Aunt Pearl's Taco Salad

So I was at the store and saw ground chicken in the meat department. I was very intrigued. I had no idea what in the world to do with ground chicken, but for some reason I had to have it.

I decided to try it out in a taco salad. It was pretty good! Nothing can beat good ol' fashioned ground beef (we use ground turkey for everything, so it's a rare treat to have ground beef), but this was pretty darn good. Ground chicken has a different texture than beef - much softer. But it didn't taste all that different after seasoned up.

Taco salad has been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl. I remember my Aunt Pearl making taco salad every summer for the party we had after my piano recital! When I got a little older, my mom would make the salad for all of our post-cheerleading-competition sleep overs!! It was always a hit at a party -- I might go so far as calling it the Buffalo Chicken Dip of the 90s!

It's very simple to make - and even though I made a few alterations tonight based on what was in the pantry, I'll post Aunt Pearl's "original".



Aunt Pearl's Taco Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 head iceberg lettuce
• shredded carrots
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup shredded cheddar (or a Mexican blend)
• 1 cup slightly crushed Doritos (per the original - any nacho or tostito chip will do)
• 1 lb ground beef, browned (or ground chicken or turkey!)
  
• 1 packet Old El Paso taco seasoning (or homemade taco seasoning - see recipe below)
• 4 oz Catalina dressing (I use fat-free)
• 4 oz mild or medium taco sauce (smooth, not chunky)

Directions:

1. Brown ground beef well; drain.
2. Add taco seasoning and 2/3 cup water; simmer on medium for 3-5 minutes.
3. In a small canister or jar, mix the Catalina dressing with the taco sauce. Shake or stir until well blended (mixture should be half and half). Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, toss lettuce, carrots, cheese, and tomato. **I only mix the carrots and lettuce - I keep everything else in separate bowls for serving**
5. Mix in cooked/seasoned meat, if desired (I usually leave it in a separate bowl because the warm meat makes the lettuce wilty if left together too long).
6. Serve with dressing mix and top with crushed chips.

Homemade Taco Seasoning
("Taco Seasoning I" on allrecipes.com)

Mix together the following and store in an airtight container. Two heaping scoops of this stuff is probably equal to one pre-made packet.

• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper