You don't need a tortilla to call it a taco.

small dice - pulsed in the food processor - fresh cilantro

I love taco salad. The absolute best dinner ever! Healthy...yummy...satisfying. What more could you ask for in a dinner? All the benefits of salad without the fat of dressing...its like eating a garden with a garden sauce. It is a quick meal, that is a crowd pleaser. I made a big taco salad last night for dinner...awesome. The thing that makes this salad shine is the Pico de Gallo. My sister is not a sweets person like me, instead she is always craving chips and dip. When she lived with me this past summer I made her lots and lots of Pico!

Chicken for tacos or taco salad:

6 boneless skinless chicken breasts

2 Tablespoons olive oil

3 Tablespoons lemon or lime juice

1/4 cup tequila (or white wine...better with tequila...but white wine will do)

2 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 tsp. fresh chopped garlic

1/4 chopped chopped fresh cilantro

Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. Place in Ziploc bag along with rest of ingredients. Mix and mush around. Place in fridge and marinate for at least 1 hour....the longer the better : ). Heat skillet to medium heat. Place chicken in pan and cook until no longer pink.

Salad fixins:

Romaine lettuce (or spinach...you can use iceberg...but I think iceberg is wicked lame)

Shredded cheddar cheese

Sour cream

Salsa
Pico de Gallo (recipe to follow)

Black beans

Avocado

Crushed tortilla chips

Pico de Gallo:

1 large round tomato

1 small red onion

1 jalapeno

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/8 cup lemon or lime juice

Chop all ingredients nice and small. Or pulse in the food processor for a more finely chopped product. Tastes better if refrigerated overnight. Serve over salad, on tacos, or mix with chopped avocado and eat with chips.

Fun facts about Pico de Gallo:

- "Pico de Gallo" means "Rooster's beak" in Spanish...the jalapeno looks like a beak...this is why they call it this.

- The colors represent the Mexican flag red-tomato, green-jalapeno, white-onion.

- Another meaning of the name is from the verb "picar" which means: To chop or mince, or bite and sting.