The Easiest Mason Jar Taco Salad!
Taco Salad is one of my go-to meals when I want to make something that’s quick, healthy and flavorful. The only thing I don’t like is when the leftover salad gets soggy.
That’s why I love meal-prepping taco salad in mason jars.
This Taco Salad in a Jar recipe features layers of authentic Mexican salad ingredients, like white onion, pinto beans, cilantro, and taco seasoned beef.
The salad components are not tossed together until you’re ready to eat. Simply pour the salad out of the jar and enjoy a nice crisp taco salad that tastes like it was just made.
If you love Tex-Mex food, then this mason jar taco salad is the perfect make-ahead lunch or dinner.
Taco Salad in a Jar Recipe
This recipe makes enough taco salad to fill four quart-size (32-ounce) mason jars.
Ingredients
Taco Seasoned Ground Beef – Lean ground beef, a packet of taco seasoning and a little water are all you need to make taco meat. For even tastier taco meat, season it with my homemade taco seasoning.
Lettuce – Romaine or iceberg lettuce are my preferred greens for make-ahead mason jar salads. The leaves stay nice and crisp for days when washed, dried and layered properly in the jar.
Cilantro – If you’re on team cilantro (it seems to be a love it or hate it type of herb) then by all means add a generous amount to this Mexican-inspired salad.
Onion – Finely diced white onions add a whole lot of flavor to this salad. Compared to yellow onions, white onions are sweeter, milder and definitely the better option when eaten raw in salad.
Pinto Beans – To keep this salad meal prep quick and easy, use canned pinto beans, drained and rinsed.
Cherry Tomatoes – Halved cherry or grape tomatoes are ideal for mason jar salads.
Cheddar Cheese – Any Mexican cheese or blend like cheddar or Monterey Jack will do. My favorite is sharp white cheddar. For the creamiest cheese, get a block of cheese and shred it yourself. Shredded cheese in a bag has a coating on it to keep it from clumping and just does not taste nearly as good (in my opinion).
Salad Dressing – When I make taco salad and eat it immediately, the warm seasoned meat is all the dressing I need. For cold salad in jar, you may want to add a little dressing, as well. I just use salsa as the dressing, but I know many like Catalina or Ranch dressing on taco salad.
Optional Add-ins
- Vegetables & Fruit – Corn, diced avocado, red or green onion
- Toppings & Garnishes – sour cream, pico de gallo, salsa, guacamole, lime wedge, tortilla chips
- Protein – black beans, dark red kidney beans, shredded chicken
- Grains – Mexican rice, Spanish rice
Steps to Make Taco Salad in a Mason Jar
This recipe makes four meal-size taco salads, packed in quart-size jars.
Detailed recipe and instructions are in recipe card at bottom of post.
- Cook taco seasoned ground beef. Cook and crumble ground beef on stove until it’s no longer pink. Drain the grease, then stir in taco seasoning and water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool for a few minutes, then place in refrigerator to cool completely.
- Prep beans and cheese. Pour canned pinto beans into a colander, drain, and rinse. Swirl the beans around in the colander to remove any water. Using a grater, shred the cheese.
- Prep the salad greens. Wash and chop Romaine lettuce. Use a salad spinner to remove any excess water. Wash a bunch of cilantro and use spinner to remove moisture. Fold cilantro leaves over into a tight bunch and chop into fine pieces until you reach the stems. Set lettuce and cilantro aside.
- Chop the vegetables. Finely dice a white onion and cut cherry tomatoes in half lengthwise.
- Layer taco salad in the jar. Divide the salad components into four equal portions and layer into four quart-size mason jars beginning with the dressing or salsa on the bottom and finishing with the lettuce on top. Pack the layers in, put a lid on each jar and store in refrigerator for 4-5 days.
Mason Jar Taco Salad Layers
- Salsa or Salad Dressing (bottom of jar)
- White Onion
- Tomatoes
- Pinto Beans
- Taco Seasoned Ground Beef
- Cheese (Cheddar or Monterey Jack)
- Cilantro
- Romaine Lettuce (top of jar)
Recipe Notes
- To keep the salad as crisp as possible, wash and dry the salad greens thoroughly. I also find that lettuce chopped into large chunks holds up really well for days and days. If you make a lot of mason jars salads, I highly recommend getting a salad spinner.
- Make sure to cook the taco meat first so it has time to cool completely while you prep the remaining salad components. Otherwise, heat trapped inside the salad jar may wilt the lettuce and melt the cheese.
- Go the extra step and shred block cheese yourself. In my opinion it tastes way better and has a creamier texture than the pre-shredded kind in a bag. Pre-shredded cheese has a coating on it to keep it from clumping.
- Layer the taco salad in a jar using the recommended order. If you switch out ingredients just follow this basic rule of thumb: dressing first, work your way up from hard veggies to soft, and finish with lettuce.
My Favorite Salad Spinner
I recently got this Oxo salad spinner and I love it. All you have to do is pump it a few times and let it spin on its own. It’s amazing how much water it removes and how much crisper the lettuce is.
What Size Jars are Best for Salad
For lunch and dinner size salads with meat and protein, I find that 32-ounce, quart jars are best. I prefer wide-mouth jars for ease of layering the salad into it and dumping it out to eat.
A quart has plenty of space for lots of salad components. If you have trouble fitting them in, just gently pack it down and voilà, you’ve got more space.
To avoid spills, swap out standard jar lids and bands with these leakproof mason jar lids.
My Favorite Mason Jar Lid
I love these leak-proof mason jar lids, especially for salads. They come in wide and regular mouth and are easier to clean than the typical bands and lids.
How Long Taco Salad Lasts in Jars
Taco salad with meat in it lasts 4-5 days when stored in the refrigerator. Only make as much as you can eat in that many days.
I usually make four salad jars at a time and grab one for lunch or dinner four days in a row.
Like all cooked foods, refrigerate the meat as soon as possible after it’s cooked.
Additionally, for the longest lasting salad, make it with the fresh ingredients.
More Mason Jar Salad Recipes
- Southwest Chicken Salad in a Jar
- Easy Greek Mason Jar Salad with Chicken
- Copycat Portillo’s Chopped Salad Recipe (with Meal Prep Tips)
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Taco Salad in a Jar
This easy Taco Salad in a Jar recipe is a quick and easy way to meal prep a healthy salad with lots of Mexican flavors. With layers of lettuce, cilantro, onion, tomatoes, cheese and beef, this protein-packed meal salad is perfect for lunch or dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 packet taco seasoning
- 1 pound ground beef, cooked
- 2-3 hearts Romaine lettuce, chopped
- 2 cups cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 15-ounce can pinto beans, rinsed
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 large white onion, chopped
- 1 cup salsa or salad dressing
Instructions
- Cook taco seasoned ground beef. Cook and crumble ground beef on stove until it’s no longer pink. Drain the grease, then stir in taco seasoning and water. Simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool for a few minutes, then place in refrigerator to cool completely.
- Prep the beans and cheese. Pour canned pinto beans into a colander, drain, and rinse. Swirl the beans around in the colander to remove any water. Using a grater, shred the cheese.
- Prep the salad greens. Wash and chop Romaine lettuce. Use a salad spinner to remove any excess water. Wash a bunch of cilantro and use spinner to remove moisture. Fold cilantro leaves over into a tight bunch and chop into fine pieces until you reach the stems. Set lettuce and cilantro aside.
- Chop the vegetables. Finely dice a white onion and cut cherry tomatoes in half lengthwise.
- Layer taco salad in the jar. Divide the salad components into four equal portions and layer into four quart-size mason jars in this order: dressing, onions, tomatoes, pinto beans, beef, cheese, cilantro, lettuce. Pack the layers in, put a lid on each jar and store in refrigerator for 4-5 days.
Notes
- To keep the salad as crisp as possible, wash and dry the salad greens thoroughly. I also find that lettuce chopped into chunks holds up really well for days and days. If you make a lot of mason jars salads, I highly recommend getting a salad spinner.
- Make sure to cook the taco meat first so it has time to cool completely while you prep the remaining salad components. Otherwise, heat trapped inside the salad jar may wilt the lettuce and melt the cheese.
- Go the extra step and shred block cheese yourself. In my opinion it tastes way better and has a creamier texture than the pre-shredded kind in a bag. Pre-shredded cheese has a coating on it to keep it from clumping.
- Layer the taco salad in a jar using the recommended order. If you switch out ingredients just follow this basic rule of thumb: dressing first, work your way up from hard veggies to soft, and finish with lettuce.
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