The absolute BEST ground beef Taco Meat! An easy to make homemade taco seasoning and a secret ingredient that makes this the most flavorful and juiciest taco meat EVER! Perfect for loading up on soft or hard shell tacos and topping with all your favorites!
What is the best meat to use for Taco Meat?
The best meat to use for taco meat is a simple ground beef, a 70-80% lean. The fat is going to help give flavor to the meat and we are able to drain the grease prior to serving.
What spices are in Taco Meat?
The spices that are used in this homemade taco seasoning are: chili powder, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, onion powder and salt.
If you want to add a bit more heat you could add a bit of crushed red pepper as needed.
How do you make Taco Meat?
This recipe is super simple to follow and easy to make. We start with the ground beef, cook it up until it’s completely browned. Drain the grease. Then when we return to the heat to the stove lower the heat, add the homemade taco seasoning and a small amount of tomato sauce.
The tomato sauce thickens it up and helps the spices stick to the meat. It’s so flavorful and you will never go back to using water with your taco seasoning again! Trust me.
Some tools that you may find helpful for making this recipe:
- My favorite Green Pan Skillets (ceramic, non-stick, they are the BEST!)
- Wooden Spoons
Recipes that use this Taco Meat:
This meat is so versatile and can be added to so many other recipes. Some simple ideas that are on my site that use this same taco meat are:
Other Recipes You May Enjoy!
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The absolute BEST ground beef Taco Meat! An easy to make homemade taco seasoning and a secret ingredient that makes this the most flavorful and juiciest taco meat EVER! Perfect for loading up on soft or hard shell tacos and topping with all your favorites!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef (70-80% lean)
- 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 3/4 teaspoon Cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce
Instructions
- Cook the ground beef fully, drain grease, then add 1/2 cup tomato sauce and taco seasoning.
- Allow to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add to tacos shells or use in any other recipes that call for taco meat.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 120
- Fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 9 g
- Protein: 11 g
- Cholesterol: 28 mg
Keywords: tacos, taco meat, ground beef,
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Eric says
Can you use ketchup instead of tomato sauce?
Serene says
Other people have and loved it!
rob says
no tom sauce here, so just added 50% water to heinz tom ketchup. worked a treat.
★★★★
Mary Ann Olson says
Great recipe. My adult kids would love it. It was a little too spicy for my husband and I. I would giving it a heat rating or suggesting 1/2 teaspoon for “lightweights.” 😂
Cathie says
I make mine similar with a twist. cook one chopped onion in olive oil until transparent then cook ground beef. in addition to your spices I add 1/2 tsp black pepper and increase cumin to 1 tsp, oregano to 1 tsp, the juice of one lime and a small can of mild green chilies. everyone loves it even my youngest grandchildren request it. use it for tacos, make extra for nachos, chimichanga, enchiladas etc the next day
★★★★★
Donna says
Hi Cathie
Please can I have your recipe and method for tacos.
It sounds so tasty.
Thanks
Donna
Kelly says
That sounds fabulous. I gotta try that. I’m making this tonight. I’ll let you know. Thank you for this suggestion.
hatetank369 says
if you really want some good flavor try adding a can of cambells tomato soup instead of tomato sauce . I have converted a many of people .
Chef Robert LeBrun says
These seasoning is literally Serena
I have tried various seasoning from various receipt i tasted even in mexico and your is the best i tasted in the usa good job
★★★★★
Serene says
Thank you so much!!
Teresa Fulton says
Cook ground turkey instead of beef with chopped onion, bell pepper and crushed garlic for variation. So yummy!
Mommom says
‘what kind of taco shells do you use? Mine are always hard and crack when I heat them. These look soft and yummy.
Mommom
Serene says
These are corn tortillas! I get white corn tortillas and fry them up real quick in a small amount of oil in a skillet. You can see my method in the video on this post 🙂 I have the worst luck with buying hard shell tacos, so I just don’t buy them.
Emma Kelley says
I made this for dinner tonight 🤤 The seasoning made a wonderful flavor. It wasn’t spicy at all. Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Drew says
What kind of tomato sauce do you use?
Elauria Roan Eagle says
I literally just tried this recipe we love it and I have a family of six ☺️… I definitely pinned this under yumminess 🤗
★★★★★
Helene S says
Looks great! I am doing a Mexican buffet at a party. Can I make this the day before, store in the fridge and simply heat it in the micro wave before serving? Thanks!
Serene says
Yes! It can be made and then reheated.
A.D. says
Your cooking instructions are “Cook the meat”??!! Could you possibly be less specific and, therefore, less helpful? (Hint: No, you couldn’t). What temperature? With or without oil? Which oil? For how long? Cooked to what desired effect or level of doneness? “Cook the meat” is not a recipe.
Serene says
Ground beef should be cooked until it’s browned and no longer pink. No oil is needed and is not an ingredient that is listed.
Erica says
Wow!! A.D. not only is super rude but also has no clue how to even brown hamburger meat?!? If you even bothered to read her intro before the recipe then you would realize she did explain to cook the meat till it was completely browned. If you don’t know that by now & if you don’t know how to read a simple ingredients list, then you probably shouldn’t even be in the kitchen. With your ignorant self!
Mama of 4 says
Wow! You are super-rude. If you can’t even cook meat, that’s your problem. Anybody with half a brain can adjust temperature and addition of oil. I always check out comments section for helpful additions/deletions etc. but then I come across your rude comments….you must have a sad, miserable life.
★★★★★
Autti says
It’s ground beef, A.D…. Have you never cooked ground beef for anything before? It’s as basic of a cooking skill as boiling water. No need to attack the recipe creator!
Alice says
Gosh I have to make a comment. Cook the meat, yes most of us know how to cook the meat. But. . .there are some who gathered in my kitchen who I teach how to cook.
They grew up with mom working, no dad in the house and schools didn’t offer cooking classes. I’ve been blessed. I cook, and mom didn’t. She couldn’t even boil water and she didn’t work. Sadly her mother passed away when she was at the age you learn to cook. I’ve been cooking since 12 years of age and now 63.
Sometimes texting seems rude, but when you meet the person. . .they are the sweetest person in your kitchen and always asking a lot of questions. Today I was looking for a taco seasoning recipe to print out for them, because all of my ingredients are in my head and then I bumped into this site. There is a story behind every person, sometimes you need to listen to their story before judging or making a hurtful comment. Just saying!
SophieB says
Not knowing something and needing more information is no excuse for outright rudeness! If A.D. had simply asked the question, those judgments would not have been made. People are generally helpful with beginners. And, as another commenter said, the author DID say to cook the ground beef until completely browned. A.D. could have looked up “how to brown ground beef”. There was no need for rudeness and all of your reasoning, while true that some people need more help, does not and should not excuse the way the comment was made.
Connie says
I used this taco seasoning recipe and made beef tacos along with Frontera taco skillet sauce and the result was amazing, very well seasoned tacos with a silky nice filling. Very tasty. The leftover taco meat was immediate gone the next day.
★★★★★
Angela says
My husband loves tacos. But buying them at a Mexican restaurant can be too expensive..he doesn’t like the packaged seasoning so I sear hed for a homemade seasoning mix….He loved it….and he is very picky
★★★★★
Danielle says
To double the recipe should I just double all the ingredients? Thanks in advance, I’m super excited to make this for family night on Friday 🙂
Serene says
Yes! Just double it all. Enjoy! And let me know how it turns out 🙂
Danielle says
Update: It was such a big hit! We made our own hard shells like the ones in your video and that put everything over the top. Makes them taste like they’re from a restaurant. You were right, I’ll never go back to using water again. The tomato sauce makes a huge difference 🙂 Thanks!
★★★★★
Linda McMillan says
I was out of my favorite taco spice so I looked on google. This sounded good so I gave it a try—- wow—excellent. I now have a new favorite!
★★★★★
Julie says
this was delicious!! I have made it twice now! The second time I added a can of black beans just to stretch the meat and it was great too 🙂
Carol says
Hi there,
Making this again for the second time. Terrific recipe, I just got so turned off the packet seasoning and water. Delicious taste and I know exactly what my family is eating. Thank you so much!!!
Max says
For the chili powder, is it only chili powder or the one than is already mixed with other spices?
Serene says
Just plain chili powder.
Dawn says
My husband and I and my in-laws liked this a lot! I used El Pato Hot Tomato Sauce instead of regular tomato sauce for extra heat. It was great! Will definitely make this now instead of using taco mixes!!
★★★★★
Nicole says
The addition of the tomato sauce was a game changer! My husband is super picky about taco seasoning (it HAS to be from a packet) and he absolutely loved it. He even followed up with me after dinner to make sure I’d saved it! Thank you for rescuing us from seasoning packets!
★★★★★
Blamb says
This sounds yummy. I am going to give it a try. Having a graduation party of about 100 this weekend. Need to figure out how to make this for so many 🙂
Tracy G. says
I made these tacos tonight & they’re delicious! I’ll never use water in my taco meat again! Thank you for the recipe.
★★★★★
Melody Yu says
Made this, absolutely delicious
★★★★★
Layung Binsar says
Thank you for the article because it really helped me to make delicious and delicious tacos and hopefully I could add many more articles.
★★★★★
Tony says
What kind of tomato sauce do you use?
Thank you
Serene says
I use whatever kind I have on hand. I typically have Hunt’s in my pantry.
Brooklyn says
Worked out great – thanks!
★★★★★
Amy says
I have a homemade taco seasoning recipe already mixed together…how much should I use?
Serene says
Just follow the instructions for the taco seasoning. Does it mention how much to use per pound of beef?
Neil says
The “1 tablespoon Chili Powder” sounds wrong — I believe it should be be “teaspoon”.
★★★★
Serene says
It is definitely 1 tablespoon.
shawn says
Can i cook the shell a day before and still taste crispy.
Serene says
No, the shells need to be fresh. They won’t keep.
Renee says
Thanks Dawn for the suggestion of El Pato spicy tomato sauce!! I use that in my Salsa, but didn’t think about it in my taco meat!
★★★★★
marilyn casteel says
The taco shells didn’t turn out for me…but the meat is just great! We’ll be having this again and again!
★★★★★
judy piper says
BEST SECRET INGREDIENT TO ANY TACO MEAT RECIPE IS KRAFT CATALINA SALAD DRESSING- ADDS JUST A TOUCH OF SWEETNESS-TRY IT AND YOU WILL NEVER MAKE TACO MEAT WITHOUT IT AGAIN. I JUST USE MEAT, TACO SEASONING MIX. AND DRESSING, ABOUT ONE THIRD CUP TO ONE HALF.
Temple says
Well thank you for this!!! I’m constantly trying new taco seasoning recipes to avoid the packages and now I’ve found it. I just finished dinner and it was great!
★★★★★
Mary says
Thank you for this recipe. My family loves it! It’s now a household staple.
Holly says
Made this last night, with 2 changes – sauteed onions and then added the beef, and also (very important for my kids) used only 1/2 tsp (that’s 1/6 of the suggested 1tbs) of chili powder. This was fantastic. My boys enjoyed it and asked to have this beef taco dinner again soon. Best yet is that the hubby and myself, both not fan of ground beef anything, enjoyed this as well. Thank you for this easy and yummy recipe.
★★★★★
Anthony Allen says
Thanks for this! I always just throw a bunch of spices in the meat and hope it turns out! Now I know exactly what to use!
Teaka says
This was AMAZING!!!!! My family was coming in for seconds and thirds 😍😍😍😍
Tina Ward says
Great recipe! I make this in bulk and freeze it in 1 lb. packages. Reheat in the microwave for a quick and easy meal. I use it in a variety of ways…tacos, nachos, salads, soups, casseroles etc.
★★★★★
Bill says
Made this today and followed the recipe, including the white corn shells. Super good. Will be making this often. Best easy recipe I’ve found in a long time. No heartburn either.
★★★★★
Jae says
Excellent, quick and truly authentic tasting.
★★★★★