Homemade Taco Bowl Salad

This healthy version of homemade taco bowl salad is so good!  It is quick and easy to make because the refried bean filling cooks in the slow cooker.

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Homemade Taco Bowl Salad

Homemade taco bowl salad is one of my family’s favorite meals. They love the flavor of the slow-cooked beans and the yummy salad and veggies to go with it. It is such an easy meal to prepare, which means it is on the top of the list for me for dinner! This meal also is a good way to get rid of all the lettuce that may be coming out your ears at harvest time.

Recipe Story

I used to think that ordering a taco bowl salad at a restaurant or buying the taco bowls at the store was a great healthy meal. However, those taco bowls are cooked in a ton of grease and are just not good for you. I love taco bowls and so I went on a search to find out how to make a healthy homemade taco bowl salad.

When I found my homemade tortilla recipe, I figured there would be a way to make them into a taco bowl. My mom had bought the Tortilla Bowl Makers that you can but your tacos in and bake them. I thought that was a great idea but I didn’t want to spend the money. So I thought that I could just put them in my glass bowls and form them so that I would have a taco bowl.

It worked great! However, some of the taco shells folded over a little but that doesn’t matter. I don’t have to have a perfectly formed taco bowl, all that matters is the taste.

Homemade Taco Bowl

I make my own whole wheat tortilla recipe. This can be done ahead of time and then you can freeze them so that this can be a super quick dinner to make. Take your tortilla and cover the oven-safe glass bowl. Push down through the center carefully so you don’t tear the tortilla. It will form into a bowl. Redo this step if the sides are folding over.

I have at least 5 oven-safe glass bowls so I bake 5 tortillas at a time. I put the bowls in the oven at 350 degrees for 8-10 min or until lightly brown. Check the tortillas bowls in the back to make sure they don’t burn. They only needed to be lightly brown. When you take them out of the oven they will still feel soft. They will harden as they cool and will be the perfect little bowl for your homemade taco bowl salad.

Inside the Taco Bowl

A homemade taco bowl salad isn’t good without the yummy food inside.  Now that I had found the perfect way to make a taco bowl, I needed to find a good recipe for beans to put in them. I found and tried different recipes and then I just came up with a healthier version of a slow cooker bean recipe. It is called Tostada’s it is from a recipe book calle, “Slow Cooker Sensations,” by Janey Eyring.

We are now living a whole food plant-based lifestyle and so I have changed this recipe to fit that and made it healthier. I took out the pound of ground beef, but if you prefer to use it then, by all means, do so. It only has 3 ingredients which makes it so nice and easy to put together.

Easy Recipe

This recipe takes less than 10 minutes to throw in the slow cooker. It is so easy to make and can also be frozen for later use. It makes a lot so I usually have leftovers the next day of Taco bowls again or just tacos. These taste great as burritos also.

This recipe is also great for travel! I made it ahead of time and froze it and took it on our Disneyland trip. It was perfect to use for tacos for dinner and then the next night we used it again for bean burritos. It is also cheap to make and a whole lot less expensive than any Disney restaurant.

Homemade Taco Bowl Salad Recipe

Homemade Whole Wheat Tacos-(make as many as you need for your family)

Filling-Tostada’s
6 cans of pinto beans undrained
1tsp salt
1-2 TBS of homemade taco seasoning
1 can tomato sauce

Toppings
Lettuce, Spinach, Kale or Swiss Chard -torn in pieces.
Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Salsa

Thickener
2.Tbs.. whole wheat flour
¼ C. cold water

Combine beans, taco seasoning, salt, and tomato sauce, in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low heat for 2- 3 hours. You can let it simmer all day on low if you like, it tastes better that way. It will be pretty runny when it is done. Using a potato masher , mash the beans up. The mixture will thicken as it cools. If it is still too thin then you will need to thicken it. Using a quick shaker put the flour in first then add the water and shake it up. Add to the tostada beans and thicken it to your liking. If it needs more than add more flour and water to your desired thickness.

Once the beans are done you are ready to eat. Put the tostada beans on bottom of taco bowl and fill with salad and toppings and then put some on top. I love this meal. It is so easy and yummy! I hope you like this version of homemade taco bowl salad as much as my family.