I’ve touched on this before, but my dad cooked tacos for dinner at least once or twice a week for multiple years straight. It probably wasn’t until I started ...
Post a Comment
Read more