There’s no dish that I make more often at home than ground beef tacos. In fact, it’s practically on the dinner menu once a week. And it’s not just because I love eating ground beef tacos, because honestly, who doesn’t? It’s also due to the fact that they are incredibly easy to make.
All you really have to do is brown up some ground beef, add some taco seasoning and liquid, and let it all simmer for a couple of minutes. Then you fill it into some crunchy taco shells and top it with whatever you like. It’s the perfect lazy weekday meal!
4 Keys to great ground beef taco meat
- Breaking up the beef real fine – Ground beef taco meat is best when it is broken up into fine crumbles. Not only does it result in a better texture but it also makes filling the taco shells easier. And while the most common way to do this is to simply break the meat apart with a wooden spoon I’d like to suggest another method, a simple potato masher. Honestly, just go around the pan mashing the ground beef a couple of times and you will have the finest crumbles you’ve ever seen.
- Make sure to brown up the beef – When most people “brown” up their ground beef, they typically just get it cooked all the way through and call it a day. However, if you really want a rich beefy flavor then you need to actually brown up the beef. And don’t worry if parts of the beef start to stick to the bottom of the pan, it will create a great fond that will be deglazed when you add the liquid.
- Toasting the seasoning – Another way to add great flavor to your taco meat is to lightly toast the taco seasoning. To do this simply toss the seasoning into the beef after it’s been properly browned, and sautee it with the beef for a minute before adding the liquid. Trust me, this simple step will really bring out the full flavor of the spices in the seasoning.
- Using beef broth instead of water – I’m not going to lie, I used plain old water in my ground beef tacos for years. But once I started replacing it with some beef broth, I never went back. It’s just such a simple thing that adds even more of that rich & savory beef flavor.
Tips, Tricks & Suggestions
- I highly recommend that you heat up your taco shells in your oven while making the taco meat. Not only will it make the taco shells taste fresher/less stale, but it will also make them less likely to crumble and fall apart while eating.
- I like to quadruple the taco seasoning and keep it in a small jar so I can always have it on hand. If you do this then the amount of taco seasoning needed per pound of ground beef is roughly 2 Tablespoons.
- Check out our recipe for homemade Pico de Gallo, it is a great topping for these tacos.
Ground Beef Tacos Recipe
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Servings: 12 tacos, enough for 3 to 4 people
Ingredients
The taco seasoning:
2 Teaspoons of chili powder
1 Teaspoon of cumin
½ Teaspoon of paprika
½ Teaspoon of salt
¼ Teaspoon of black pepper
¼ Teaspoon of garlic powder
¼ Teaspoon of onion powder
¼ Teaspoon of oregano
¼ Teaspoon of crushed red pepper, optional if you like it spicy
For the rest of the dish:
1 Tablespoon of oil
1 Lb of ground beef
1 Cup of beef broth, or water
12 Hard taco shells
Topping as desired (shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, cheese)
Instructions
- Mix together the taco seasoning in a small bowl and set it aside.
- Brown up the beef: Get out a large skillet or pan, pour the oil into it, and place it over medium-high heat. Toss in the ground beef and use a wooden spoon to break it up into small chunks. Continue to cook, stir, and break apart the ground beef until it is cooked through and begins to brown up.
- Add seasonings and liquid: Toss in the taco seasoning and stir until all of the beef is coated in it. Stir and sautee these ingredients for a minute to toast the spices then pour in the beef broth or water. Stir everything together and let it come to a low boil/simmer.
At this point, you are simply going to let it simmer down until it is the consistency that you like. If you prefer the taco meat saucy then it should only take a minute or two. If you like it rather dry then it might take 4 to 5 minutes.
- Assemble the tacos by filling taco meat into hard shells, and covering it with any topping that you prefer. Enjoy!
Ground Beef Tacos Recipe
Servings: 12 Tacos
Ingredients
The taco seasoning:
- 2 Teaspoons of chili powder
- 1 Teaspoon of cumin
- ½ Teaspoon of paprika
- ½ Teaspoon of salt
- ¼ Teaspoon of black pepper
- ¼ Teaspoon of garlic powder
- ¼ Teaspoon of onion powder
- ¼ Teaspoon of oregano
- ¼ Teaspoon of crushed red pepper optional if you like it spicy
For the rest of the dish:
- 1 Tablespoon of oil
- 1 Lb of ground beef
- 1 Cup of beef broth or water
- 12 Hard taco shells
- Topping as desired shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, cheese
Instructions
- Mix together the taco seasoning in a small bowl and set it aside.
- Brown up the beef: Get out a large skillet or pan, pour the oil into it, and place it over medium-high heat. Toss in the ground beef and use a wooden spoon to break it up into small chunks. Continue to cook, stir, and break apart the ground beef until it is cooked through and begins to brown up.
- Add seasonings and liquid: Toss in the taco seasoning and stir until all of the beef is coated in it. Stir and sautee these ingredients for a minute to toast the spices then pour in the beef broth or water. Stir everything together and let it come to a low boil/simmer. At this point, you are simply going to let it simmer down until it is the consistency that you like. If you prefer the taco meat saucy then it should only take a minute or two. If you like it rather dry then it might take 4 to 5 minutes.
- Assemble the tacos by filling taco meat into hard shells, and covering it with any topping that you prefer. Enjoy!
