This easy taco soup recipe is full of hearty Mexican flavor! It’s a one-pot meal made on the stovetop, crockpot or Instant Pot with ground beef, corn, beans and seasonings.
Comforting ground beef soup recipes are the best during cooler weather! Try hamburger soup and stuffed pepper soup, too!
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The Best Taco Soup Recipe
This simple taco soup has all the flavors of crowd-pleasing ground beef taco recipe, taco bake or taco salad but in a warm bowl of soup perfect for fall and winter! It’s easy to customize and make in your slow cooker or even Instant Pot taco soup.
Why I Love This Soup Recipe
- Easy to make. Only one pan and this easy taco soup recipe preps is ready in 30 minutes; it will become a favorite one pot meal like my frito pie recipe!
- Customizable. Adapt the simple ingredients for taco soup based on what you have in your fridge and pantry, then make on the stove top, Instant Pot or crockpot!
- Crowd-pleasing comfort. I always have everything on hand for this zesty soup recipe making it perfect for any occasion from football parties to snowy days.
Taco Soup Ingredients
This recipe has all of my favorite taco and chili flavors combined into one bowl! It’s hearty, comforting and has zesty authentic Mexican flavor.
Find the full printable recipe with measurements below.
- Lean ground beef: Ground hamburger or turkey will both work.
- Veggies: Chopped onions, bell peppers and corn.
- Beans: Black beans, kidney beans and pinto or white beans.
- Tomatoes: Tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, Rotel (or an extra can of tomatoes and add diced green chilies) and salsa.
- Spices: Homemade taco seasoning adds great flavor, you can use a packet of taco seasoning instead. Feel free to add in some extra chili powder, ground cumin and garlic powder.
- Toppings: This soup tastes like a taco so any of your favorite ways to load it up work here!
How to Make Taco Soup
Brown hamburger in a large soup pot over medium-heat. Add in the onions, bell peppers and saute for a few minutes. Stir in the beans, tomatoes, salsa, corn and seasonings
Continue to simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste.
Top with cilantro, sour cream and cheese. Serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!
Simple Taco Soup Tips and Variations
- Easy shortcut. Make this taco soup recipe even easier by using frozen cooked taco meat from the freezer. It also works great with leftover Instant Pot Mexican chicken.
- Other protein. Use rotisserie chicken or shredded chicken instead of beef or turkey to make a chicken taco soup instead. You could even skip meat and make this vegetarian.
- Adjust heat. For more spice, add chopped jalapenos with the peppers. For less heat, substitute canned tomatoes for Rotel.
- Consistency. Adjust soup thickness for your liking. For a thinner soup, add in 1/2-1 cup beef broth or chicken broth.
- Let simmer. The longer the soup simmers, the more flavor it will have. If you have the time to let it simmer longer – you won’t regret it!
- Toppings. Garnish with favorites like cheddar cheese, sour cream, green onions, cilantro, tortilla strips or cornbread croutons and avocado or guacamole.
More winter soup recipes include cabbage soup, broccoli and cheese soup and green enchilada chicken soup!
More Easy Soup Recipes
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Taco Soup Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef , or ground turkey
- 1 medium sweet onion , finely chopped
- 1 red bell pepper , chopped
- 1 green bell pepper , chopped (optional)
- 1-2 Tablespoons taco seasoning , to taste
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans , drained and rinsed
- 1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans , drained and rinsed
- 1 (15-ounce) can pinto or white beans , drained and rinsed (optional)
- 1 (15-ounce) can corn
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (10-ounce) can Rotel tomatoes
- 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1/4-1/2 cup fresh salsa
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- Salt , to taste
- Pepper , to taste
Optional toppings: Sour cream, Shredded cheese, Avocado, Lime, Tortilla strips
Instructions
- Brown beef with veggies. In a large pot, add 1 pound ground beef and cook over medium-heat for a few minutes. Add 1 onions and green and red bell peppers and sauté 3 minutes, or until softened. Drain any grease, then stir in 1-2 Tablespoons taco seasoning and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Salt and pepper, to taste.
- Add in beans and tomatoes. Add in 1 can black beans, 1 can kidney beans, 1 can pinto beans, if using, corn, 1 can tomato sauce, 1 can Rotel, 1 can diced tomatoes, and 1/2 cup salsa until combined.
- Simmer, stirring occasionally, 20 to 40 minutes, or longer if time allows. Add 1/2 to 1 cup warm water if starts to thicken. Stir in cilantro. Salt and pepper, to taste.
- Ladle into bowls and top with desired toppings. We love to serve with tortilla chips.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Recipe FAQs
If you don’t have time to cook this on the stove, you can easily make a crock pot taco soup in the slow cooker! Simply brown the hamburger, onions and bell peppers in a skillet first. Then add all ingredients to the crockpot and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours, or on high for 3 to 4 hours. So easy!
Yes! In saute mode, brown hamburger, onions and peppers for about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Secure lid and set timer for 3 minutes. After, natural release for 10 minutes then release remaining pressure.
Taco soup tastes great topped with tortilla chips and a slice of sweet cornbread, cornbread muffins or Mexican cornbread. To serve a crowd add jalapeno poppers recipe on the side and tres leches cake for dessert.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. This soup also makes a great freezer meal. Cool completely, then place in a zip top bag or freezer container (leaving room for it to expand) and add a freezer label. Store in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw then reheat by simmering in a pot over low heat.
Categorized as: 30 Minute Meals, Beef, Beef, Cinco De Mayo, Dairy-Free, Dinner, Freezer-Friendly, Freezer-Friendly, Mexican, One Pot, Reader Favorites, Soups, Stovetop, Stovetop
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
The perfect cozy dinner for a chilly night. My whole family loved this soup and it was so easy to make!
Loved it! I added a full packet of taco seasoning, and some minced garlic!
Looks like you were going for the full flavor version. Glad to hear you loved it! Thanks for sharing, Teela.
This soup is so good. My family loved it.
I made this for dinner last night and we loved it. I only wish I doubled the recipe! SO good!
So glad you enjoyed it! We always double the recipe and freeze half for later :)
this is perfect for cold taco tuesday nights when all I want is some soup, thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
You’re so welcome! It’s definitely the perfect comfort soup :)
This taco soup recipe is very flavorful and really easy to follow! Loved how it turned out! Thanks a bunch for sharing this amazing recipe, highly recommended!
You are so welcome, Allyssa! Glad to hear you enjoyed it so much :)
This wonderful recipe turned out to be so hearty and yummy. I love to make them again. YUM!
I use shredded chicken instead of the beef. Also, I find that the Taco Bell seasoning is much better than other brands. This soup is delicious and easy.
Thanks for sharing! So glad to hear you enjoyed the soup :)
yes I made this and it was quick and delicious 5 star!
So glad you enjoyed it :)
This is my go to recipe with a few minor changes. I add a lot more garlic, usually 6-8 cloves, lime, and an entire package of taco seasoning. What I like best about this is you can use (cooked) dry beans instead of canned and cut corn right off the cob as well as other additions to make this your own. It freezes beautifully and has saved me on more than one occasion when I’ve forgotten to defrost something. I freeze them in individual containers for single servings after cooling and covering with cling wrap.
And…even though it technically becomes something else, I can use ground pork, moose meat or create a veggie option and it tastes wonderful with the meat (or meatless) variations.
Thanks for posting. It’s simmering as I type!! Perfect supper for a frigid night.
Yay, I am so happy to hear you love it so much Emma :) Thanks for sharing your substitutions/modifications!
So good, even my picky 14 year old liked it. It was quick and easy and had awesome flavor.
Yay, love hearing it was picky eater approved! :) Thanks for your comment and review, Merlynn!
Soooo good I also include ranch seasoning for a little extra flavor boost!
Great idea! Sounds delicious :)
We love this soup! I add a pinch of cayenne and the juice of one lime. It’s fabulous!!
Those sound like delicious additions! So glad you love it :)
We love this soup! I substitute the ground beef with ground turkey and it’s delicious! It’s one of our favorites in the Fall and Winter!
We love this soup! It’s one of our favorites in the Fall and Winter!
So happy to hear that! It’s a favorite in our house as well :)
We really LOVE this Taco Soup! I’ve made it several times and it’s always a hit. Last time I made it I had a slight mishap that turned out fantastic and that was I got a package of Chorizo out of the freezer without realizing until dinner time. It really was fantastic, with all the spices in the Chorizo I backed off the taco seasoning to about half. Chorizo can be a bit rich so if I make that “mistake” again I might try 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 Chorizo.
Thanks for sharing your awesome recipe!
YUM! Don’t you love when mishaps turn into something wonderful?! I’ll definitely have to try adding chorizo next time :)
Hi! I just made this tonight and absolutely LOVED it. I’m so picky especially when it comes to eating meat. The flavors really worked nicely together and the longer they simmered the better the flavor!
Can I store this in the fridge first or would you bring it straight to the freezer once it’s cooled? I plan on eating some tomorrow too! Thank you so much!
So happy to hear you loved it! Yes, it will stay fresh in the fridge for about 3-4 days :)
Yummy! Perfect comfort food on a cold day. Kids loved it. Easy to make too.
Yay – so happy to hear that your kids loved it!
Do you drain the meat?
If there is any excess grease, you can drain the meat before adding in the other ingredients :)
I have found that using a turkey baster works great for getting the excess grease out……
Great tip! Thanks for sharing :)