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Doritos Taco Salad (+Video)

Dorito Taco Salad is a huge favorite! A delicious combination of taco seasoned ground beef, Doritos, taco toppings and Catalina dressing.

A UNIQUE TACO SALAD RECIPE

This Doritos Taco Salad was one of those meals I ate a lot as a kid. I’m sure most of us kids who grew up in the 70’s and 80’s remember this one really well. I still make it often to this day! It’s a really flavorful salad and you can customize it in so many different ways! This taco salad is also perfect to set up as Taco Bar. Put out all the different ingredients and let guests make their own individual salads they way they like it!

bowl of Doritos taco salad topped with a dollop of sour cream.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

What else can you put in taco salad?

Other toppings include: salsa, pinto beans, sliced olives, jalapeños and sliced green onions.

Do I have to use Doritos?

No you could use tortilla chips instead of the Doritos.

What goes well with taco salad?

I feel like this really is a whole meal in one! However, if you’d really like a side, I would suggest Mexican cornbread, grilled corn or perhaps some Mexican rice.

What salad dressing is good for taco salad?

You’ve got three good options. Catalina is my first choice. However, you could use French or Russian dressing since they are so similar.

What kind of beans are in taco salad?

You’ll usually see kidney beans or black beans. Pinto beans are another great option!

How do I store leftovers?

Leftovers can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerated for at lest one day. Keep in mind, the lettuce will get soggy. So if you are planning on leftovers, try to keep all the ingredients separate until you are ready to prepare.

Large bowl of Doritos Taco Salad.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (FULL RECIPE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST)

  • ground beef
  • taco seasoning
  • water
  • Doritos
  • kidney beans or black beans
  • cheddar cheese
  • tomato
  • Catalina or French dressing
  • sour cream
ground beef, taco seasoning, dark red kidney beans, lettuce, medium cheddar cheese, tomatoes, catalina dressing, sour cream

HOW TO MAKE DORITOS TACO SALAD:

Brown and drain beef of excess grease.

browning ground beef in skillet.

Add packet of taco seasoning (whichever one is your favorite or make your own.) Add necessary water (following directions on back of package.) Let water reduce until the beef mixture is thick. Turn off heat.

taco meat fully cooked and seasoned with taco seasoning.

Crush Doritos and place in a large bowl. Add in beef mixture. Then add in kidney beans, shredded lettuce, cheese and diced tomatoes.

Stir. Finally, drizzle with Catalina or French dressing.

drizzling Catalina dressing on top of taco salad.

Top each serving with sour cream.

white bowl filled with taco salad topped with a dollop of sour cream.

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Originally published: January 2011
Updated and republished: May 2019

Doritos Taco Salad

Doritos Taco Salad (+Video)

Dorito Taco Salad is a huge favorite. A fun combination of ingredients that everyone loves! Seasoned ground beef, Doritos and taco toppings!
4.85 from 20 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 10

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1 packet taco seasoning
  • cups water, (or whatever amount the back of your packet of taco seasoning requires)
  • 10.5 ounce bag Doritos (Nacho Cheese flavor)
  • 15.5 ounce can dark red kidney beans or black beans, drained and rinsed
  • ½ head Romaine or iceberg lettuce, shredded
  • 1 block cheddar cheese, shredded
  • 3 tomatoes, diced
  • 8 ounce container sour cream
  • 8 ounce bottle Catalina or French dressing (or to taste)

Instructions

  • Brown and crumble ground beef in a medium skillet. Once cooked, drain excess grease
  • Add packet of taco seasoning and water.
  • Let water reduce until the beef mixture is thick. Turn off heat.
  • Crush Doritos and place into a large bowl.
  • Next add in taco beef mixture.
  • Then add beans, shredded lettuce, cheese and diced tomatoes. 
  • Then lightly drizzle with Catalina dressing. Stir well.
  • Serve topped with sour cream.

Video

YouTube video

Notes

  • Use as much dressing as you prefer. I usually start with half a bottle and add more from there until you get it how you like it. 
  • This is great to double to feed a larger crowd. Make a taco salad bar! Let your guests create their own taco salad combinations!
  • Other toppings include: salsa, pico de gallo, pinto beans, sliced olives, jalapeños and sliced green onions and guacamole.
  • Sliced cherry or grape tomatoes can be used.
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American

Nutrition

Calories: 787kcal | Carbohydrates: 69g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 46g | Sodium: 1226mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 7g

Nutritional Disclaimer

“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.

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Recipe Rating




55 Comments

  1. This recipe looks super yummy and I am anxious to try it. Could you tell me what size bag of Doritos you use? Thank you 🙂

  2. 5 stars
    I am a complete Dorito addict and I’ve been craving them all day, and then I see this pop up! I will definitely be trying this as it sounds like the perfect meal for me if I’m honest. I’m super excited to try this recipe! Thanks so much for sharing.

    Emily

  3. 5 stars
    This is just how I make mine minus the dressing, which I think I will try next time ! Thanks for sharing.The photos look delicious and inviting. Happy Thanksgiving !

  4. Exactly how I prepare my taco salad. Works well for a buffet. Make up the meat mixture ahead of time. Chop and grate other items, cover and store in the refrigerator until time to warm up the meat mixture and set the buffet table. This is a great recipe!

  5. 5 stars
    Thanks for sharing your taco salad recipe. I’m going to make this the next time my son comes to visit. He loves Mexican food and I like it too, but not too spicy.

    1. 5 stars
      The calories are just my best guess for a serving amount. There are websites you can go to online where you plug in all the ingredients and it will tell you a rough estimate of calories. Unfortunately it does change based on the exact type of ingredients as well as the size of your serving.

  6. My family loves Taco Salad, but we kick it up a notch by serving it with Cheese Dip poured over the top. We make a cheese dip that has a basic roux as a starter, then a pound of velveeta melted into that along with some shredded cheddar. Then we add a can of Rotel tomatoes with green chilies (pureed in the blender first. It is delicious!

  7. I'm salivating!!!! Love me some taco salad!! I'd throw in some black beans, too and use my fave healthy Tex-mex "dressing" of equal parts plain Greek yogurt and verde salsa… Yum! I'll make this soon, Brandi. Thanks
    Blessings,
    Leslie

  8. Great recipe! I make this every so often, but when they have a throw back & the original Taco flavored Dorito's are available, I make sure to make this!
    I like to toss the kidney beans in with the meat & let them cook a little with the taco seasoning.
    I got the recipe from my cousin, she brings it to family gatherings, I always look forward to hers, made the same, but hers just always seems better.
    My grown children's families come home on Christmas Eve to exchange presents & we like to have a few appetizers & things, this will be part of it this year! Thank you! Diana

  9. I have always used Fritos and Catalina Dressing and pinto beans on my Taco Salado. My boys always said I was burnin' them out with that recipe. Funny that those guys always ate every bite!

  10. Hi All, love your site. I always add the juice from a can of Hunts brand (personal favorite) diced tomatoes to the taco seasoning ground meat mixture when cooking instead of water. It adds another great layer of flavor,besides I will be using the canned tomatoes, unless I have summer fresh tomatoes in the recipe topping. Brandie looking forward to trying more of your recipes. You have great instructions and photos!!

  11. My Mom used to make this same taco salad but instead of Catalina dressing, used a mayo/ketchup dressing. So good!!

  12. I make Taco salad with these same ingredients except I omit the doritos and mix Fritos in with the entire salad.
    Everyone always wants the recipe and their's never any leftovers.

  13. I grew up having pretty much this same dish minus the Catalina and the kidney beans replaced with chili beans. We just called this tacos. It was an easier, somewhat cheaper version of tacos to serve to a family of 5. So much easier than stuffing taco shells. The beans also helped to make the meat go further. I still make this today, except I sometimes add a cheese sauce on top.

  14. 5 stars
    Awesome – just found your site and have bookmarked a bunch of recipes! I was a navy brat too, and we also made the same recipe – but with thousand island dressing – and it was tossed together. Looks dreadful but oh so yummy!

  15. 5 stars
    We make something similar to this pretty often. I add 1 can of Bush's Chili Magic beans to my cooked meat and we have it over Fritos sometimes, sometimes tortilla chips – with whatever toppings people like. Haven't ever tried with Catalina dressing before – I'll have to try that.

  16. We love taco salad only instead of Doritos, it has to be Fritos. We always use the Catalina dressing too!
    I like how taco salad can be made to fit what you have to add to the basic salad.

  17. 5 stars
    Love, lovr, love taco salad. For anyone who is not stoo crazy about french dressing, try thousand island dressing, regular or lo calorie..yummy!