The next time you get friends together for tailgating or football watching, consider making these little taco salad cups.  The ingredients are very basic, they’re super easy to make, and they are delicious grab-and-go munchies that everyone loves to eat!

This recipe was created in partnership with Red Gold® Tomatoes.  They’re a fourth generation, made-in-the-USA, family owned company that knows how to grow tomatoes– they’ve been growing them for over 75 years! Every Red Gold Tomato is grown sustainably on local, Midwest family farms – by farmers they personally know.  I’ve been using their products in my recipes– different varieties of diced tomatoes, ketchup and salsa– and I must say that I’m a fan.  They really are a high quality, great-tasting brand. Red Gold® products are made with Non-GMO Project Verified ingredients and are packed in Non-BPA/BPS lined cans. Check their Store Locator, to see where they are sold near you.

Ingredients needed for Easy Taco Salad Cups:

Olive oil, salt, pepper, chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic powder Onion, lettuce, avocado Ground beef Red Gold® Original Tex-Mex Petite Diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles Shredded cheese Red Gold® Medium Salsa Tortilla chips

How to make the taco meat:

The only thing you have to cook in this recipe is the taco meat.  You’ll saute onions and ground beef. Then you’ll add some spices to the ground beef to create the perfect taco flavor.  The final touch is adding a can of Red Gold ® Original Tex-Mex Petite Diced Tomatoes & Green Chiles.  Then you can let the taco meat mixture cool off so it doesn’t wilt the lettuce when you assemble your taco cups. In fact, at this point if you’d like to refrigerate your taco meat until you’re ready to use it, then that’s perfectly okay to do.

How to make Easy Taco Salad Cups:

Layering the taco salad cups couldn’t be any easier.  I like to use small, clear plastic cups so you can see the layers.  You can also choose to use small mason jars if you don’t want to use plastic cups. Layer lettuce, taco meat and cheese.

Spoon a couple tablespoons of the Red Gold® salsa on top of the cheese.

Add a spoonful of sour cream and an avocado wedge.

Add a tortilla chip to each cup for the final touch.  Serve with plastic forks, and add them to your food table!

What else can I add to my taco salad cups?

The great thing about these layered taco salad cups is that you can change up the ingredients a bit.  Add a layer of refried beans, olives, corn chips instead of tortilla chips, and add chili beans to your taco meat mixture.  It’s all a matter of personal preference.  They’re so easy to make family-friendly, and they’re such a good one to add to the party food table.  Everyone loves taco salad!

Check out the Red Gold® Tomatoes website for more recipe inspiration using their products.  

Here are a few more tailgating recipes you might like to try:

Beef and Dark Beer Chili Bratwurst Subs Baked Ham and Cheese Sliders Jalapeno Popper Football Cheese Ball Corn Dog Muffins Easy Salami Appetizer Slow Cooker Kielbasa Bites Buffalo Chicken Dip