Turkey Taco Salad Bento Box

Name: Turkey Taco Salad Bento Box
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 cup chopped romaine lettuce; 1/4 cup leftover turkey taco meat; 2 tablespoons shredded Mexican cheese; 4 cherry tomatoes (quartered); 2 tablespoons guacamole; 1 ounce baked tortilla chips

by Amanda Keefer // July 19, 2019 (last updated April 29, 2022)

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Make this Turkey Taco Salad as an easy weeknight meal, lunch idea or meal-prep! Easy to customize and easy to prepare, our whole family loves this Turkey Taco Salad recipe.

Who says lunchboxes have to be complicated? Turn last night’s Taco Tuesday dinner into a delicious taco salad for lunch the next day with your leftover taco meat. This Turkey Taco Salad Bento Box is perfect when you have leftover taco meat or great if you want to make a batch for meal prep for the week.

Most households eat tacos on the regular. They are easy, customizable, most people know how to cook them, and well they are delicious! Sometimes we go meatless and try just black beans or lentils but most of the time we make our tacos with ground turkey. We generally always have on hand a batch of our Homemade Taco Seasoning which makes whipping up these Turkey Taco Salad Bento Boxes a breeze. So however you like to cook your taco meat, go for it and then assemble these salad for lunch for the week!

Skip the tortilla for Taco Tuesday with a lighter chopped taco salad! With the help of a chopped salad kit, it gets even easier. Swap the ground beef for black beans to go vegetarian, or switch it up with leftover rotisserie chicken, shrimp or steak. Don’t think these yummy taco salads have to be for just lunch either, taco salads make for a delicious easy weeknight meal.

Don’t forget to mix in more veggies like onions, shredded carrots, and chopped sweet peppers.

If you are making these for the family, let everyone assemble their own with the toppings and veggies they enjoy. We kept ours pretty simple this time with romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, cheese, and guacamole. If you want to make your own guac we have a couple recipes like our Easy Homemade Guacamole and our Guacamole Hummus.

Nutrition Tip: The vitamin C in the romaine and tomatoes make it easier for your child’s body to soak up the iron from the ground turkey in this dish–and iron is key while kids are growing!

Key Ingredients for this Turkey Taco Salad

Ground Turkey
Romaine Lettuce
Cherry Tomatoes
Cheese
Guacamole
Tortilla Chips

If you want to load them up with more red bell peppers, onions, carrots, and black beans would be tasty! Of course salsa, sour cream, or even hot sauce if you like! Enjoy cilantro? Top it off with that, too!

How to make this Turkey Taco Salad Bento Box

If you are using leftover taco meat, then just top your romaine with it and your toppings of choice. Then pack guacamole or salsa in a separate compartment so nothing gets soggy.

If you are cooking the taco meat fresh, brown the turkey meat with some oil over a medium heat until no longer pink and cooked throughout. Then drain any grease and add in taco seasoning and water and let simmer.

If serving right away, serve warm taco meat over the lettuce. If making for meal prep, let cool before packing into bento box. Then make sure to pack up your favorite sides like some fruit or yogurt for a complete meal.

Make It a Bowl!

Want to make this taco salad into an extra fun dinner idea? Make Taco Salad Bowls!

How to Make Taco Salad Bowls

Step 1: Prepare the tortillas

First start by preparing the tortilla bowls by flipping over a muffin tin and laying a sprayed tortilla over four of the muffin inserts. Then bake the tortillas for about 10-15 minutes until they start to brown.

Step 2: Prepare the meat

Next heat your skillet over medium heat and add in the ground beef. Brown, drain, and return back to the pan. Stir in the taco seasoning and water and let simmer.

Step 3: Assemble the Taco Salad Bowls

Once the tortillas are done, flip them out of the muffin tin and fill with lettuce, meat, and all of your favorite toppings of choice!

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Frequently asked questions:

Is this taco salad good for meal prep?

Yes make your taco meat and store in the refrigerator. When ready to make your lunch, pull the meat out and serve over the lettuce with other toppings.

Can I use different meat other than ground turkey?

Of course, you can use lean ground beef or sirloin. If you want to go meatless, black beans or lentils work great too!

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