Hot Chicken Taco Salad in a Crisp Flour Tortilla

Hot Chicken Taco Salad with Beans in a Flour Tortilla Bowl.

The other day I saw a commercial on TV advertising a little pan to place a flour tortilla in and bake, resulting in a crisp ruffled base for a taco salad.  It occurred to me you would achieve the same result by ruffling a large flour tortilla in any oven proof round dish slightly smaller than the tortilla and baking it until crisp.  So I tried it and it works just fine!

Yesterday I remembered I had two cooked chicken breast halves in a zip lock bag in the meat drawer I needed to use so a plan was hatched.  Chicken taco salad and I would use a crisp tortilla base.

First thing was to mix up my Taco Seasoning:

4 T. Chili Powder
3T. + 1 t. Paprika
3 T. Cumin
1 T. + 2 t. Onion Powder
1 t. Garlic Powder
1/4 t. Cayenne Powder

Store in an airtight container and shake well to mix.  For 1 pound of beef or chicken for tacos, mix 2 T. seasoning to each pound of cooked meat and 1 C. of water and simmer until the water is almost gone.

Chicken Taco filling:

1 pound cooked diced chicken
1 recipe for taco filling

Mix and simmer until most of the water is cooked away.  Meanwhile make chopped lettuce,  diced onion and tomato, shredded cheese, and heat re-fried beans.   Assemble pepper rings and any other dressings or condiments desired.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Tortilla bowls:

Large flour tortillas
Oven proof bowels slightly smaller than the tortillas

Place the flour tortillas inside the slightly smaller bowels and pat the center of the tortilla gently down to the bottom of the bowel.  With your fingers ruffle the sides as shown in the pictures.  I baked 8-12 minutes checking for crispness every few minutes after the first 8 for crispness.  You will need to watch closely as the thickness and damptness of the tortilla will vary. 

Assembly of Taco Salad:

I choose to use re-fried beans as the first layer of the salad but cheese would also do well crating a bit of a moisture barrier if you do not like or want the beans.  Next layer the hot meat and a bit more shredded cheese. 

Lettuce, onions, pepper rings and tomatoes are next followed by our favorite, ranch dressing.  It was a feast in a bowl!

Brian smacked his lips and said it was a "do again" what more could I ask for?