Is taco salad good, bad, or evil? Should it be mostly lettuce and other veggies, topped with a sprinkling of cheese, meat/chili, sour cream, salsa and tortilla strips, or should it be primarily meat/chili, cheese, salsa, and tortilla strips with a bit of lettuce and a hint of veggies?

I'd prefer primarily lettuce and veggies, with salsa as dressing, plus a bit of meat and sour cream, with tortilla strips to add a crunch, but I'm finishing up one that was like a giant bowl of chili with a hint of lettuce and veggies.

i prefer more lettuce and veggie.

I would use a dark leaf lettuce and fresh slices of avocado.No iceberg and no guacamole and definitely no sour cream

This. Except leave out the lettuce and veggies.

Same here. ^

I grab one for lunch sometimes and it is romaine, kidney and black beans, corn and tomatoes tossed in a jalapeno sour cream (more of a salad dressing than a sour cream) and finished with a sprinkle of crispy tortilla strips. mmmmmmmm

When I want a taco salad, I have a tostada or 3 depending on their size. Crisp corn tortilla on the bottom, then refried beans or beans and beef or chicken, lots of shredded iceberg lettuce, maybe some tomato, a bit of shredded cheddar, salsa, and sour cream. Perfect.

When I make one it's romaine lettuce, garbanzo beans, diced tomato, avocado, sauteed onions and peppers, salsa, sour cream, cheese and a meat (cubed chicken or ground beef).

Funny.

One of those fast food mexican places (Sierra Grill) we stopped at after running a bunch of errands last week they had a wonderful Taco Salad on the specials menu. The only thing that made it a taco salad was it was in a taco shell, but it was romaine lettuce, grilled steak, gargonzola, carrots and tomatoes. The peppers and salsa you add yourself at the salsa bar.

It was wonderful, the perfect mix of meat, veggies, and the strong vinaigrette was perfect with the cheese.

I didn't know Tacos were Eyetalian.

Since tacos translates to traffic in Chile, I just cannot eat traffic salads. I will, however, eat tostada salads - kind of like braslvr describes - with crispy carnitas.

At home, we frequently make taco salad with leftover purple hull or blackeyed peas (we add taco seasonings when reheating them) instead of with meat. It's a good use of leftovers and quite tasty and filling.

When in need of a light meal.. I don't mind a taco salad..

I just don't eat the chips too much.. nice beef, lettuce, tomatoes, etc in dressing..

Taco salad:

First throw the "store-bought" shells (and they do often taste as exciting as chewing clam shells) in the trash. Simply serve a good grade of warm, thin "chips" from tortillas de mais (corn!).

Layer in large shallow bowl:

Chopped or shredded romaine
Optional : Black beans or well seasoned pintos or Salvadorean "Little Reds", but not "Refritos"
Shredded chicken, sliced carne asada (Broiled beef), or carnitas (pork), all of which have been well seasoned during/before cooking.
Sliced ripe avocado
Pico de Gallo (Chopped onion, chopped jalapeno, chopped tomatoes, chopped cilantro, salt, fresh lime juice and a bit of olive oil when destined for a "taco salad")

Topped with crumbled "Queso Cotija", a Mexican cheese resembling (when young) a less salty Feta.

Sour cream seems a traditional US topping, but it doesn't work for me, just as most of the ground beef-based "taco meats" don't live up to my expectations. Sauteed sweet peppers or poblanos and onions simply don't go well with a salad, just as the barbaric custom of adding sweet corn or corn based relishes is anathema. Shredded US Cheddar or Monterrey Jack simply don't have enough flavor, and if I can't find "Cotija", I would substitute feta.

I love taco salad as long as the shell thing is large and I can break it into pieces and eat the insides off it. I like mine with spicy chicken, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, beans and some spicy salsa. Mmm now I'm hungry for Mexican!