This vegetarian Black Bean Taco Salad is the perfect summer salad! It's tasty, filling and really easy to make. With minimum cooking involved you can have this tasty salad on the table in under 20 minutes!
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I am a huge salad fan, even in winter, I love a good salad. But when summer hits and the temperatures start rising salads are a daily occurrence in my house. On hot days like this, I love a salad that is low fuss and involves minimum cooking like my Mexican Bean Salad or my Cold Noodle Salad.
This veggie taco salad is up there with my favourite no-fuss salads. It's definitely not your average salad either, it's good enough for dinner or as a very satisfying lunch. It's packed with veggies, black beans, and feta cheese and comes with a delicious jalapeño dressing and crispy tortilla strips.
This is the salad I make when it's too hot to spend ages in the kitchen. It can be ready in very little time and if you're more organised you could make the crispy tortilla strips and the dressing the day before, saving even more time!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- It's so tasty - this salad is packed with flavour, it's fresh and zesty and will satisfy all your taco cravings but in a salad!
- That dressing - it's creamy and delicious but not too hot so the whole family can enjoy it!
- So easy to make - this really is very easy to make and can be ready in a flash too! So no spending ages in the kitchen!
Ingredients Needed
- Beans - I use canned black beans for this recipe but you could use dried black beans and cook them yourself first. You could use other beans if you like, kidney beans would work really well too.
- Vegetables - you can switch up the veggies here if you like but I tend to stick to cherry tomatoes, celery, bell peppers, courgette (zucchini), sweet corn, avocado, red onion and cos lettuce.
- Cheese - I use feta cheese for this recipe but you could also use grated cheddar if you prefer.
- Tortilla Strips - I use corn tortillas, the spices I use are ground cumin, ground coriander, dried coriander leaf, dried oregano, ground black pepper and sea salt. You will also need some oil to make these, I use olive oil.
- Dressing - you will need, natural yoghurt, jalapeño, garlic, fresh coriander (cilantro), maple syrup and fresh lime juice.
How To Make Vegetarian Taco Salad
1. Make the dressing, add all the ingredients for the dressing to a food processor or blender and blitz until the sauce is creamy. Put the dressing in the fridge until you're ready to use it. If you don't have a blender or food processor, finely chop the jalapeño and coriander then stir them into the yoghurt along with the lime juice and maple syrup.
2. Make the crispy tortilla strips - Cut the tortillas into strips. Add the oil, spices and herbs to a large bowl, mix until combined then add the tortilla strips. Toss the strips gently making sure all the strips are covered in the oil mixture. Lay the strips on a baking tray then place in the oven and bake for 8 - 10 minutes, turning the strips halfway through cooking. Keep an eye on them as they will cook quickly.
3. Add the veggies - Chop the lettuce and add it to a large serving dish. Add all the veggies and toss well.
4. Add the cheese - Crumble the cheese over the salad then drizzle the dressing over it. Add the tortilla strips and serve with lime wedges.
Top Tips
- Make the dressing the day before to save on time and it will be lovely and chilled when you need to add it to the salad.
- You can also make the crispy tortilla strips ahead of time too, just keep them in an airtight container once cooled. Try not to eat them all before you make the salad though!
- I use canned corn for this recipe, it's quick and easy!
- Once assembles this really is best served straight away, if you want tp bring it to a bbq then I would add the cheese and dressing when you get there.
Variations/Substitutions
- Veggies: This is a really flexible salad so you can add most salad-type vegetables to this salad. Cucumber is great in this, as are radishes. Carrots are good in this too, we like them shaved into ribbons for this one.
- Beans: Cooked black beans are great in this taco salad, but if you don't like them then chickpeas are a great substitute. Cooked and chilled Puy lentils work well too.
- Grains: If you fancy it you could add some grains to this salad, I love quinoa in this but wild or brown rice is great too.
- Cheese: Feta is best in this salad but you could try crumbled goat's cheese or grated strong (mature) cheddar.
More Tasty Salads To Try
If you need some more salad inspiration then you've come to the right place! For quick and easy salads try my Greek Chickpea Salad with all the flavours of the classic Greek salad and no cooking involved at all!
If you're a fan of pasta salads then try my Caprese Pasta Salad or my Broccoli Pasta Salad, two of our favourites.
If you like a grain salad then my Mediterranean Couscous Salad or my Falafel Salad Bowls with definitely hit the spot!
Vegetarian Black Bean Taco Salad
Ingredients
For The Salad
- 2 heads of cos lettuce or 1 large head of cos lettuce, chopped
- 150 g cherry tomatoes cut in half
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper pith and seeds removed then cut into thin strips
- ½ a medium red onion finely chopped
- 1 large ripe avocado peeled, stone removed then sliced
- 1 stalk of celery sliced thinly
- 1 medium courgette (zucchini) shaved into ribbons
- 50 g feta cheese
- 235 g / 1 x 400g (15oz) can of cooked black beans drained then rinsed under a cold tap
- 140 g / 1 x 150g can (1 cup) of sweet corn drained
For The Dressing
- 150 g (½ a cup of ) of natural plain yoghurt
- 1 medium green jalapeño pepper stem removed, cut in half lengthways, then seeds removed
- 1 small handful of fresh coriander (cilantro)
- 1 clove of garlic finely minced or put through a garlic press
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- ½ a medium lime the juice of
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
For The Tortilla Strips
- 3 x 15cm (6 inch) corn tortillas cut into thin strips, you can also use wheat tortillas if you prefer.
- 1 ½ tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp dried coriander leaf
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp sea salt
Instructions
To make the dressing:
- Add the yoghurt, jalapeño, coriander, lime juice and garlic to a food processor or blender and blitz until the sauce is creamy.Season with salt and pepper.Put the dressing in the fridge until you're ready to use it. If you don't have a blender or food processor, finely chop the jalapeño and coriander then stir them into the yoghurt along with the lime juice and maple syrup.
To make the crispy tortilla strips
- Heat the oven to 180°C/ 356°F fan oven, 200°C / 390°F conventional ovenCut the tortillas into long thin stripsIn a large bowl add 1 ½ tablespoon of oil, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, 1 teaspoon of ground coriander, ½ a teaspoon of dried coriander leaf, ½ a teaspoon of dried oregano, ¼ of a teaspoon of ground black pepper and ¼ teaspoon of sea salt. Stir until combined then add the tortilla strips. Toss gently making sure all the strips are covered in the oil mixture.Lay the strips on a baking tray then place in the oven and cook for 8 - 10 minutes, turning the strips halfway through cooking. Keep an eye on them as they will cook quickly.
To make the salad
- Add all the prepared vegetables to a large salad bowl.Add the black beans and sweetcorn and toss well. If serving straight away pour the dressing over the salad then add the tortilla strips and crumble over the feta cheese.
- Serve with lime wedges and a few leaves of fresh coriander (cilantro)
Notes
- Tortilla Strips - If you can't find corn tortillas wheat or flour tortillas will work well too. If you have any tortilla strips left over then keep them in an airtight container for up to a week. They're a tasty snack on their own.
- Heat - Everyone has a different tolerance to heat, I have made this so it's suitable for the whole family if you want more heat in the dressing don't discard the seeds of the jalapeño. You could also add some pickled jalapenos if you like, I do!
- Nutritional Information - is approximate and is calculated using an online tool. It includes tortillas and dressing.
- Weights and measurements - For US readers, I use Cuisipro measuring cups and spoons, and a Pyrex measuring jug for liquids. These are the industry standard. Cup/spoon volumes can differ from brand to brand, for accuracy, I recommend weighing all ingredients if possible for best results.
Nutrition
First published Feb 2018, updated July 2022 with new photos and new information.
A beautiful salad. Avocado is my meat! I don’t think I ever mix the two, and I’m not sure why! I have a lot of cinqo leftovers that would be great in this salad!
Thanks Mimi x Yes, this is perfect for using up any leftover veggies!
What a gorgeous salad!! I love tacos in all forms.
This is such a filling salad! Looks so healthy!
I love lighter lunch and dinner for summer this sure looks perfect for me!
Oh wow! The food styling on this salad is fantastic!! You definitely make me want to make this recipe. I love that it is vegetarian, yet so jam packed with flavour. Avo - yum and jalapenos even yummier!!!
Thank you so much Adrianne x
I love the ingredients in this salad. What great flavor combination!
Thank you, Eileen x I'm so glad you like it 🙂