topic Re: Taco side dish ideas? in Kitchen

Taco side dish ideas?

J Town Girl — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:03:00 GMT

I need some ideas for what to serve along with tacos. There's only my husband and I at home so we don't need to have a large variety of side dishes but sometimes tacos only just seem a little skimpy.

We both prefer the hard tortilla shells and I always have the lettuce, cheese, tomatoes and sometimes spinach and radishes to add as toppings. Neither of us like sour cream.

At times I've made salsa and chips and other times I've made beans but aside from those two items that's pretty much my menu ideas.

When you make tacos do you make other dishes or just serve the tacos alone?

Appreciate any Taco Tuesday ideas. 🌮

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

butterfly123 — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:11:48 GMT

Spanish rice

Mexican corn

Many slaw recipes

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

GCR18 — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:10:09 GMT

I second spanish rice. You could get taco bowls and put lettuce in the bowl with your toppings. Make a Mexican salad dressing with sour cream and salsa.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

LTT1 — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:10:57 GMT

@J Town Girl @butterfly123

I like to put Italian dressing on the lettuce and put this on the tacos. I’d forgotten this, but it is good!

Guacamole could be another addition.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

OKPrincess — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:15:33 GMT

We like refried beans too. Otherwise that’s a nice combination of foods that are very tasty.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

jackthebear — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:15:44 GMT

just the tacos

and some guac or chopped avo

lettuce, cheese etc

I don't do a side dish

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

Tigriss — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:15:52 GMT

Classic is Mexican rice and refried beans. I had a small salad of 1 avocado diced with a few spoonfuls of fresh salsa, a splash of lemon juice (or lime), and salt/pepper to taste. I was refreshing and can be used on top of the taco or just as a small side. I had it with my soup, so I ate it all by myself.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

sunshine45 — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:18:14 GMT

when we have a taco night i always make these sides to load on our tacos OR to just have a taco bowl:

meat and/or chicken

shells, soft and hard (potatoes also if people would rather do a loaded potato than a shell)

shredded cheese

sour cream

guacamole or avocado

corn

beans......black or pinto

spanish rice or dirty rice

lettuce

tomato

chopped red onion

jalapeno or serrano peppers, chopped

fresh limes

green goddess dressing works well as a topping also, in case you dont like sour cream

salsa

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

DiAnne — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:18:42 GMT

Refried beans with grated cheese melted on top. Also we fry corn tortillas instead of buying the premade taco shells. If I was having more people I would have refried beans and Spanish rice.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

Alison Wonderland — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:21:26 GMT

Refried beans - I like the vegetarian kind without lard. They're great to dip chips in, also

Salad

Rice - Lime Cilantro or a Mexican Rice

Guacamole (This is a must have if I'm making tacos, burritos, fajitas, etc.)

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

lOVETOSHOP — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 23:56:58 GMT

We usually have refried beans that we spice up with garlic powder, a little cumin and some onion powder, then bake it with shredded cheddar on top.

Also, we'll have a baked potato with butter and sour cream. I know it's not Mexican, but my husband always likes it with tacos!

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

rrpell — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 00:11:03 GMT

My husband and I break the taco shells in half and lay them flat so they form a circle. Then, we build our individual taco "towers". We top each shell layer the way each of us likes it. It usually ends up to be three shell circles high and we eat with knife and fork. They look beautiful and make a big statement on our plates.

It really works for me as I never could get as much lettuce as I like into those little shells. Now, I can add lots of lettuce and tomatoes on every layer.

Our additions always include:

Taco meat

grated cheese

chopped tomatoes

Chopped iceberg lettuce

avocados

salsa

taco sauce (the packet from the kit)

sour cream

lime wedges

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

EatWell — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 06:42:28 GMT

C3&Traditional rice and beans. Black bean, pinto, or refried. Make it from scratch, not the ****** that comes out of a can.

@J Town Girlwrote:
I need some ideas for what to serve along with tacos. There's only my husband and I at home so we don't need to have a large variety of side dishes but sometimes tacos only just seem a little skimpy.

We both prefer the hard tortilla shells and I always have the lettuce, cheese, tomatoes and sometimes spinach and radishes to add as toppings. Neither of us like sour cream.

At times I've made salsa and chips and other times I've made beans but aside from those two items that's pretty much my menu ideas.

When you make tacos do you make other dishes or just serve the tacos alone?

Appreciate any Taco Tuesday ideas. 🌮

Besides what you already serve.

I serve mine traditionally with rice and beans.

Black, pinto, or refried beans. Home made. Not the aweful stuff that comes in a can.

Rice cooked with Mexican herbs, garlic, diced onions, diced tomato, and diced red and green peppers.

Street syle Mexican corn on the cob.

Chopped onions. Red or yellow.

Home made salsa. Not that awful salsa that comes in a jar.

Fresh guacamole.

Cilantro

Lemon wedges.

FWIW, I make fresh corn tortillas from masa. Use to make “fried tacos”. No longer because I try to eat less fried food. Now I prepare my tacos Mexican “street style”. On soft corn tortillas. Healthier too. Double layer tortilla to make one taco.

Muy Bueno!

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

In-x-s — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 10:58:20 GMT

Just the two of us as well and our "taco nights" are now nacho nights instead. I always make the Rotel/Velveeta nacho cheese sauce then all the other traditional taco makings to pile on top. DH prefers nacho tots so I do the mini tots in the air fryer so they are nice and crispy and I prefer the bite size chips. We get at least two nights worth and at least one lunch out of a normal batch "fixings". We only have them about once every 3 months.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

peachesncream — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 12:47:20 GMT

I like to serve a fruit salad with Mexican food (and with sandwich suppers, too).

I mix up whatever fresh fruit is on hand. I often serve with fruit-flavored yogurt as a dressing (on the side). Strawberry or lemon yogurt are good for this.

Cilantro lime rice is another option as a side for Mexican dinners.

When I don't have any of those, I heat up a can of Ranch Style Beans!

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

redbird — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 13:44:43 GMT

We enjoy sliced fruit as a side dish with tacos....peaches or mangos are a refreshing contrast to the spice.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

fuji — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 17:13:40 GMT

Jicama salad is a nice side dish to mexican foods.

Google the Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill owner) recipe.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

Imaoldhippie — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 16:52:20 GMT

Instead of a side how about a nice juicy dessert?

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

J Town Girl — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 17:46:38 GMT

Many thanks to everyone who took the time to give me so many great ideas. There were so many delicious choices to choose from.

@peachesncream and @redbird, your idea about a fruit salad sounds so good. A few weeks ago I had some cantalope that I needed to use up and I served it along side the tacos and my husband just loved the taste combinations. I think the next time I'll make a whole fruit salad.

Re: Taco side dish ideas?

WORKING GAL — Thu, 29 Mar 2018 21:49:05 GMT

I make a Mexican Rice that is very simple. I use long grain rice (2 to 1 proportions) whatever amount you choose to make. I saute some onion & green pepper in a little oil. To the water, I add some salsa, dry taco seasoning, minced garlic (or garlic powder), cumin, dash of chili powder. Bring the water (with seasonings) to the boil, add the rice and simmer for 20 min. Fluff with a fork and add some chopped cilantro (if desired). I make a can of refried and a can of pinto beans and add cumin, chili powder and garlic and heat it all together. If I have a can of mild diced green chilis, I add some. I usually don't measure anything except the water and rice (season to taste). Since I add salsa to the water, I decrease the amount of water so the rice is not too wet. Fluff the rice with a fork and serve. That's our taco or burrito dinner.