Mango Avocado Taquitos Salad Bowl

Crunchy taquitos with a tangy mango avocado filling top a fresh, crispy salad with a perfectly balanced cilantro lime vinaigrette. Even people who claim not to like salad will love this mango avocado taquitos salad.

Playing with salads is one of my favorite ways to spend time in the kitchen. You take your standard fare — fresh, crispy greens, some chopped tomatoes, avocado, green onions, lots of herbs — and add things that give it textural character and visual appeal. Like a handful of fresh, raw corn kernels for a sweet crunch, and a layer of black quinoa, cooked or sprouted, for drama and a big protein punch.

And then come the things that you think don’t normally belong in a salad, sometimes by happy accident. I was experimenting with taquitos one lazy, rainy morning — getting the tortilla to roll tightly without cracking can be tricky — when, I tossed a still-very-hot taquito onto my lunch salad to spare my fingers from the burn.

It landed just so, and the light bulb clicked: instead of mango avocado taquitos with salad for lunch, I’d put them on my salad.

My simple, beautiful, herbed-infused salad was already in a bowl — you all know how I love food in bowls — and I took a few minutes to play with my food, arranging the taquitos in different configurations on top, like a kid playing with lincoln logs.

It’s amazing how one twist can take a dish and turn it into something really special. The taquitos themselves, with the light, fruity/savory mango avocado filling, are a tasty side in themselves. But add them to a salad, and this vegetarian lunch — vegan, too, if you use agave instead of honey — came together like it was all meant to be.

Do you make your own salad dressings? This is another thing I love to do. It’s so easy, often needing less prep than the salad itself. For my cilantro lime vinaigrette, I simply chopped extra cilantro and squeezed additional citrus while I was making the mango avocado relish for the taquitos and set them aside in a little bowl.

Later, a drizzle of honey, a splash of oil, a sprinkle of salt, and a quick whisking was all that was needed to create a well-balanced, citrusy — and super fresh — vinaigrette. And it’s oh so much better than the grocery store versions.

If you’re feeling whimsical, slice up the taquitos in one-inch lengths and spread them on top like croutons. Crunchy and avocadoey delicious!

Karen xo

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5 from 1 vote

Mango Avocado Taquitos Salad Bowl

Rolling taquitos can be tricky, as the tortillas tend to crack. Heat them in the microwave between paper towels (I like to steam mine on the stovetop, one at a time), until they're soft and pliable. Have a few extra tortillas on hand - I find they're like crepes: the first one is a bust, but then the rest are a-okay.

Servings: 2

Author: Karen Gibson

Ingredients

for the mango-avocado relish

• 1/2 mango peeled and diced
• 1/2 avocado peeled and diced
• 2 tablespoons minced red onion
• 1 teaspoon minced jalapeno
• 1 tablespoon minced cilantro
• juice from 1/2 of a fresh lime
• juice from 1/4 of a fresh lemon
• 1 tablespoon honey or agave
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• several shakes of Cholula hot sauce or 1/4 teaspoon sriracha

for the cilantro lime vinaigrette

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• juice from one lime
• 1 big squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon honey or agave
• 1 tablespoon finely minced cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

for the salad

• 3 heaping cups lettuce greens I used spinach, romaine, and red leaf
• 1 cup cooked quinoa I used black quinoa
• 1/2 cup tomatoes diced (I used 12 cherry tomatoes, quartered)
• 1/3 cup corn cut fresh from the cob (when in season), or thawed from frozen
• 1/2 avocado diced
• 1 green onion sliced
• 1 tablespoon minced cilantro
• 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh Mexican oregano or 1 scant teaspoon dried

for the taquitos

• 1 tablespoon olive oil plus extra as neededed
• 12 corn tortillas plus extra as backup
• 1 mango-avocado relish recipe above

Instructions

for the mango-avocado relish

• Add all ingredients but the salt to a medium mixing bowl and gently toss to coat with the citrus juice. Season with salt. Set aside. (Refrigerate for up to an hour.)

for the cilantro lime vinaigrette

• Add all ingredients to bowl and whisk until emulsified. Set aside

make the taquitos

• Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium until shimmering. Swirl the pan to make sure the surface is coated.
• Steam the corn tortillas until soft and pliable (see Note below). Working quickly, spoon a heaping teaspoon along one end of the tortilla and gently roll the taquito like a tube. Place the taquito seam side down on the hot skillet. Let brown on that side, and then flip to brown the other (2 to 3 minutes total). Remove to a paper towel lined plate to cool.
• Repeat with the remaining 11 tortillas.
• If desired, sliced the cooled taquitos into 1" pieces, like large croutons.

assemble the salad

• Divide the lettuce, quinoa, tomatoes, corn, and avocado between two individual serving bowls, laying them attractively. (My suggestion: line the bowl with lettuce, then spoon the quinoa over the top.
• Add the tomatoes, corn, and avocado. Sprinkle half of the green onions and cilantro over the top of the salad.
• Arrange the taquitos (or taquito croutons) on top. Sprinkle with the remaining green onions and cilantro, and drizzle the cilantro lime vinaigrette over each salad.

Nutritional information, if shown, is provided as a courtesy only, and is not to be taken as medical information or advice. The nutritional values of your preparation of this recipe are impacted by several factors, including, but not limited to, the ingredient brands you use, any substitutions or measurement changes you make, and measuring accuracy.