Thick and hearty, super easy to make, and loaded with fabulous flavor,
Ground Beef Taco Soup is a classic family favorite. Top individual
servings of this bean and beef-packed soup with shredded cheese, sour cream,
and tortilla chips for one family-favorite meal that's sure to please.
There sure are a lot of variations of taco soup out there, and this particular
Ground Beef Taco Soup recipe is our favorite of them all. Packed with ground
beef and beans, loaded with fabulous flavor, and simmered to an almost
chili-like texture, this is one thick and hearty taco soup that's sure to
please.
When it comes to this Ground Beef Taco Soup, there's nothing fancy here. In
fact, it's made easily with pretty humble ingredients. -- Ground beef, an
onion, 8 cans, and 2 seasoning packets come together to create this
flavor-loaded taco soup.
One of those 8 cans is a kind of surprising ingredient that creates a very
flavorful base for the soup -- cream-style corn.
Packed with ground beef and beans, loaded with fabulous flavor, and simmered to an almost chili-like texture, this is one thick and hearty taco soup that's sure to please.
Honestly, cream-style corn one of the ingredients that makes me truly love
this specific taco soup. The cream corn kind of "melts" into the background
of the soup, combining with its taco and Ranch seasonings to create its
flavor base. Without knowing cream corn is one of the ingredients, I doubt
you'd figure out it's there. But there's no doubt it adds a nice background
flavor and subtle sweetness to this hearty soup, while contributing to the
creation of its thick texture, as well.
Now with 8 full-sized cans and 2 pounds of ground beef as ingredients, this
Ground Beef Taco Soup recipe makes a big batch, for sure. But rest assured,
it reheats well. -- So if you're not feeding a crowd, it's a great option
when planning for leftovers.
What's to Love About This Recipe? (So much!)
- Thick & hearty - Almost chili-like in its texture, Ground Beef Taco Soup simmers up thick and hearty, just the way we love it.
- Humble ingredients - There's nothing fancy here. In fact, Ground Beef Taco Soup is made with pretty humble ingredients. -- Ground beef, an onion, 8 cans, and 2 packets come together to create this super flavorful soup.
- Full of flavor - With cream style corn and Rotel tomatoes creating a flavor base seasoned with both taco and Ranch seasoning, this is one taco soup that's just loaded with fabulous flavor.
- Super easy - Just brown and drain some ground beef, add in the canned ingredients and seasoning packets, and simmer away! That's truly all there is to it.
- Flexible recipe - Want to change out some of the beans? Want to use less beans? Want less heat or more heat? -- No problem! This Ground Beef Taco Soup recipe is easy to tweak to suite your personal tastes. Simply adjust the ingredients to your liking.
- Great for leftovers - Ground Beef Taco Soup makes a big batch and reheats well, so it's a great option when planning for leftovers.
Ground Beef Taco Soup Ingredients:
There's nothing fancy here! In fact, Ground Beef Taco Soup is made with
pretty humble ingredients. -- Ground beef, an onion, 8 cans, and 2 packets
come together to create this super flavorful taco soup. To whip up a pot,
you'll need:
- Ground beef - Two pounds of ground beef create the meaty base of the soup. Choose whatever variety of ground beef you prefer, whether that be 80/20, 85/15, 90/10, etc. We typically use 80/20 ground beef, as it has nice meaty flavor.
- Onion - One large onion brings flavor and helps season the soup.
- Canned corn - Use a can each of whole kernel and cream-style corn. Cream-style corn, a bit of a surprising ingredient, adds a nice background flavor and subtle sweetness to the taco soup, while contributing to the creation of its thick texture, as well.
- Canned tomatoes - Use a can each of regular diced tomatoes and Rotel diced tomatoes with green chilies, along with their juice, to create the chili-like base of the taco soup. Rotel tomatoes also help bring the heat. We recommend Original Rotel tomatoes for a nice heat level, but if you prefer your taco soup spicier, you can use Hot Rotel.
- Canned beans - This recipe calls for one can each of canned pinto, black, and dark red kidney beans. Swap out or substitute other types of canned beans to suit your personal tastes, if you'd like.
- Chicken broth - Combines with the juice from the canned tomatoes to serve as the soup's liquid component. We prefer the more subtle flavor of chicken broth over beef broth in this recipe, however you can substitute beef broth if you prefer. Vegetable broth would work fine, as well.
- Taco seasoning - Brings the taco element to the taco soup and seasons the soup up. One 1-ounce packet is needed.
- Ranch seasoning - Works with the taco seasoning to flavor the taco soup. One 1-ounce packet is needed.
How to Make Ground Beef Taco Soup:
It's super easy to whip up a pot of Ground Beef Taco Soup. -- Taking
advantage of 8 canned ingredients and 2 seasoning packets makes it
really easy to prepare.
To get a pot started, brown ground beef with some chopped onion and
drain it. Then add in all the remaining canned ingredients (beans, diced
tomatoes, Rotel tomatoes, and chicken broth), a packet of taco
seasoning, and a packet of Ranch seasoning. Bring the mixture to a boil,
reduce the heat, and let it simmer away for 45 minutes.
That's all there is to it!
Once the Ground Beef Taco Soup has simmered, spoon it into bowls and
top individual servings with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, and/or
chopped cilantro, if desired. And serve tortilla chips along with it
-- for dipping into the hearty taco soup or for just munching
alongside.
Recipe FAQs:
- Can I make Ground Beef Taco Soup with ground turkey or ground chicken instead? - Absolutely, you can whip up a pot of this taco soup with ground turkey or chicken instead of ground beef, if you'd like. Just be aware, the flavor will be a bit different with the change up.
- Can I make Ground Beef Taco Soup without the beans? Or with a different combination of beans? - Yes, you can omit or change the combination of beans. This particular taco soup recipe results in a thick, hearty soup that's chili-like in consistency. So just as with chili, you can make it with or without beans, whichever you prefer. As for changing up the bean combination, use whatever type of beans you like best.
- How spicy is this Ground Beef Taco Soup? - This Ground Beef Taco Soup gets its heat from Rotel tomatoes (Original variety) and a packet of taco seasoning, and we would characterize it as mild-to-medium spicy.
- Can I adjust the spicy "heat" level of this taco soup? - Yes, you can easily adjust the spicy "heat" level of this Ground Beef Taco Soup recipe to suit your personal tastes. As written, the recipe yields a soup we'd characterize as mild-to-medium. If you'd like it a little spicier use hot Rotel Tomatoes (instead of Original), use hot taco seasoning, and/or add a pinch of cayenne pepper. To make it less spicy, omit the can of Rotel tomatoes and replace it with a second can of regular diced tomatoes.
Check out these other hearty soup recipes:
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Yield: about 10-12 servings
Ground Beef Taco Soup
Thick and hearty, super easy to make, and loaded with fabulous flavor, Ground Beef Taco Soup is a classic family favorite. Top individual servings of this bean and beef-packed soup with shredded cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips for one family-favorite meal that's sure to please.
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 20 M
Ingredients
For the Taco Soup:
- 2 lbs. ground beef
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 (15.25 oz.) can corn, drained
- 1 (14.75 oz.) can cream-style corn
- 1 (16 oz.) can pinto beans, drained & rinsed
- 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained & rinsed
- 1 (16 oz.) can dark red kidney beans, drained & rinsed
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes + their liquid
- 1 (10 oz.) can original Rotel tomatoes (green chili diced tomatoes) + their liquid
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can chicken broth
- 1 (1 oz.) packet taco seasoning
- 1 (1 oz.) packet Ranch dressing mix
- salt & pepper
For serving: (optional)
- Sour cream
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Tortilla chips
Instructions
- Season ground beef with salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or stock pot, brown ground beef with chopped onion; drain.
- Stir in all remaining soup ingredients; bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes.
- Top individual servings with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, and/or chopped cilantro and serve with tortilla chips, if desired.
TRACEY'S NOTES:
- We think this Ground Beef Taco Soup is nicely spiced, but if you'd like it a little spicier use hot Rotel Tomatoes (instead of original) and/or add a pinch of cayenne pepper.
- This soup cooks up thick, much like a chili consistency. If you'd like it thinner and more soup-like, add a cup or two of water when you stir in the chicken broth, beans, and other remaining ingredients.
Found this to be very intriguing! Only made a few changes; added minced garlic & used bone broth powder rather than chicken broth. Only used one can of diced tomatoes with green chilies, but added 4 of my organic, fresh frozen tomatoes to the pot, then skinned them & chopped them up. Very good soup! I think I would call it chili soup tho!! 👍😂😂😂
ReplyDeleteI love your recipes btw…
Mickey
Thank you for sharing your tweaks; personalizing a recipe is part of the fun of cooking.
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