taco night?

SephiraRose

Yumm Tacos. I now use ground turkey add taco seasoning to the meat, lots of lettuce, peppers, onions and salsa all wrapped in a low carb tortilla. I don't even miss the cheese and sour cream anymore

970Mikaela1

The only thing I do is limit my tortilla intake. 2 . Then I wrap the taco stuff in a lettuce leaf. Pretty good that way. Sour cream avocado salsa cheese . I bet we do tacos for sure weekly.

MamaFunky

We love taco night here too!

I make my own taco seasoning mix to lower the sodium content. Just add paprika, garlic powder, cumin, pepper and a squeeze of lime juice to your beef or chicken and you have a delicious low sodium taco filling.

I don't buy the premade packets of seasoning anymore. This is the list of ingredients from the Old El Paso website for their taco seasoning.

Salt, Maltodextrin, Chili Pepper, Red Pepper, Monosodium Glutamate, Corn Starch, Yellow Corn Flour, Spice, Sugar. Contains less than 2% of: Citric Acid, Natural Flavor, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Silicon Dioxide (Anticaking Agent), Yeast Extract, Ethoxyquin (Preservative)

You can save money buy purchasing the big bottles of pure seasonings from Sam's/Costco and add your own seasonings to your mix.

Enjoy your tacos!

AwesomeGuy37

I have my own taco creation for years now where I brown 1 lb. of beef, drain the fat. (Rinse with hot water and drain again if worried about it)
Then put back on the heat and add the water, 2 taco mix packets and 2 large cans ,28 Oz (drained), of petite diced tomatoes.
Cook it until the water evaporates while stirring often. Medium high heat usually takes about 15 minutes.
The sodium is off the charts for most people, but if you need your taco night you can't beat the calorie difference. Use plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.

I didn't originally make this to avoid calories, but to lower cost.

husseycd

I do taco chili usually. Tonight I'm making cauliflower "tortillas" to go with. I know those aren't everyone's cuppa, but I like them and they end up 33 calories per "tortilla".

But usually I just make the taco meat with seasoning and add black beans and tomatos like I would for chili. Sub plain greek yogurt for sour cream if you like it. Cheese, guac, and salsa are optional.

ETA: I don't think there's anything unhealthy about "normal" tacos. Wheat and corn and I don't get along that well, so that's why I skip it. Tacos can be made lower calories though if that's what the OP is looking for. The meat and the tortillas are the highest calories items, unless you use a ton of cheese or sour cream. Beans can also easily be omitted if you're trying to lower cals.

SouthernArt77

I haven't read all the replies, so someone may have mentioned this or something similar. I have started using a combination of ground turkey and lentils for our taco filling. I simmer a cup of dried lentils for about 20 minutes then mix those in with a pound of ground turkey that I've browned, along with our taco seasoning (homemade) and some water. I also throw in a couple of beef bouillon cubes. I let it simmer until the lentils get really tender and start to break down. Sometimes I have to add extra water get the the lentils to the right consistency. It's a little more time consuming, but we love tacos made this way.

seltzermint555

Not that there is anything wrong with beef (I eat it, my husband doesn't) but last night we had yummy TVP tacos.

La Tiara shells are very light and crispy, and low carb which probably appeals to a lot of people.

I like them with shredded lettuce and a bit of shredded cheddar. We were out of lettuce last night so my husband whipped up an awesome mixture of cooked spinach, light cheese wedge, and FF sour cream. It was different and good. I like a little taco sauce or picante on them too.

Other options: chopped tomato, green onion, avocado, beans...options are endless.

I think the key is using less meat and cheese and more of the other stuff. And layering on the toppings instead of having like 6 tacos you can have 2-3 super loaded ones :-)

fast_eddie_72

Tacos are part of my regular menu. We've been using the Jeanie-o taco seasoned turkey. Couldn't be any easier. We do add some onion. Other than that, brown it and you're good to go. Just regular taco shells, shredded lettuce, tomato, and cheese. Two tacos is 266 calories. And they taste exactly like, well, tacos.

cmendoza13

I just started making tacos with ground turkey instead of beef and they are SOOO yummy!! You really can't tell a difference in the taste. Also, if you want to use sour cream, go for the low fat or fat free. Again, you really can't tell a difference in the taste. And instead of hard shells, try a corn or whole wheat tortilla to make a soft taco.

Four_Leaf_Clover

We have tacos quite frequently at our house. We use lean ground turkey (93/7) brown it and drain it - then add salsa instead of taco seasonings. Sometimes I will add chili beans (pinto beans) to stretch it out. Adults eat it as a salad over lettuce, diced tomatoes, with a sprinkle of reduced fat cheese and a few crushed chips on top.

My kids love it served as "tiny tacos" in Tostitos scoops chips.

I also take the meat/salsa for lunch and eat it over salad - very filling!

somefitsomefat

For me, I just make a taco bowl and cut out the shell/tortilla since those tend to be 100+ calories a pop. Also I use a leaner ground beef or maybe ground chicken. Finally, just watch your cheese, sour cream (get a light sour cream if you don't mind the taste), and guac portions since those tend to be higher in calories.

Badassey

I love tacos! It's one of my favorite dinners.

When it comes to tacos, I really love grinding my own chicken breasts. The ground chicken you often buy in stores (unless labeled 97-99% fat free) has skin ground in with the meat. I buy boneless, skinless chicken breasts and trim the fat off. Then I cut them into 1" cubes and pulse them through my food processor until fully ground.

I'll usually toss that in a pan with some homemade taco seasoning (that way I can control the sodium) -- there is a fabulous recipe on AllRecipes.com. I'll add in some corn, reduced sodium black beans, lettuce, tomatoes, jalapeño, avocado and cheese.

I either like soft tacos or taco salads. For soft tacos, I use Target's Market Pantry brand low-carb flour tortilla (80 calories per tortilla with 11g of fiber!) It's the green labeled package in the tortilla aisle. I don't really care about the low-carb, I just love the high fiber count. Or if I'm having a taco salad, I'll crush up some whole grain corn taco shells and build my salad around those.

As far as cheese goes, I like full-fat all the way. It tastes better (and melts into the warm ground chicken) better than reduced-fat cheese. Plus, because I am using home-ground chicken breasts (which have much less fat than ground beef, 93/7 turkey, or 90/10 store-ground chicken) I have the space in my macros for a higher fat cheese.

maz504

I make tacos allll the time! I use ground turkey (I only eat red meat maybe once or twice a year, just not my thing!) and add a can of rinsed black beans to stretch it out + taco seasoning + salsa. And I use either whole wheat tortillas or sometimes I forego the tortilla all together and just make a salad out of it.

Also, more power to the folks who are all about the greek yogurt and low fat cheese, but I'd MUCH prefer the real stuff in smaller amounts. But that's my own personal philosophy, everyone's got their ways of making it work.

And PS - great minds think alike because I'm already planning to make tacos for dinner tonight

Lesa_Sass

I use ground chicken or turkey and make salads instead of individual tacos.

I use the broken pieces in the bottom of the bag of tortillas and throw them on the top to give it that taco crunch.

It is also easier to add a bunch more stuff that would fall out of the shell if trying to eat a taco, like beans and avocado.

If I am in a hurry, I make the salad with rotisserie chicken and a bag of lettuce from the grocery store.

Here is a pic of a taco salad that I make:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=483931168348130&set=pb.282449018496347.-2207520000.1392737312.&type=3&theater

maz504

Fish tacos...cabbage, lime, salsa, a little guacamole, grilled fish...a corn tortilla. Mmmm mmm mmm.

Also, this ^^, because fish tacos are the food of the gods and everyone should eat them every day

bciloveme2014

I am mexican and I cook my tacos the original way. Lean ground beef or ground turkey, I don't use seasoning, I use onions, pepper and little garlic, I don't buy taco shells, I use corn tortillas and I never put sour cream and cheese, I use guacamole and homemade salsa because I like my food spicy.

bciloveme2014

Love fish tacos, Baja style.

tedrickp

La Tiara shells are very light and crispy, and low carb which probably appeals to a lot of people.

These are SOOOOOO good too - Smaller than an old el paso shell but I think they taste way better.

Francl27

For everyone saying lean beef and low fat cheese, sour cream etc, what makes that any healthier?

Who said healthier? It's lower calories. Much easier to fit two 160 calories tacos in my day than two 300 calories ones. Plus I can hardly tell the difference in taste when it's all mixed in anyway... It might be less filling, but it doesn't bother me one bit.

alottamama

Thanks for all your input you guys, I really appreciate your time! Again, have I mentioned how much I LOVE this forum? :O) Such support!!