Taco Salad has been a mainstay in my family of origin for as long as I can remember (nachos ain’t too shabby either!). It also became a fixture at family beach house get-togethers. And I love it. But leftovers don’t keep well. Like, at. all. So I decided to start serving it as more of a Taco Salad Bar, where all the ingredients are in separate serving dishes and you just put it together on your own. And that worked out great.
But recently, as we were having our traditional BYO (Build Your Own) Taco Salad with my own family, I kept wondering if there was an easier way to eat it. Trying to maneuver taco meat, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, and Doritos all in the same mouthful is a challenge, to say the least. Should I just use a spoon? Should everything be cut super tiny….chopped salad style?
And then it came to me.
NACHOS. What if I made them like nachos instead?
And it worked. Beautifully!
The recipe does not show ingredient amounts, and that’s another great benefit of Taco Salad. You can just make what you are hungry for! A regular size bag of Doritos was PLENTY for about 6 people with generous portions. Adjust accordingly! We used the classic flavor, but you can use any Doritos flavor you like. The ingredient list reflects what my own family likes in our Taco Salad, but you may wish to add sliced black olives, avocado, diced green onions, etc. Whatever you decide to top your Nacho Mama’s Taco Salad Nachos with, I’m sure it will be delicious!
- Doritos (any flavor)
- shredded cheddar cheese
- taco meat
- shredded lettuce
- chopped tomatoes
- Catalina dressing
- ranch dressing
- salsa
- Cholula sauce
- Prepare the taco meat. Use as much as you need. I typically use one pouch of taco seasoning (or the homemade equivalent) for 1 pound of ground beef.
- Drain the taco meat once it's cooked through.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
- On a sheet pan, arrange the Doritos in a single layer with as little pan showing through between chips as possible. Top with shredded cheese in an even layer.
- Add drained taco meat over top of the cheese.;Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cheese is fully melted.
- While the nachos are baking get your toppings ready. In our family that's lettuce (must be shredded for nachos), tomatoes, sometimes drained canned kidney beans, Catalina dressing, and ranch dressing.
- Once the nachos are done baking, immediately serve onto plates and let your diners customize their nachos with the supplied toppings.
- Enjoy!
- If this is served as a main dish, I'd say 6 generous servings is about right.