Fusilli pasta is small enough to work in a salad.
Transform a typical pasta salad into a taco-flavored treat. The ground beef flavored with taco seasoning combines with the pasta for a variation of the traditional taco. The salad can taste as spicy or mild as you want it to. For example, if you prefer a spicy salad, add jalapeño slices or pour the juice over the salad. Those wanting a more mild salad can use less taco seasoning and leave out the pepper and spicy cheese.
Instructions
1. Boiling the pasta first gives it time to cool.
Fill a saucepan three-fourths full of water. Pour 2 cups of dried spiral pasta into the pan. Boil the pasta over medium-high heat until it's tender, approximately seven minutes. Stir the pasta every two minutes to prevent it from sticking together. Pour the the strainer, which should be placed into the sink. Run cold water over the pasta for five minutes to cool it.
2. Drain the meat over a container so the grease doesn't clog the drain.
Add ground beef into a skillet. Add enough water to the skillet to fill it half way. Pour 1/2 ounce of taco seasoning into the pan. Cook the meat on medium-high heat until the meat is brown, about 10 minutes. Use the spatula to stir the meat every three or four minutes.
3. Iceburg lettuce lettuce tastes the best with this recipe.
Rinse off a head of lettuce under cold running water. Tear off the leaves and place them on a cutting board. Chop up the lettuce into bite-sized pieces until you have 2 cups worth of the vegetable. Pour the lettuce into the large bowl.
4. Do not touch your eye if you cut jalapeños; the juice burns.
Chop 1/4 cup of green onions, 1/4 cup of green peppers and 1/8 cup of jalapeños. Fill a saucepan halfway with water and pour 1/4 cup of corn inside. Cook the corn over medium-high heat for 10 minutes while you chop the green onions, peppers and jalapenos. Drain the corn in the strainer and run cold water over it for five minutes to cool it. Pour the vegetables into the bowl with the lettuce and add 1/4 cup of cooled cooked corn.
5. Pour 3 cups of yellow corn chips or corn tortilla chips into a large zipper bag. Crush the chips inside of the bag be pressing down on the chips with your hand.
6. Pour the cooled pasta into your bowl.
7. Pour the cooked ground beef into the strainer to remove the excess water in the pan. The water does contain some of the taco seasoning, but pouring the water into the salad will make it soggy. The seasoning cooked into the meat, so plenty of flavor will remain. Pour the meat from the strainer into the bowl. The meat should still be warm from cooking.
8. Mix the ingredients together with a spoon. Pour 1 cup of pepper jack cheese and 1 cup of cheddar cheese on the salad. Sprinkle the crushed chips on top of the salad immediately before serving. Adding the chips too early causes them to become soft.
9. Top the salad with a cup of salsa or a cup of taco sauce.
Tags: taco seasoning, ground beef, medium-high heat, pasta into, beef into,