Looking for a quick, flavorful way to upgrade your taco nights? This easy taco meat recipe has you covered! With just a few simple ingredients like diced onion, garlic, and your choice of ground meat, you can create a savory, versatile filling that works for tacos, burritos, nachos, and more. Whether you’re craving a classic beef taco, turkey, chicken, or plant-based option, this recipe brings bold, satisfying flavors to the table. I’ve included my homemade taco seasoning recipe so you can ditch the store-bought stuff if you want. I can’t wait for you to whip this up and watch it disappear—taco night just got even better!
Ingredients for Taco Meat Recipe:
Onion: 1/2 cup onion, diced. Yellow onion or white onion.
Garlic: 4 garlic cloves, finely minced. Use fresh garlic here. If the cloves are extra large then 2-3 is probably enough.
Ground Meat: 1 pound of ground meat. Any kind of ground meat will work here. Ground beef, ground turkey, ground chicken, or plant-based meat.
Tomato Paste: 2 tablespoons of tomato paste.
Taco Seasoning: 2 tbsp taco seasoning. You can use my homemade taco seasoning recipe or your favorite store-bought taco seasoning packet. See the recipe card for homemade seasoning.
Water: 2/3 cups of water or chicken broth. I typically use water, unless I have some left over chicken broth that I need to use. Either works in the recipe.
Favorite Taco Toppings
- Grated Cheese: I like cheddar cheese or Monterey jack cheese. You can also use a pre-grated Mexican cheese blend.
- Shredded Lettuce: Iceberg or romaine lettuce, finely shredded.
- Sour Cream: Daisy sour cream or Knudsen’s are my go-to, but use your favorite brand.
- Salsa or Pico de Gallo: Any kind of salsa (green or red). I also love pico de Gallo, which is chopped-up tomatoes, onions, and jalapenos.
- Tortillas: Corn Tortillas, flour tortillas, or hard taco shells. I’m partial to crunchy hard shells, but soft tacos are also just as good.
How to Make the Best Taco Meat Recipe:
Step 1: Sauté Onions
Begin by heating a large skillet over medium heat and adding 1 tablespoon of oil. Once the oil is hot, add the diced onion and cook until it’s soft and translucent about 3 to 5 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking or burning.
Step 2: Add Garlic
Toss in the minced garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. The aroma will become fragrant, adding depth to the base of the dish.
Step 3: Brown the Meat
Add the ground meat to the pan, breaking it into smaller pieces with a wooden spoon or meat masher. Cook for approximately 5 minutes. It’s okay if the meat isn’t fully cooked at this point—it will continue to cook as you add more ingredients.
Step 4: Cook the Tomato Paste
Stir in the tomato paste, cooking it for 2 to 3 minutes. Allow the paste to darken to a brick-red color—this slight caramelization will enhance the overall flavor.
Step 5: Season the Meat
Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the meat, stirring well to ensure everything is evenly coated. The spices will start to release their aroma and infuse the meat with bold flavors.
Step 6: Add Liquid and Simmer
Pour in the water or broth, bringing the mixture to a boil before reducing the heat to a simmer. Let it cook for about 5 minutes, allowing the liquid to reduce and thicken while the flavors meld together.
Step 7: Final Touches
After 5 minutes, the liquid from the taco meat should be thickened, and the meat should be fully cooked. It’s now ready to serve! This versatile meat works perfectly in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, taco salads, or nachos.
What to do with leftover taco meat?
- Use tortilla chips, cheese, and left-over taco meat to make nachos.
- Fill a large flour tortilla with cheese and meat for a quesadilla.
- Use all the left-over toppings and meat to make taco bowls for lunch the next day.
- Shred some more lettuce and make a taco salad with the meat, sides, and toppings.
- Grab some enchilada sauce, cheese, and corn tortillas, and make beef enchiladas.
This quick dinner is perfect for those busy nights when you don’t have a lot of time to cook dinner. My favorite way to serve taco meat is to put the meat as well as all our favorite toppings onto the dinner table and let everyone build their own tacos. I also like to serve refried beans and rice on the side. The best part about this easy family meal is that everyone can have what they like and how they like it!
More Recipes to Try!
Easy Black Bean & Rice Enchiladas
Easy Taco Meat Recipe
Your choice of ground meat combined with my homemade taco seasoning, onions, and garlic makes the best filling for your favorite tacos.
Ingredients
- Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 4 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1 pound of ground meat (beef, turkey, chicken, plant-based)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp taco seasoning (see recipe below or store-bought packet)
- 2/3 cups water or broth (chicken or vegetable)
Homemade Taco Seasoning
- 1 tbsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. cumin
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. paprika
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- Combine all spices in a small bowl and set aside until ready to use.
Instructions
- Heat a large pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp of oil. Once the oil is hot, add the diced onion and cook until soft. Stir occasionally until translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds or so.
- Add ground meat and break it up into smaller pieces using a wooden spoon or meat masher. Cook the meat for 5 minutes. It won’t be cooked all the way through, but it will continue to cook as you add more ingredients.
- Add the tomato paste, stir, and cook for 2-3 minutes. You want to cook the paste so it changes color to a brick red this way it almost carmelizes and the flavor will deepen.
- Next, add the taco seasoning stirring so that the meat is coated with the spices.
- Add the water or broth. Bring this to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, the water will absorb and thicken, and the meat will be cooked through.
- Ready to serve and eat. This meat is great for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, taco salad, or nachos.
Notes
- Leftover meat will keep in an air tight container for 3-5 days.
- If making the homemade taco seasoning feel free to double or triple the recipe and store it for the next time you make tacos.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 128Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 34mgSodium: 237mgCarbohydrates: 4gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 11g
**I have included an estimation of the nutrition information for this recipe. However always remember a recipe is so much more than just nutritional content and these numbers do not need to dictate your food choices. Please don’t forget that both your body and soul need nourishment! The owner of this website is not liable for this estimation.
