Have a nice Mexican night meal with our easy, mess-free taco soup recipe. Make a lot, eat some, keep the rest in the freezer, and you’ll have fuss-free meals throughout the week.
Why Taco Soup?
Have you ever thought that you’d love tacos more if they didn’t spill so easily? Let us introduce you to taco soup. Your taco shell won’t get soggy and so your fillings will be safely contained, no matter how slowly you enjoy your food. The flavors you love are held together in a bowl, from which you can eat with grace.
Although it’s a soup, it certainly doesn’t fall short on flavor. The broth is spiced just as a regular taco, (if not more) yet bursting with tomato flavor from tomato sauce and tomato paste. Swimming in it are heaps of meat, bell peppers, and cheese, all topped with fresh cilantro and tangy lime juice, just like how you like it.
Is This Soup Healthy?
The soup is as healthy as a regular taco, abundant in ingredients and nutrients:
- It’s rich in protein (around 24 g per serving).
- Avocado adds some healthy unsaturated fats (22.2 g per serving).
- It contains a vast number of micronutrients in varying amounts: B vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, zinc, selenium, just to name a few.
Since beef and cheese are rich in saturated fat, we use less of them to keep the saturated fat content reasonably low. That goes the same for calories and sodium. Each serving now comes with about 462 calories, 8.4 g saturated fat, and 492 mg sodium, all in a fulfilling portion size.
Main Ingredients
- Ground beef: you’ll catch us complaining about fatty beef a lot, yet we still don’t opt for ground beef leaner than 85%. That’s because the 85% type is more common, and the beef fat really gives lots of flavor. Still, you may go for leaner ground beef if you want.
- Vegetables: garlic, onion, bell pepper, (canned) kidney beans, (canned) corn, and fresh avocado. Some people choose powdered garlic and onion, but we love the feeling of biting into an actual piece of garlic/onion better.
- Spices: cumin, cinnamon, paprika, chili powder, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Tomato sauce: unsalted. We enhance the flavor by adding some tomato paste and mustard to it as well.
- Broth: beef broth, chicken broth, or vegetable broth.
- Cheese: cheddar.
- Avocado: leave it intact until serving. Cut just enough to serve, then wrap the leftover in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
- All-purpose flour: for thickening the soup.
The Doritos® are served with this quick salsa.
Store and Reheat
Place the soup into air-tight containers and refrigerate it or freeze it. For the tortillas and the avocado, refrigerate only.
Refrigerated foods generally keep for about four days, while frozen foods keep for around three months. To avoid food spoilage, label the containers with dates and consume the foods before they expire.
To reheat, transfer the soup into a pot and heat over medium heat until bubbling. Air-fry or bake the tortillas until crispy, add the avocados, and serve.
Discover New Ways to Enjoy Beef in These Scrumptious Soup Recipes
This easy-to-make soup is loaded with ground beef, vegetables, and fragrant herbs and spices for a deliciously satisfying meal. It's perfect for using up leftover veggies in your fridge and can be made in under an hour.
Get ready to warm up with this classic vegetable beef soup recipe. This article provides a step-by-step guide to making this hearty and nutritious soup, complete with tips on ingredient substitutions and storage.
If you're on the hunt for more delicious beef soup recipes, look no further than our roundup!
How to Make Taco Soup
This taco soup recipe will spice up your Mexican night. It's packed with the flavors you love and is definitely not going to make a mess.
- cook TIME 12 mins
- prep TIME 8 mins
- total TIME 25 mins
- COURSE Main Course
- CUISINE Mexican
- SERVINGS servings
- CALORIES 462 kcal
INGREDIENTS
- 12 oz 85% lean ground beef
- 4 oz unsalted dark red kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
- 4 oz canned corn (drained and rinsed)
- 6 oz green bell pepper (chopped)
- 4 oz onion (chopped)
- 6 oz avocado (cubed)
- 1 oz cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tbsp lime juice
- 1 tbsp garlic (minced)
- 2 cups unsalted chicken broth
- 1/2 cup homemade tomato sauce
- 1 tbsp Hunt’s tomato paste
- 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 1/2 tsp traditional Dijon mustard
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
INSTRUCTIONS
Prep:
Cut the pepper into cubes: Cut away the top and bottom of the bell pepper, and slice it open. Hold the knife horizontal to the cutting board and carefully slice away the white part as well as the seeds. Cut the rectangular piece of pepper into 1/2" strips, and cut the strips into squares.
Chop the onion: Halve the onion lengthwise and peel the skin. Make vertical slices 1/4" apart from each other towards the root, but leave about 1/4" so they're still intact. Turn the half 90 degrees, and grip the root. From the bottom, make horizontal cuts 1/4" apart from each other into the onion, also leaving 1/4" to keep everything intact. Slice the onion into even cubes.
Peel and mince the garlic: Cut to remove the root of each garlic clove and mash them down with a knife to remove the peel with ease. Mince the peeled cloves.
Cook:
Heat 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil in a non-stick pot for 30 seconds. Add 1 tbsp garlic and 4 oz onion and sauté for 2 minutes.
Add 12 oz 85% lean ground beef and stir to cook for 3 minutes.
Add 1 tbsp all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp Hunt’s tomato paste, 1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 tbsp lime juice, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp chili powder, and 1/2 tsp salt. Stir to cook for another 2 minutes.
Add 2 cups unsalted chicken broth.
Add 4 oz kidney beans, 4 oz corn, 6 oz green bell pepper, and 1/2 cup homemade tomato sauce. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Sprinkle 1 oz cheddar cheese and 1/4 cup cilantro on top.
Ladle into serving bowls. Top with 6 oz avocado and enjoy with the side of pico de gallo (which has the Doritos®).
NUTRITION
Tuyet Pham
Head Chef, Culinary ConsultantLuna Regina
Writer, AuthorNatalie Butler, RD, LD
Nutrition Reviewer- JessicaSpicy and satisfying soup recipe for a quick meal.