We are officially into the fall season. This means sweaters and soup! For me, this is the best weather of all. I love chilly mornings and cool nights. Few things in life feel more comforting than a hot bowl of delicious soup on a cold night.
This recipe for crockpot taco soup is so easy and delicious. I’m sure you’ll be making it more than once this season and during the freezing winter times.
It’s as easy as browning ground beef, opening a few cans, and throwing it all into the crockpot. Few appliances get used in my house as much as my crockpot does.
I love not having to stand in front of my stove for long periods of time to enjoy unique foods like taco soup.
It is tomato-based and full of good things like kidney beans, chili beans, whole-kernel corn, green chilies, and ground beef.
I like to make my spice mix, but if you don’t have all the spices, use a packet of taco seasoning mix. So grab a bowl, toast some bread, and get cozy without having to cook all day!
Ingredients For Taco Soup
- Ground beef: I like to use the leanest beef possible, and if I can, I buy grass-fed beef.
- White onion: you can use yellow onion too.
- Chilli beans: these are already seasoned, so they add a great flavor to the soup.
- Kidney beans: I love their size and color. They give visual interest to the soup, and they taste amazing.
- Whole kernel corn: you could use fresh corn, it would quickly cook during the 8 hours, but it’s easier to open a can! Remember to add the liquid also.
- Tomato sauce: I used canned, but if you have homemade, it’s great. As I said, this recipe is supposed to be easy, so I used cans.
- Diced tomatoes: peeled and diced.
- Green chili peppers: they add a bit of a kick to the soup.
- Water: two cups is all you need since you have all the other liquids from the cans.
- Chili powder: this is the base flavor for the soup.
- Garlic and onion powders: give a great flavor to food. They are concentrated in flavor, so a little goes a long way.
- Red pepper flakes: if you are feeding young children, leave them out. They make the soup just a bit spicy.
- Cumin and oregano: the most important spices in Mexican or Tex-Mex recipes. Please don’t leave them out.
- Paprika: gives a great smoky flavor to the soup without adding heat.
- Salt to taste. The amount is totally up to you. But it needs it!
How To Make Crockpot Taco Soup
- Using a large skillet, brown the ground beef.
- Add the ground beef to the crockpot, chopped onion, diced tomatoes, and whole-kernel corn.
- Throw in the tomato sauce, kidney beans, chili beans, and green chili peppers.
- Mix in the spices or taco seasoning package, and water, and cook on low for 8 hours.
What To Serve With Taco Soup?
This soup has protein, carbs, and some veggies, so all I would add, if you want your family to eat more veggies, is a side salad or a delicious loaf of homemade bread.
I think the flavor profile of this soup goes very well with our Homemade Creamy Caesar Salad Dressing.
You already have tomatoes and corn in the soup, so why add them to a salad, right? Also, our Dutch Oven No-Knead Bread or our Homemade Focaccia Bread is great for dipping into this amazing soup.
Make-ahead
This soup takes no more than 10 minutes of prep time, but if you don’t even have those 10 minutes the day, you plan to cook it, brown the beef the day before and store it in the fridge.
The same applies if you plan to use homemade tomato sauce and freshly diced tomatoes.
You can prepare them the day before and dump everything into the crockpot the day you plan to cook it.
Another great tip is cooking the soup at night while you are sleeping. 8 hours later, when you wake up, soup is ready for you to pack lunches!
Recipe tips
- Don’t forget to add all the liquids in the cans to the soup. They add more flavor and body to it.
- Homemade is always better, but canned tomatoes and tomato sauce make this recipe even easier.
- Go for a packet of taco seasoning if you don’t want to measure all the spices, or you don’t own them all. I happen to have a lot of spices, so I like to use them.
- If you like a thicker soup, add one more can of diced tomatoes to the crockpot, or add one cup of water.
Storing and Freezing Taco Soup
You can store it in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Before you freeze anything, remember to label the freezer bag or container with the date you cooked the soup so you don’t overextend the freezing period.
I like to store them in freezer bags because I can lay them flat in the freezer. Let the soup cool completely before storing it.
OTHER SOUP RECIPES YOU MIGHT ENJOY
- Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup
- Aguadito De Pollo Peruvian Chicken Soup
- Panera Broccoli Cheddar Soup
- Crack Chicken Noodle Soup
- Black-eyed Pea Soup
CROCK POT TACO SOUP
Equipment
- Crock pot
Ingredients
- 1 pound 90% lean ground beef
- ½ white onion chopped
- 1 -16oz can chili beans, with liquid
- 1 -15oz can kidney beans with liquid
- 1 -15oz can whole kernel corn with liquid
- 1 -8oz can tomato sauce
- 1 -14.5oz can, diced and peeled tomatoes
- 2 cups of water
- 1 -4oz can green chile peppers
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the ground beef with the chopped onion until no pink is left in the meat. Do not discard the liquid if you are using lean beef. Add it to the crockpot as well. It will add more flavor to the soup.
- Transfer the browned beef to the crockpot and add the chili beans, kidney beans, and whole kernel corn, each with their liquid. The liquids will add body to the soup and help thicken it a bit.
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, green chilies, and water to the crockpot as well.
- Last but not least, add the spice mix and give everything a good stir. If you don’t have all the spices used, you can buy a packet of taco seasoning and use that instead.
- Cook the soup on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.
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