Taco Potatoes recipe takes a simple baked potato, stuffs it with seasoned ground beef, and piles your favorite taco fixings on top. A fun way to transform a plain ‘ol tuber into a hearty and filling Mexican flavored meal.
Taco Baked Potatoes
Our double-stuffed Taco Potatoes recipe is filled with the same southwest flavors of my Taco Lasagna and Sheet Pan Tacos, but instead of loading layers of taco meat and toppings into a casserole or folding them into a flour tortilla package, they’re simply piled inside a baked potato.
Unlike traditional twice baked potatoes or oven roasted potatoes which are served as a side, taco-stuffed baked potatoes make a complete meal. They look like loaded potato boats with protein and veggies stuffed inside a gluten-free carb vessel.
Taco stuffed potatoes skip the crunchy shell and pile all the fillings into a soft baked potato instead; they’re healthy and much less messy than their classic handheld counterparts.
Why We Love Taco Potato Bake Recipes
- Quick and easy to make.
- Uses a handful of simple ingredients.
- Fun mashup of Southwestern flavor meets comfort food in taco potato form.
- You can make your seasoned meat mixture in a slow cooker, instant pot, or on the stovetop.
- Baked potato tacos can be customized with your family’s favorite toppings.
- A great way to feed a crowd, especially when you set up a “build your own taco bar”. Perfect for Cinco de Mayo parties too!
Taco Potatoes Ingredients
- Baking potatoes – We use russet potatoes
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Lean ground beef
- Yellow onion
- Black pepper
- Taco seasoning: You can use a store-bought packet or try our homemade taco seasoning.
- Water
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions and Additions
- Make With Other Meat: Instead of ground beef, you can use ground pork, ground turkey, or ground chicken.
- Taco Toppings: Top your baked potato tacos with finely shredded cheddar cheese, diced Roma tomato (seeds removed), guacamole or diced avocado, sour cream, chopped fresh cilantro, thinly sliced green onion, shredded lettuce, salsa, or any of your favorite fixings.
- Make it Meatless: For a vegetarian or vegan version of this meal, swap in an equal amount of your favorite plant-based meat alternative. Tempeh crumbles or beans will also work well.
- Pick Your Potato: I used Russet potatoes for this potato taco recipe, but you can easily make taco sweet potatoes for an extra nutrient-dense dinner.
How to Make Taco Potatoes
- Prepare The Potatoes: Rub olive oil over the skin of the potatoes and sprinkle with salt. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until fork tender when poked.
- Brown The Beef: Cook the ground beef, onion, salt, and pepper in olive oil for 5-6 minutes or until the beef is brown and no pink remains. Drain off any excess fat.
- Season And Simmer: Mix the taco seasoning and water into the ground beef. Bring the mixture to a low boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the sauce has thickened and most of the water has evaporated.
Pro Tip: Be sure to stir the mixture often to avoid burning the sauce. - Slit The Center: Cut a slit down the center of each potato and allow them to rest for 5 minutes. Push on the ends of each potato so they pop open at the cut (Image 1). Fluff the inside and scoop out 1-2 tablespoons of the middle. (Image 2)
- Stuff And Serve: Stuff the taco-seasoned beef into the opening of each baked potato (Image 3) and top with your favorite fixings (Image 4). Enjoy!
Tips For Making The Best Taco Potatoes
- If avocados are in season and readily available in your area, I highly suggest using freshly made guacamole. If not, there are some great pre-made store brands that are available year-round that you can use for your taco potatoes.
- If you prefer, you can easily bake your potatoes in an air fryer. Cook at 400 degrees until the potatoes are soft, about 40 to 50 minutes.
- I recommend waiting to assemble your taco potatoes until you are ready to eat them, as they are best served freshly stuffed.
- This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled to serve a crowd. You can prepare all the toppings, the taco-seasoned ground beef, and the baked potatoes, then arrange them like you would a traditional taco bar and let everyone assemble their own taco potatoes. This is a great way to feed a large amount of people without making a lot of individual recipes.
How to Store Taco Potatoes
- To Store: You can store each component separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
- To Freeze: The cooked beef mixture can be frozen in a sealed container for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To Reheat: Reheat the baked potatoes in a 350°F oven for 15 minutes or until warmed through. Reheat the beef in a skillet on medium-low heat for 5 minutes or until warmed through when ready to serve.
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More Great Potato Recipes
Taco Potatoes
Serves — 4
Taco Potatoes take the traditional Mexican flavors of tacos and stuff them inside a spud! Easy to make and customize with your favorite fillings and fixings.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 large baking potatoes Russet potatoes, rinsed clean and patted dry
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided into 1 tablespoon for the potatoes and 1 tablespoon for the ground beef
- 1 teaspoon salt divided into ½ teaspoon for the potatoes and ½ teaspoon for the ground beef
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ½ cup diced yellow onion
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ounce packet of taco seasoning
- ¾ cup water
Optional Toppings
- Finely shredded cheddar cheese
- Small diced Roma tomato seeds removed
- Prepared guacamole or diced avocado
- Sour cream
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Thinly sliced green onion
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Place the large baking potatoes onto the baking sheet, drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the potatoes, and gently rub the oil over the outer surface of the potatoes. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon of salt evenly over the surface of the oil-rubbed potatoes.4 large baking potatoes, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt
- Bake the potatoes for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the baked potatoes are fork tender when poked.
- When the potatoes are nearing the end of their cooking time, you can make your taco filling by adding to a large skillet, on medium-high heat, the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, lean ground beef, diced yellow onion, salt, and black pepper. Cook and brown the ground beef for 5-6 minutes or until no pink remains. Drain off any excess fat from the skillet.2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 pound lean ground beef, ½ cup diced yellow onion, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add the taco seasoning and water to the skillet of cooked and drained ground beef. Stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a low boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and most of the water has evaporated. Be sure to stir the mixture often to avoid burning the sauce. Remove the skillet of taco-seasoned ground beef from the heat and set it aside.1 ounce packet of taco seasoning, ¾ cup water
- Once the potatoes are fully cooked, and fork-tender when pierced, remove the potatoes from the oven and cut a slit down the center of each potato with a sharp knife. Allow the baked potatoes to rest for 5 minutes before handling them. Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, gently push on the ends of one potato until you get the center of the potato to pop open at the cut in the top of the potato.
- With a small fork, gently fluffy or break up the inside of the baked potato, then scoop out 1-2 tablespoons of the baked potato to make space to add the taco fillings.
- To fill the taco potatoes, evenly divide the taco-seasoned beef into the opening of each baked potato.
- Once your potatoes are stuffed with the taco-seasoned ground beef, you can then add some shredded cheddar cheese, diced tomatoes, a dollop of prepared guacamole, a dollop of sour cream, and a sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro or thinly sliced green onions. The toppings can be customized according to each person’s preferences for serving.Finely shredded cheddar cheese, Small diced Roma tomato, Prepared guacamole or diced avocado, Sour cream, Chopped fresh cilantro, Thinly sliced green onion
Jenn’s Notes
Storage:
- To Store: You can store each component separately in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
- To Freeze: The cooked beef mixture can be frozen in a sealed container for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator before reheating.
- To Reheat: Reheat the baked potatoes in a 350°F oven for 15 minutes or until warmed through. Reheat the beef in a skillet on medium-low heat for 5 minutes or until warmed through when ready to serve.
- If avocados are in season and readily available in your area, I highly suggest using freshly made guacamole. If not, there are some great pre-made store brands that are available year-round that you can use for your taco potatoes.
- You can easily bake your potatoes in an air fryer if you prefer. Cook at 400 degrees until the potatoes are soft, about 40 to 50 minutes.
- I recommend waiting to assemble your taco potatoes until you are ready to eat them, as they are best served freshly stuffed.
- This recipe can easily be doubled or tripled to serve a crowd. You can prepare all the toppings, the taco-seasoned ground beef, and the baked potatoes, then arrange them like you would a traditional taco bar and let everyone assemble their own taco potatoes. This is a great way to feed a large amount of people without making a lot of individual recipes.
Nutrition Info
Calories: 403kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 70mg | Sodium: 1244mg | Potassium: 1320mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 670IU | Vitamin C: 47mg | Calcium: 43mg | Iron: 5mg
