Yesterday I shared a recipe for Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls. Today I’m filling those bowls with the ultimate Mega Taco Salad. If you love taco toppings piled high on greens, this one’s for you. Taco salad ranks at the top of my salad list: the more loaded, the better. After I eat a couple of tacos, I often end up piling the remaining ingredients on my plate and turning them into a salad—lettuce, avocado, chorizo, cheese, salsa, sour cream, and dressing. That mix of flavors and textures is what makes taco salads so satisfying.
In this Mega Taco Salad, the lettuce is mostly a base for the extras. Any green will do: iceberg for crunch, romaine for structure, spring mix for variety, or leaf lettuces for a gentler bite. The focus here is the abundant toppings rather than the greens themselves.
This is a dinner salad through and through: loaded with chorizo, Pico de Gallo, cheese cubes, avocado or guacamole, sour cream, and a tangy barbecue-ranch dressing. Add a dash or two of hot sauce if you like heat. Served in Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls, these salads are both fun and filling, and they come together quickly once your components are ready.
Cook’s Notes:
- The choice of greens is flexible. Use whatever you enjoy—spring mix, iceberg, romaine, butter, leaf, or a mix. The lettuce mainly carries the toppings.
- Avocado options: thin slices of ripe avocado are my preference, while some people prefer a generous spoonful of guacamole. Both work well.
- Many of the components—Cool Ranch bowls, chorizo, Pico de Gallo, guacamole, and dressings—can be homemade or store-bought. Homemade versions add extra flavor and a bit of bragging rights, but store-bought substitutes are fine for a faster meal.
Here are the main elements you can prepare or buy to assemble this salad:
- Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls
- Salad greens (12–16 cups total for 4 dinner-sized salads)
- Pico de Gallo (about 2 cups total)
- Fully cooked Mexican-style chorizo, warmed (about 2 cups)
- Cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes (Cheddar, Pepper Jack, or Monterey Jack; about 2 cups)
- Ranch dressing (about 1/4 cup)
- Barbecue sauce (about 1/4 cup) to mix with the ranch for the barbecue-ranch dressing
- Sour cream, for serving
- Ripe avocado, halved, pitted, and thinly sliced (or about 2 cups guacamole)
- Optional: hot sauce to taste
Mega Taco Salad in Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls
Rebecca Lindamood
Pin Recipe
Ingredients
For 4 dinner-sized Mega Taco Salads:
- 4 Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls
- 12–16 cups salad greens
- 2 cups Pico de Gallo
- 2 cups fully cooked Mexican-style chorizo, warm but not hot
- 2 cups cheese, 1/4-inch cubes (Cheddar, Pepper Jack, or Monterey Jack)
- 1/4 cup Ranch dressing
- 1/4 cup barbecue sauce
- Sour cream, to taste
- 1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, and thinly sliced — or 2 cups guacamole
- Optional: hot sauce to taste
Instructions
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Stir the Ranch dressing and barbecue sauce together in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup and set aside.
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Divide the salad greens evenly among the Cool Ranch Baked Tortilla Salad Bowls. On each salad, add about 1/2 cup Pico de Gallo, 1/2 cup chorizo, 1/2 cup cheese cubes, 1 tablespoon barbecue-ranch dressing, a dollop of sour cream, 1/4 of the avocado (or 1/2 cup guacamole), and a dash of hot sauce if desired.
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Serve immediately.
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided as a courtesy. Calculate nutrition using the exact ingredients you use with your preferred nutrition calculator.
If you try this salad, make it your own—double up on chorizo and cheese for extra appeal, swap dressings, or use your favorite salsa. The edible Cool Ranch bowls make it festive, and the quick assembly makes it a great weeknight option. Enjoy!
