Taco salads are a delicious Tex-Mex dish that typically consist of a fried tortilla bowl filled with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, seasoned meat, beans, and other toppings. While they are often thought of as a healthier fast food option, most restaurant taco salads are loaded with calories, sodium, and fat from the fried shell, creamy dressings, and fatty meats. However, with a little creativity, you can DIY a lighter taco salad at home using ingredients from your favorite fast food joints.
The Basic Components of a Taco Salad
At its core, an authentic taco salad contains just a few key components:
- Base: This is typically a fried tortilla bowl or shredded lettuce.
- Protein: Choose a lean grilled protein like chicken, steak, or fish.
- Beans: Black or pinto beans add fiber and protein.
- Cheese: Shredded cheddar, queso fresco, or Mexican blend cheese.
- Veggies: Chopped tomatoes, onions, peppers, etc.
- Salsa and/or pico de gallo: For a fresh, flavorful topping.
- Avocado: Sliced or diced avocado provides healthy fats.
- Dressing: Such as a tangy vinaigrette, salsa ranch, cilantro lime crema, etc.
When making a fast food taco salad, try to stick to grilled and lower sodium options when possible. And go easy on fatty ingredients like cheese, avocado, tortilla chips, etc. Now let’s look at some of the best options for building a healthier taco salad using your favorite fast food spots.
Choose a Base: Lettuce or Tortilla Bowls
Traditionally, taco salads are served in a fried tortilla bowl. But this adds unnecessary calories, fat, and sodium. A much lighter base for your fast food taco salad is a bed of shredded lettuce. Here are some low carb lettuce options from popular chains:
- McDonald’s: Side salad with lettuce blend
- Wendy’s: Side Caesar salad or garden salad
- Subway: Salad with lettuce and veggies
- Taco Bell: Order any items “Fresco Style” to replace cheese/sour cream with pico de gallo
- Burger King: Garden salad
- Chick-fil-A: Side salad
If you want to create a tortilla bowl, look for a soft taco or bowl option with a lower fat tortilla. For example, Taco Bell’s soft taco, Chipotle’s flour tortillas, or whole wheat tortillas from Qdoba. Simply follow directions to shape the tortilla into a bowl.
Choose a Lean Protein
One of the best ways to lighten up any fast food meal is to choose grilled, baked or roasted proteins instead of fried. Here are some of the leanest protein options at popular chains:
- McDonald’s: Artisan Grilled Chicken
- Wendy’s: Grilled chicken sandwich or salad with grilled chicken
- Subway: Rotisserie-style chicken, oven roasted turkey, or chicken strips
- Taco Bell: Grilled chicken or steak
- Burger King: Grilled chicken sandwich
- Chick-fil-A: Grilled chicken sandwich or nuggets
Ideally choose plain grilled chicken or steak to control sodium, or try roast beef, turkey, or plant-based proteins like black beans for more fiber.
Load Up on Veggies
One of the healthiest parts of any taco salad is loading it up with fresh veggies. Almost all major chains offer low carb salad toppings and veggie sides like:
- Lettuce
- Tomatoes
- Onions
- Peppers
- Corn
- Black beans
- Salsa
- Pico de gallo
Veggies provide essential vitamins, minerals, and fiber with minimal calories. When ordering veggie toppings, ask for any heavy salad dressings or sauces on the side.
Choose Healthier Cheese and Dressing Options
Tacos salads get a lot of their fat and calories from full-fat shredded cheese and heavy creamy dressings. To lighten them up, order cheese and dressings on the side and use sparingly. Better yet, skip the cheese altogether or stick to a sprinkle of parmesan or feta for more flavor with less fat.
For dressings, look for chili or garlic infused olive oil, flavored vinegars, pico de gallo, or a squeeze of fresh lemon or lime juice. Healthy dressing options at popular chains include:
- McDonald’s: Newman’s Own Low Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Wendy’s: Light Ranch, Red Wine Vinaigrette
- Subway: Oil & vinegar, mustard, apple cider vinegar
- Taco Bell: Guacamole or pico de gallo
Swap Unhealthy Shells and Chips for Avocado
Fried tortilla bowls and heaps of chips or crispy taco shells really drive up the fat and sodium in taco salads. For more nutrition and flavor, replace shells/chips with sliced or diced avocado. The healthy fats in avocado will make your salad much more satisfying. Other tasty swap ideas include:
- Shelled edamame or chickpeas for crunch
- Beans, corn, or brown rice for heartiness
- Roasted sweet potatoes or butternut squash for texture
- Salsa, pico de gallo, or chili powder for crunch and flavor
Sample Fast Food Taco Salad Combinations
Now let’s look at some tasty, more nutritious DIY taco salad combos using ingredients from popular fast food chains:
Wendy’s Taco Salad
- Base: Garden side salad
- Protein: Grilled chicken sandwich or salad with grilled chicken
- Veggies/Toppings: Tomatoes, onions, peppers, corn, black beans
- Cheese: Reduced-fat shredded cheddar
- Dressing: Light ranch, red wine vinaigrette
- Shell: Baked potato
Subway Taco Salad
- Base: Salad with lettuce blend
- Protein: Oven roasted chicken or turkey
- Veggies: All the fresh veggies
- Cheese: Shredded Monterey cheddar
- Dressing: Oil & vinegar, mustard
- Shell: Roasted veggies or avocado
Taco Bell Fresco Style Taco Salad
- Base: Soft taco or tortilla bowl
- Protein: Seasoned ground beef or grilled chicken
- Veggies: Lettuce, tomato, beans, corn, avocado
- Cheese: Pico de gallo instead of cheese
- Dressing: Guacamole
- Shell: Black beans or roasted veggies
McDonald’s Southwest Salad
- Base: Premium Southwest Salad
- Protein: Grilled Artisan Chicken
- Veggies: Lettuce, tomato, beans, corn
- Cheese: Low-fat shredded cheddar
- Dressing: Newman’s Own Low Fat Balsamic Vinaigrette
- Shell: Apple slices
Chick-fil-A Taco Salad
- Base: Side salad
- Protein: Grilled chicken nuggets
- Veggies: Lettuce, tomato, corn, black beans
- Cheese: Reduced-fat shredded cheddar
- Dressing: Zesty Apple Cider Vinaigrette
- Shell: Sliced avocado
See how easy it is to cobble together a healthier DIY taco salad from your favorite fast food stop? The keys are choosing produce-packed bases and veggies, leaner proteins and cheeses, lighter dressings, and skipping the fatty shells. With a little creativity, you can enjoy the fun flavors of a Mexican-inspired taco salad without the excess fat, carbs, and sodium.
Nutrition Table Comparing Fast Food Taco Salads
To help visualize the nutrition differences, here is a table comparing some popular fast food taco salads:
| Restaurant Taco Salad | Calories | Total Fat | Carbs | Protein | Sodium |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taco Bell’s Taco Salad | 670 | 43g | 45g | 19g | 1890mg |
| Wendy’s Chicken BLT Cobb Salad | 700 | 52g | 18g | 32g | 1580mg |
| McDonald’s Southwest Salad | 470 | 25g | 26g | 37g | 1080mg |
| DIY Fast Food Taco Salad | 350 | 12g | 30g | 25g | 600mg |
As you can see, a DIY taco salad made with healthier ingredients from fast food restaurants provides fewer calories, less fat and sodium, plus more nutrition from whole food ingredients like produce, lean protein, beans, and healthy fats.
Conclusion
In summary, you can easily create a healthier taco salad by combining fresh ingredients from your favorite fast casual chains. Skip the fried shells and fatty dressings, and load up on produce, lean protein and beans. A DIY fast food taco salad prepared properly will be lower in calories, saturated fat, and sodium compared to most restaurant versions. So next time you crave the fun flavors of a Mexican-inspired salad, get creative with better-for-you ingredients from your local fast food joint.