Baked Taco Salad Casserole is simple and delicious - Packed with layers of seasoned ground beef, refried beans, nacho cheese chips and cheddar cheese. Your family will love this on the next taco Tuesday.
Rating: 4.9 Stars
What others are saying: Tasha- "This has been party of our biweekly dinner rotation for months now. Everyone loves it."
MaKayla - "I don't know what it is about casseroles, but they always remind me of comfort food. Loved this one."
Jump to:
Joanna's Personal Plate
Quick casserole: A casserole in under an hour's time is not all that common. This baked taco casserole is ready in 40 minutes, including the bake time.
Feeds a crowd: Although this recipe is baked in an 8x8 inch baking dish which feeds our family of 4 with a leftover portion, you can easily double and triple the recipe to feed a larger number of people. Double and bake in a 9X13 inch baking dish to get 10 - 1 cup servings.
Toppings: If you love it on your tacos, put it on top of your baked taco casserole! If you are feeding a crowd, buy lots of different taco toppings and allow your guests to top their own with their personal favorite.
*TIP: Refrain from adding the toppings and let your family choose their favorites to make this a very personalized dish.
Years ago, Zack asks me if I had ever eaten a baked taco salad with Doritos. I had never heard of such but knew that a) I didn't like re-fried beans and b) I loved nacho cheese chips.
The recipe came from his mom, and I made it, it was delicious, the re-fried beans included!
However, after Kelsie was diagnosed with food allergies, those nacho cheese triangle shaped chips were completely off of our list.
Corn is the main ingredient. That was pretty much the end of our baked taco salad for dinner. Or so I thought....
A couple of months ago, the chip company Beanito posted a photo on their Instagram page that struck my interest and got me more thrilled than being in a candy bar factory that was having a chocolate melt down and they were passing out the candy for free.
For real, ya'll. When you don't have food allergies or live with somebody that has food allergies, you take all the food for granted. Beanito posted a photo of a nacho cheese version of their chips.
Now their chips are just exactly like tortilla chips, but instead of being made of corn, they are made from beans!
No, you can't taste the beans, or I wouldn't eat them. They replace tortilla chips in everything we eat now.
Anyways, these nacho cheese triangle chips of theirs is far better than that other brand that I mentioned in the first paragraph.
The cheese is phenomenal, and far better than the corn alternatives. No, I am not getting compensated for even talking about Beanito's, we just love them that much.
Ingredients needed to make Baked Taco Salad Casserole:
- Ground Beef
- Nacho Cheese Chips
- Onion
- Taco Seasoning packet or homemade taco seasoning
- Refried Beans
- Cheddar Cheese
- Toppings such as: sour cream, salsa, tomatoes, lettuce, etc.
How do you make Baked Taco Salad Casserole?
- Brown the ground beef, drain, and add the taco seasoning.
- Layer the chips, refried beans, seasoned ground beef and cheese, twice into a baking dish.
- Bake. Once cooled, top with your favorite toppings.
Baked Taco Salad Casserole Faq's and Tips
Should Baked Taco Salad Casserole be served hot or cold? You can eat this both ways. We prefer to eat this hot.
How to store leftover taco salad: This casserole will keep best in an airtight container for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Before you store your leftovers, be sure to remove any lettuce from the top. Otherwise, you will have wilted lettuce.
How to reheat taco casserole: Reheat this casserole by placing a leftover portion on a microwave safe plate and place in the microwave for a couple of minutes. If you wish to reheat more than one serving, simply place the leftover casserole into a baking dish and placing into a 350-degree oven for 15 minutes.
Can taco salad casserole be made ahead of time? Yes, this recipe can be made ahead of time, minus the crushed chips and cheese on top. When ready to bake simply place the chips and cheese on top.
Can you freeze taco salad casserole? Yes, with adjustments. I would refrain from placing chips into this dish. I would place in a baking dish that is also freezer safe. I have a Temptations baking dish that I use from QVC. I cover the dish with press and seal and foil and then place the lid that comes with it on top. Freeze it for up to 2 weeks. When ready to bake, place in the refrigerator for 24 hours to allow to thaw. Once thawed, top with chips and cheese and bake according to the directions.
How can I make taco salad healthier? Simply swap the ground beef for ground chicken or turkey. Instead of using sour cream, you can use plain Greek yogurt.
Baked Taco Salad Recipe variations:
Swap the nacho cheese chips for corn chips, plain tortilla chips, or even Cool Ranch Doritos. You could even tear corn tortillas into small pieces and place on the bottom of the baking dish.
Swap the refried beans for black blacks, pinto beans or even chili beans.
Swap the cheddar cheese for pepper jack or a Mexican cheese blend.
Add in chopped onion, sliced jalapenos, diced green chilis, chopped bell pepper, and/or corn.
Baked Taco Salad
Baked Taco Salad is simple and delicious! Try this on your next taco night.
Ingredients
- 1 six ounce bag of nacho cheese Beanitos
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ onion diced
- ½ teaspoon homemade taco season - you can use our recipe Better then the Packet! !Homemade Taco Seasoning
- 1 can re-fried beans we love Trader Joes brand
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Toppings that you love we used salsa, sour cream, lettuce, tomato
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
- Cook your ground beef with your diced onion until no longer pink
- Add your taco seasoning and can of re-fried beans
- Simmer over low heat, stirring often, until your re-fried beans are fully incorporated.
- Crush half of your chips, and spread them in the bottom of an 11X7 inch baking dish.
- Top your crushed chips with your meat and bean mixture.
- Crush the remaining chips on top, reserving ¼ cup, if you'd like to top each plate before serving.
- Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for 30 minutes of until cheese is melted and the mix is heated through.
- Serve with your favorite taco toppings.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 5 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 474Total Fat: 29gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 120mgSodium: 808mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 3gSugar: 7gProtein: 36g
Jess says
Oh wow...this sounds really delicious!
Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
Joanna says
Thanks Jess!
Julie says
This taco salad recipe looks so good.
Thanks for joining and sharing this at Cooking and Crafting with J & J.
Julie xo
Joanna says
Thanks Julie!
Linda Sue says
I am really missing my oven about now. This recipe looks delicious!
Joanna says
As soon as your near one, you gotta make this! 🙂
Beckie says
This is going on my to cook list, it looks delicious! Thank you for linking to #cookblogshare
Joanna says
Enjoy Beckie!
Kathy says
Looks delicious! Thank you for sharing at the Recipe Swap.
Joanna says
Thanks!
Sarah Koontz {Grounded & Surrounded} says
This looks delicious! Thank you for sharing it at the Imparting Grace LInkup.
Joanna says
Thanks Sarah!
Amanda says
I've never tried making it baked, but I sure do love taco salad!
Joanna says
It's delicious Amanda! Give it a try sometime. 🙂
Clairejustine oxox (Clairejustineoxox) says
Oh wow, this looks so tasty 🙂
Yummy!
Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays
Joanna says
Thank you!
Joy @ Joy Love Foo says
I love taco salad, what a great idea to make a baked version, it sounds wonderful! Thanks for sharing at What'd You Do This Weekend?!
Joanna says
I hope you give it a try Joy, I think you'll love it!