Let us face it, it is most always a good day for tacos, and these tacos have a little sumpin’ sumpin’ extra.
Salad dressing.
Catalina salad dressing.
Not added on top, though, cool beans if you do, but cooked in with the ground meat and veggies and taco seasoning and all to make for a nice, tasty twist that will make folk wonder what, exactly, is your secret?
I started out with a taco kit; seasoning packet, hard and soft tortillas, all the usual suspects, but, I added additional veggies as well as the Catalina, because, veggies are our friends, right? And if I can sneak ’em into places where no one is expecting ’em, bonus!
INGREDIENTS
•Taco kit
Meat:
•1 tbsp olive oil
•1 lb ground meat
•1 cup diced onion
•1 cup diced celery
•1 cup shredded cabbage (coleslaw mix)
•1 tbsp Sherry Peppers Sauce*
•1/2 cup Catalina dressing
•1 packet taco seasoning
•2/3 cup hot water
•1 tsp hot sauce
Toppings:
•Shredded lettuce
•Shredded Mexican cheese blend
•Diced sweet onion
•Diced tomato
•Taco sauce
•Refried black beans
*No Sherry Peppers Sauce? No Problem! Simply add a bit of decent sherry (none of that “cooking” stuff) and a dash or three of your fave hot sauce, to taste.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat, then add the veggies and cook, stirring often, for about five minutes.
Add the ground meat (I used meatloaf mix – ground beef and ground pork – here but beef, chicken, or turkey are all good, too) and cook, breaking up the meat, until cooked through and no longer pink.
Stir the Sherry Peppers Sauce, Catalina dressing, hot water, and hot sauce into the taco seasoning until blended, then add to the meat and veggies in the skillet.
Cook, stirring often, until the sauce has been mostly reduced.
Make your tacos.
I like to slather some warm refried black beans on a soft taco, then slide a hard taco in and fill with the meat and toppings.
Note: like the whole concept, but not a fan of bottled salad dressings? We have you covered! Checkout this home made Catalina Dressing – less sugar and “stuff” – but all of the flavor.