These rainbow taco salad boats are a delicious and healthy alternative to traditional tacos! It’s a quick and easy meal with simple, colourful ingredients that can be meal-prepped beforehand.
They’re naturally low-carb, gluten-free, and grain-free and can be made dairy-free without sacrificing any cheesy flavour! Eating the rainbow never tasted so good!
Skip Ahead | Table Of Contents
- Eating The Rainbow Benefits
- Rainbow Taco Topping Ideas
- Nutrition Facts
- Healthy Ingredients
- Step-By-Step Instructions
- Substitutions & Dairy Free Options
- Meal Prep Tips
- Expert Tips
- FAQs
- Recipe Card
Eating The Rainbow Benefits
One of the best ways to stay healthy is by eating an assortment of plants from each colour group: red, orange, yellow, green, blue/purple/black, and brown/white.
Each colour group has different health benefits, including:
- Repairing and protecting different types of cells in the body
- Supporting your vision and eye health
- Reducing inflammation
- Supporting your immune system
- Slowing down cancer cell growth
- Lowering the risk of chronic diseases, including heart disease
One of the easiest ways to eat the rainbow is by adding a variety of colourful toppings to your favourite foods, like these rainbow taco salad boats! Keep reading for some delicious ideas for topping your rainbow tacos!
Want to learn more tasty ways to add more colour to your diet? Check out these pages!
Rainbow Tacos Topping Ideas
Here are some tasty ideas to help you add an entire rainbow to your tacos!
RED TOPPINGS
- Pico de gallo or salsa
- Roma or grape tomatoes
- Raw red onions
- Pickled red onions
- Hot sauce
ORANGE & Yellow TOPPINGS
- Corn
- Nutritional yeast
- Cherry tomatoes
- Bell peppers
- Banana peppers
- Assorted spicy peppers
GREEN TOPPINGS
- Jalapenos
- Avocado or guacamole
- Arugula or spinach
- Cilantro
- Lime zest or juice
- Salsa Verde
- Microgreens
PURPLE & BLACK TOPPINGS
- Black beans
- Black lentils
- Purple cabbage
BROWN & WHITE TOPPINGS
- Cashews from this dairy-free cashew cheese sauce
- Cooked rice
- Hemp hearts
Nutrition Facts
Each rainbow taco salad boat has:
- 14g of protein
- 8g of fibre
- 14g of healthy fats
- 1g of sugar
- 5g of net carbs
- 224 calories or less
Healthy Rainbow Taco Ingredients
- Ground Meat: You can use any ground meat in this recipe; however, lean ground beef adds a delicious, deep flavour. It’s high in iron and protein, and if you use grass-fed and finished beef, it’s a great source of omega-3 fats.
- Black Beans: Black beans are rich in fibre, antioxidants, and plant protein. They also help lower the overall cost of taco meat! Adding beans or lentils to your meat dishes is a great way to stretch your meat and protein budget while adding additional nutrients.
- Taco Seasoning: Made using a colourful assortment of spices, tacos are incomplete without delicious taco seasoning. For extra nutrition and loads of flavour, try this gut-healthy mild taco seasoning recipe.
- Romaine Hearts: These sturdy lettuce leaves are perfectly shaped substitutes for taco shells. They’re naturally low-carb, grain and gluten-free and add a satisfying crunch to these healthy tacos.
- Colourful Toppings: Eating the rainbow helps you stay healthy by ensuring you get a wide variety of essential vitamins and minerals, plus a healthy dose of antioxidants and phytonutrients.
Check out the printable recipe card for exact measurements.
How To Make Rainbow Taco Salad Boats
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
MAKE THE TACO FILLING
NOTE: This taco-filling recipe makes double the amount needed for your tacos, so you can freeze the leftovers for your next taco night. Get step-by-step instructions here.
STEP 1: Cook the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a spatula or spoon. Cook for about 6 minutes or until it starts to brown. Drain off most of the fat, leaving approximately 2 to 3 tablespoons behind for extra flavour.
STEP 2: Add the beans, taco seasoning, and water to the pan with the cooked meat, and stir everything together.
STEP 3: Cook for another 4 to 5 minutes until the water mostly evaporates and your meat and beans are evenly coated in saucy seasoning.
STEP 4: Store the leftover taco meat in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
ASSEMBLE YOUR RAINBOW TACOS
STEP 5: Layer 2 romaine leaves together to make your taco shell, and add 1/3 cup of taco filling to it. Garnish with diced tomatoes, avocados, onion, cheese or cashew cheese sauce, salsa of choice and cilantro. Serve right away, and enjoy!
Substitutions & Dairy-Free Options
The ingredients in these rainbow taco salad boats are extremely versatile and can be swapped out for whatever pantry staples you have on hand.
You can substitute the ground beef for other ground meats, such as:
- Turkey
- Chicken
- Bison
- Venison
You can substitute the black beans for other cooked or canned legumes, such as:
- Navy beans
- Pinto beans
- Lentils
- Cannellini beans
- Kidney beans
You can substitute romaine lettuce hearts with other large leaf lettuce, such as:
- Bibb (aka Boston) lettuce
- Butter lettuce
- Iceberg lettuce
dairy-free OPTIONS
You can easily make these healthy rainbow tacos dairy-free by swapping out the shredded cheese for this easy, creamy cashew cheese sauce.
It’s like a cheese-flavoured sour cream that tastes incredible on all your favourite Mexican dishes like tacos, taco salads, nachos, fajitas and as a spread in burritos.
Don’t have time to whip up this incredible-tasting sauce? Sprinkle nutritional yeast directly on your tacos for a quick and easy punch of cheesy flavour.
Nutritional yeast, with its chees-like flavour and high protein content, is the secret ingredient in almost every dairy-free cheese recipe. It’s a deactivated yeast packed with B vitamins and trace minerals that won’t trigger or affect conditions associated with yeast overgrowth.
Meal Prep Tips
Most of the ingredients in these rainbow taco salad boats can be prepared ahead of time. Here are some examples of how to meal prep for your next taco night.
Make and freeze your taco meat
- It can be prepped and frozen months in advance.
- Get the step-by-step instructions here.
Make homemade taco seasoning to keep on hand
- It will stay fresh for several months and can be used in multiple recipes, including this white bean taco hummus.
- Get the step-by-step instructions here.
Wash, dry and trim your romaine taco shells
- They’ll stay fresh for up to five days when wrapped in a paper towel and stored in an airtight glass container or freezer bag.
Prep your rainbow taco toppings
- Aside from the avocado, all the toppings listed in the recipe can be prepared up to three days ahead of time and stored in airtight glass containers.
(dairy-free option) prep your cashew cheese sauce
- It will last in the fridge for up to 5 days and in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Get the step-by-step instructions here.
on-the-go & lunch prep
If you want to pack lettuce tacos for lunch, you can add your taco filling to your lettuce wraps, but keep the rest of the toppings separate to avoid your lettuce getting soggy.
Expert Tips
Just like traditional corn taco shells, the bottom spine of a romaine lettuce leaf is shaped in a way that can make it challenging for your tacos to sit upright.
Here are three tips to keep your rainbow taco salad boats sitting upright and looking their most beautiful!
- Use a platter. Add your taco salad boats to a large platter lined with additional lettuce leaves and prop them against each other for stability.
- Use taco holders. The price will depend on the material. I love these stainless steel taco holders and use them for various taco recipes, including soft corn tortilla tacos and California salmon sushi roll tacos!
- Trim the bottom of your lettuce leaves. Cutting a thin slice off the bottom of the spine will create a flatter surface for your taco shell. Just be careful not to cut a hole in the bottom of your lettuce leaf. If you do, no worries. Layer it with another leaf so your taco filling doesn’t leak out.
Questions About This Recipe?
Your friends and family will love these rainbow taco salad boats! Still have questions? Check out these Frequently Asked Questions, or write a comment below!
FAQs
Yes! You can prep almost all of the ingredients and toppings in advance and store them in air-tight containers until it’s time to assemble. If you want to pack lettuce tacos for lunch, you can add your taco filling to your lettuce wraps, but keep the rest of the toppings separate to avoid everything going soggy.
To mimic the texture and umami flavours, you can substitute ground meat with cooked green lentils and finely diced mushrooms.
Mexican rice, Mexican street corn and grain-free or corn tortilla chips with guacamole and salsa.
1. Use a platter. Add your taco salad boats to a large platter lined with additional lettuce leaves and prop them against each other for stability.
2. Use taco holders. The price will depend on the material. I love these stainless steel taco holders and use them for various taco recipes, including soft corn tortilla tacos and California salmon sushi roll tacos!
3. Trim the bottom of your lettuce leaves. Cutting a thin slice off the bottom of the spine will create a flatter surface for your taco shell. Just be careful not to cut a hole in the bottom of your lettuce leaf. If you do, no worries. Layer it with another leaf so your taco filling doesn’t leak out.
Recipe Card
Rainbow Taco Salad Boats
Ingredients
- 2 cups taco filling like this freezer taco meat with black beans or use the recipe listed below
For The Taco Filling
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 15 oz can of black beans or 1 1/2 cups of cooked black beans
- 1/4 cup taco seasoning like this mild taco seasoning
- 3/4 cup water
For The Taco Shells
- 12 medium-large romaine heart lettuce leaves rinsed, dried and the ends cut off
Rainbow Taco Topping Ideas
- A handful of colourful cherry tomatoes, diced
- 2 avocados, diced
- 1/4 diced red onion
- 6 tbsp shredded cheddar cheese or dairy-free cashew cheese sauce
- 6 tbsp salsa, pico de gallo or salsa verde
- fresh cilantro, chopped
Instructions
MAKE THE TACO FILLING
- NOTE: This taco-filling recipe makes double the amount needed for your tacos, so you can freeze the leftovers for your next taco night.Cook the ground beef in a pan over medium-high heat, breaking it up into small pieces with a spatula or spoon. Cook for about 6 minutes or until it starts to brown. Drain off most of the fat, leaving approximately 2 to 3 tablespoons behind for extra flavour.
- Add the beans, taco seasoning, and water to the pan with the cooked meat, and stir everything together.
- Cook for another 4 to 5 minutes until the water mostly evaporates and your meat and beans are evenly coated in saucy seasoning.
- Store the leftover taco meat in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
ASSEMBLE YOUR RAINBOW TACOS
- Layer 2 romaine leaves together to make your taco shell, and add 1/3 cup of taco filling to it.
- Garnish with diced tomatoes, avocados, onion, cheese or cashew cheese sauce, salsa of choice and cilantro. Serve right away, and enjoy!
Ash’s Tips
- Homemade taco seasoning is healthier than store-bought and doesn’t contain sugar. My favourite is this mild taco seasoning, which is naturally gluten-free and gut-healthy.
- You can substitute the ground beef for a different ground meat like turkey, chicken, bison and venison.
- You can substitute the black beans for navy beans, pinto beans and lentils.
- You can substitute the romaine heart leaves with butter lettuce.
- To make this recipe dairy-free, substitute the shredded cheese with this incredible cashew cheese sauce.
- Most of the ingredients in these rainbow taco salad boats can be made ahead of time. Go here for examples and expert tips.
Nutrition
Let’s Keep In Touch!
I can’t wait to hear all about your healthy eating journey and what you’ve been cooking! Please comment below or share your successes with me on Instagram @nourashnutrition so that I can celebrate you and your healthy eating milestones!
Until next time…
Sending you 🤎 & ✨!
Great tip about cutting the romaine spine to keep it flat.
No more wobbly lettuce tacos!