This easy taco soup is a one-pot weeknight dinner made with ground beef, beans, corn, tomatoes, and taco seasoning. You brown the beef, dump everything in, and let it simmer on the stovetop in about 30 minutes. It works in the Crock Pot and Instant Pot too, and it is SO GOOD topped with tortilla chips, cheese, and a spoonful of sour cream.
This taco soup recipe is the one I reach for on the nights when everyone is hungry and I have zero patience for a sink full of dishes. I made a big pot of it just yesterday for movie night, and one pound of ground beef stretched into dinner for us plus leftovers for lunches and dinners all week. It looks like a chili when it is bubbling away, but it eats brothier than chili, more like a true soup, which is exactly how we like it. It came together with almost no fuss. That is what earns a recipe a permanent spot in our rotation.
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Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
Taco soup is forgiving, so think of this list as a starting point rather than a rulebook. Here are the ingredients that do the heavy lifting, plus what to reach for when you are missing something.
- Ground beef: I use lean ground beef, usually 85/15, for this one. You want enough fat that it actually tastes like beef, but not so much that the soup goes greasy. Ground turkey works too if you prefer something lighter.
- Beans: I like a can of black beans plus a can of pinto beans, but kidney or chili beans are perfectly fine. Whatever works for you. Just drain and rinse them so the soup stays clean-tasting.
- Tomatoes: Two cans of plain diced tomatoes plus a can of tomato sauce give you all that cozy, classic taco flavor with no heat at all. If your crowd likes a little kick, dice up a fresh hot pepper (we grow ours right in the garden) and add it with the onion. You can also substitute one can for Rotel, which has peppers cooked right in.
- Corn: A drained can of corn works, or about a cup and a half of frozen corn. No need to thaw it first.
- Broth: Beef broth deepens the flavor, but chicken broth or even water will do in a pinch.
- Taco seasoning: A packet of taco seasoning keeps this easy, and that is the whole point. If you would rather make your own, my homemade taco seasoning works beautifully here and lets you control the salt.
Now, a few common worries I hear before anyone even starts…
Not a tomato person? You can pull back the tomato flavor without losing the soup. Replace the diced tomatoes with one 15-ounce can of tomato sauce plus a cup of broth. This helps because the sauce melts into the background instead of showing up as chunks.
Want to use chicken instead of beef? Easy. Skip the browning step and stir in about 3 cups of cooked shredded chicken. Add it after the soup has simmered so it stays tender and does not dry out.
Worried it will be too salty? Between the seasoning packet and the canned goods, the salt can sneak up on you. Choose low-sodium beans, broth, and taco seasoning, or go homemade, and start with less than the recipe calls for. You can always add more at the end, but you cannot take it back out (ask me how I know). When I made it last night with a regular seasoning packet, though, it was salted just right. Greg usually reaches for the salt shaker before he has even tasted his food, and this time he never did.
A quick word on heat: this soup is mild the way I make it, because I am a supertaster and spicy food is not my friend. Plain diced tomatoes keep it gentle, and there is nothing spicy in the pot. If your crowd likes it hot, that is easy too. Dice up a fresh hot pepper, we grow ours right in the garden, and add it with the onion, or stir in a few dashes of hot sauce right at the end so you can taste as you go.
How to Make Taco Soup
Here is the whole thing, start to finish. We are really just doing two things: building flavor with the beef and seasoning, then letting everything simmer together.
- Brown the beef and onion. Cook the ground beef with the diced onion over medium-high heat until the beef is no longer pink, breaking it up as it goes. Drain off the excess grease if there is a lot. This step matters because browned beef gives the whole pot its savory backbone.
- Stir in the seasoning and everything else. Add the taco seasoning and let it toast for a few seconds, then pour in the beans, corn, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and broth. Give it a good stir so nothing sticks to the bottom.
- Simmer. Bring it to a gentle bubble, then lower the heat and let it simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes so the flavors have time to meld. Simmering uncovered also lets the soup reduce and thicken. If it still looks thinner than you like, mash about a cup of the beans right in the pot, or stir in 2 tablespoons of tomato paste. Don’t worry, this is totally normal and takes just a minute to fix.
That’s it. Ladle it into bowls and let everyone pile on their own toppings.
Can I Make Taco Soup in a Crock Pot?
Yes, and this is my favorite way to make it when I want to walk away from the stove. Browning the meat first is optional, but I recommend it: it improves both the texture and the food safety, since you want ground beef fully cooked and broken up rather than sitting in raw clumps. Once the beef is browned, add it and everything else to the slow cooker and stir.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours, until the soup is hot through and the flavors have come together. If you’d like a richer, creamier bowl, you can add a block of cream cheese in the last 30 minutes so it has time to melt without breaking.
Can I Make Taco Soup in the Instant Pot?
You sure can, and it is fast. Use the Sauté setting to brown the beef and onion right in the pot, then add the remaining ingredients and give it a stir. Lock the lid, pressure cook on high for 8 minutes, and let it natural release for 10 minutes before doing a quick release for the rest. If it needs thickening, switch back to Sauté and let it bubble for a few minutes.
My Two Secret Ingredients
These are both optional, but they are what take this taco soup from good to SO GOOD. The first is a teaspoon or two of unsweetened cocoa powder, stirred in with the beans and broth. I know, it sounds strange in a savory soup. I do the same thing in my chili and I swear it is the reason people always rave about it. Don’t worry, it does not taste like chocolate at all. It just deepens the tomato and beef and makes everything taste like it simmered for hours.
The second is a handful of fresh cilantro stirred in right at the very end. I mixed a good handful right into the pot last night, and it gave the whole thing a bright, fresh taste that really woke it up. All those canned ingredients get a little flat after simmering, and the fresh cilantro brings the whole pot back to life. A squeeze of lime does the same thing, so use both if you have them. If cilantro is not your thing, just leave it out and lean on the lime instead.
What to Serve with Taco Soup
Half the fun of taco soup is the toppings bar, so set a few bowls out and let everyone build their own. My go-to toppings are tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sour cream or a scoop of Greek yogurt, sliced avocado, chopped cilantro, green onion, and a squeeze of lime. Pickled jalapeños are an option for the brave.
For sides, a wedge of homemade cornbread is our standard, but Mexican rice, a quesadilla, a simple green salad, or guacamole and chips all round out the meal nicely. To make it heartier, ladle the taco soup over cooked rice so it eats more like a bowl. For a lighter night, pair a smaller serving with a bright lime-cilantro salad and call it done.
Tips for the Best Taco Soup
A few things I have learned from making this, mostly by fixing my own mistakes.
- Toast the seasoning. Let the taco seasoning cook against the beef for a few seconds before the liquids go in. This helps because a little heat wakes up the spices, so the whole pot tastes deeper.
- Give it a rest. After it simmers, pull the pot off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes. It thickens up a bit and the flavors settle in, the same way it gets even better by the next day.
- Made it too spicy? If you added a fresh pepper or hot sauce and it got away from you, a dollop of sour cream and a little extra cheese cool it down fast, and an extra handful of beans or corn mellows the whole pot.
Storage, Freezing, and Reheating
Taco soup is a meal-prep dream because it only gets better the next day. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. To freeze, cool it completely, then pack it into freezer-safe containers or bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge before reheating.
Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, or in the microwave in short bursts. One thing to expect: after freezing, the soup often thickens up as the beans soak up liquid. Don’t worry, it’s completely normal. Just stir in a splash of broth or water while it reheats until it is back to the consistency you like.
Taco Soup Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef 85/15
- 1 medium onion diced
- 3 Tbsp taco seasoning or 1 packet (1 oz.) of store-bought taco seasoning
- 1 (15 oz) can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can pinto beans drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 oz) can corn drained or 1 1/2 cups frozen
- 2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes undrained
- 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 to 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder (optional secret ingredient)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional secret ingredient)
Toppings for Serving
- tortilla chips
- shredded cheese
- sour cream
- avocado
- cilantro
- green onion
- lime
Instructions
Instructions
- In a large pot over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef with the diced onion until the beef is cooked through, breaking it up as it cooks. Drain off excess grease.
- Stir in the taco seasoning and let it cook for a few seconds. Add the black beans, pinto beans, corn, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beef broth. If using, stir in the cocoa powder now. Stir well.
- Bring to a gentle boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. For a thicker soup, mash about 1 cup of the beans in the pot or stir in 2 tablespoons of tomato paste.
- Stir in the fresh cilantro right at the end, if using. Ladle into bowls and serve with your favorite toppings.
Nutrition
Notes
Let Me Know How Yours Turns Out
This taco soup is exactly the kind of dinner that saves a busy night and packs up beautifully for lunches all week. If you make it, I would love for you to leave a rating and a comment below. Tell me: do you like yours thick like a chili, or a little soupier, and what toppings did you pile on? Those notes help me make this recipe even better for the next person who is standing in their kitchen wondering what to make.
Happy cooking!
Love,
Jennifer
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Meet Jennifer
Jennifer cooks and experiments in the kitchen at Maker Farm, where she focuses on simple pantry cooking, homemade staples, and practical recipes that make everyday meals easier. Over the years she has tested many ways to make cooking simpler and more dependable, and shares the methods that work best in her own kitchen, occasionally showing them on her Heart to Home at Maker Farm vlog.