Taco Soup is an easy Mexican-inspired meal made with seasoned ground beef simmered with onions, tomatoes, beans, and veggies. It has all the cozy comforts of chili, lightened up, and served soup-style! Instructions for the slow cooker and instant pot are included.
Easy Taco Soup
Our easy Taco Soup recipe takes all the Tex-Mex flavors you find familiar and comforting in a bowl of chili and turns it into its soupier sidekick. It tastes like biting into a taco, but this supper is sipped from a spoon instead of served inside a shell.
This homemade taco soup is packed with protein, veggies, and complex carbs. Although it’s less dense than a traditional taco and has been lightened up with liquid, it’s still loaded with hearty and filling ingredients. I promise you won’t leave hungry!
This simple one-pot taco soup recipe is the perfect freezer-friendly, make once, eat twice meal. It’s a fun way to customize a family dinner by treating it like taco night and letting everyone choose their favorite taco toppings.
For more easy soup recipes, try my 7 Can Chicken Taco Soup, Chicken Enchilada Soup, Chicken Pot Pie Soup, and Cheeseburger Soup.
Taco Soup Ingredients
- Ground beef: Use lean ground beef for best results. I like to use 85% or 90% groud chuck or ground sirloin. You can also make your soup with ground turkey, ground chicken, or ground pork.
- Yellow onion: Adds sweetness and depth of flavor to this beef taco soup.
- Green bell pepper: Provides a fresh, slightly sweet crunch, vibrant color, and vitamins A and C.
- Garlic
- Olive oil
- Taco seasoning: You can use a packet store bought taco seasoning or make your own homemade taco seasoning. Remember that one packet of taco seasoning is about 2-3 tablespoons of homemade seasoning.
- Beef broth: Beef broth is a flavorful base for the soup. Chicken broth will also work well.
- Corn: Feel free to use frozen corn kernels, drained canned corn, or cut the kernels off leftover corn on the cob from last night’s meal.
- Black beans: Provide protein, fiber, and a rich source of antioxidants. They help make the soup hearty and satisfying.
- Pinto beans: Add protein and fiber, making the soup filling and nutritious.
- Tomato sauce: Adds acidity, sweetness, and extra moisture.
- Rotel tomatoes: This blend of canned diced tomatoes and green chilies adds extra flavor and a bit of heat. If you prefer a less spicy soup, you can use a can of petite diced tomatoes.
- Green chiles: Provide a mild heat and a kick to the soup. Leave them out if you don’t love soup with a spice.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Taco Soup
- Brown The Beef: Brown the ground beef and cook the onions in the oil. Drain off any excess fat.
- Bring To A Boil: Stir the garlic and taco seasoning into the beef. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.
- Simmer The Soup: Reduce heat and simmer for 25-30 minutes.
- Serve: Serve with your favorite toppings. Enjoy!
Serving Suggestions
Warm up with a delicious dish during chilly fall and winter weeknights. It’s the perfect meal to feed a crowd at a dinner party or Cinco de Mayo celebration.
Serve your soup with your favorite taco toppings. You can turn any night into taco night when you top your bowl with sliced red or green onions, sour cream, jalapenos, Mexican blend cheese, avocado, sour cream, tortilla chips, chopped cilantro, salsa, or tortilla chips!
How To Make Crock Pot Taco Soup
To make slow cooker taco soup, simply brown the beef and onions, drain the fat, and add the mixture to the slow cooker. Then add the remaining ingredients, stir, cover, and cook on low heat 4 – 6 hours.
How To Make Instant Pot Taco Soup
To make Instant Pot Taco Soup: Simply brown the beef and onions in the insert of the Instant Pot on the sauté setting. Drain the fat then add the remaining ingredients and add one extra cup of broth. Cook on manual/high pressure for 3 minutes, then allow the pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes before carefully removing the lid.
More Soup REcipes
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Taco Soup
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1½ pounds ground beef
- 1 small yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 package taco seasoning
- ½ cup green pepper diced
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1½ cups frozen corn
- 1 can black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 can pinto beans drained and rinsed
- 15 ounces can tomato sauce
- 10 ounces rotel tomatoes
- 4 ounces green chilies
- 1 cup water optional
Instructions
- In a large soup pan drizzle the olive oil and brown the ground beef until no pink remains along with the diced onions. Drain off any excess fat.1½ pounds ground beef, ½ tablespoon olive oil, 1 small yellow onion
- Add the garlic and taco seasoning and stir for one minute.2 cloves garlic, 1 package taco seasoning
- Add the rest of the ingredients to the soup pot and bring to a boil. Depending on how thick you like your soup you can add 1 cup of water to the tomato juice can, rinse it out and dump it in the soup or measure out 1 cup of water and add to soup.½ cup green pepper, 2 cups beef broth, 1½ cups frozen corn, 1 can black beans, 1 can pinto beans, 15 ounces can tomato sauce, 10 ounces rotel tomatoes, 1 cup water, 4 ounces green chilies
- Once it comes to a boil reduce heat and simmer for 25-30 minutes.
- Serve with your favorite toppings.
Jenn’s Notes
- To Store: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- To Freeze: You can freeze the soup for up to 2 months, in an airtight freezer safe container. You can also ladle single servings into freezer bags, seal tightly and freeze laid flat. Allow the soup to thaw overnight in the refrigerator before heating.
- To Reheat: Simmer on the stovetop until heated through.
- Be sure to drain and rinse the beans so the soup isn’t too salty. You can also use a low sodium broth if you have dietary restrictions.
- Depending on how thick you like your soup you can add 1 cup of water to soup to make it thinner.
- You can double this recipe so you can eat some now and freeze the rest for later.
- To make this a vegetarian soup, omit the beef and replace the beef broth with vegetable stock. Feel free to bulk it up with more beans too!
