This vibrant salad features the best taco meat you'll ever taste—juicy, tender grassfed ground beef simmered with tomato paste and broth for rich flavor in every bite. Paired with spiced black beans and topped with a creamy cilantro jalapeño vinaigrette, this salad is both refreshing and satisfying. Perfect for dinners, lunches, or meal prep, it's a deliciously wholesome way to enjoy your favorite taco flavors in a light and nourishing bowl! You'll also have a nice batch of taco seasoning for the next time you want to make this recipe, or easy weeknight tacos. Give this recipe a try and you'll understand why I make it weekly!

INGREDIENTS

For the Ground Beef –

• 1 Lb. 1915 Farm Grassfed Ground Beef
• Splash of olive oil (or avocado oil)
• 2 Tbsp taco seasoning (recipe below)
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup beef broth (chicken broth works too

For the Taco Seasoning – this will make a big batch, you'll use 2 Tbsp of this mixture

• 2 Tbsp Ancho Chile powder (not to be confused with chili powder, which is a blend of spices)
• 2 Tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 Tbsp cumin
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper, optional, more if you like it spicy
• 2 tsp kosher salt

For the Creamy Cilantro Jalapeño Vinaigrette – 

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1.5 tbsp mayo (sour cream works too)
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 1/4 cup cilantro, leaves and stems
• 1 jalapeño, stemmed, and roughly chopped (remove the ribs and seeds if you don't want it too spicy – I leave 'em in ;)
• 1 Tbsp honey

For the Spiced Black Beans –

• 1 can of black beans
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• A pinch of cayenne pepper
• Juice of 1/2 lime, up to whole lime if you love citrus 
• Drizzle of olive oil

For the Salad – 

• 1 head of iceberg lettuce, quartered and sliced thinly into shreds
• 1 romaine heart, sliced into shreds
• Shredded sharp cheddar cheese (I use about 1/4 of a Tillamook block)
• 1/4 red onion, finely minced
• Cherry tomatoes, halved and sprinkled with kosher salt
• Avocado slices, optional but recommended (mine weren't ripe yet)
• Lime wedges, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

Make the Vinaigrette – Combine all ingredients in a small blender, adding a touch of water if needed for the right consistency. Store in a container and chill until ready to use.

Mix the Taco Seasoning – Combine all ingredients in a small glass jar or container.

Cook the Ground Beef – Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add a splash of olive oil and let that heat through. Remove ground beef from package and pat dry on both sides with paper towels. Break the beef into large chunks with your hands and place one at a time carefully into the hot pan – sure you could toss the whole pound in at once but breaking it up results in better searing which is ultimately deeper flavor, which we're all about!

Let the meat cook untouched for 4-5 minutes before breaking up with a wooden spoon, not quite flipping pieces over yet, just flattening everything out, letting it crisp up a bit. Reduce heat to medium, add taco seasoning, and let sit 2-3 more minutes, mix up the beef, flipping it over and continue breaking it up into small pieces. 

Clear a space in the middle of the pan and add tomato paste. Let it caramelize for a couple of minutes to deepen the flavor before stirring in to combine. Add broth, reduce heat to low, and place a lid on, leaving it open just a crack. Simmer on low (I move the pan to my smallest burner on the lowest setting) for 20-30 minutes – this will result in a much more tender and juicy ground beef.  After the simmer time, all of the liquid will be reduced.

Make the Spiced Black Beans – strain black beans in a fine mesh strainer, rinse with cold water and transfer to a medium bowl. Add the spices, salt, lime juice, olive oil and mix well to combine. Set aside until ready to use.

Assemble the Salad – in a large bowl, add the chopped lettuce and your desired amount of vinaigrette. Using tongs, toss to combine until everything's nicely coated. Portion dressed lettuce into low rimmed bowls, followed by the ground beef, spiced beans, grated cheddar, red onion, tomatoes, avocado if using, lime wedges for squeezing, and additional vinaigrette for drizzling over top. Devour and enjoy!

We hope you enjoy this recipe! If you’d like to share your delicious dish on Instagram, don’t forget to tag us @1915_Farm

P.S. If you love our delicious grassfed beef – consider subscribing to the Grassroots Meat Club (ships free in TX, reduced in other states). Each Grassroots Meat Club box includes a variety of hand-selected grassfed and pasture raised meats, such as chicken breasts, chicken tenders, leg quarters, wings, thighs, drumsticks, whole chicken, ground beef, kabobs, stew meat, stir fry, cutlets, London broil (top round), beef roasts, beef ossobuco, short ribs, various sausages, pork roasts, pork chops, bacon, ground pork, fajita meat, country style ribs, spare ribs, and bacon!