Taco Tuesday in a bowl. This great taco soup has a ton of spicy taste. Make it is thick enough to be called taco chili. Make it spicy or mild. Make a big or small amount. Make it in your crock pot or on the stovetop.
Introduction
I do not call many recipes "the best." Too much bragging in that term. I need to feel deep in my heart that the recipe is worthy. This recipe is worthy in every way. This is the best taco soup you can make.
This taco soup is low in fat and calories but is "kicktail" spicy with a ton of taste, plus it is thick enough to be called taco chili. You won't believe this fits your diet.
The main complaint about most taco soups appears to be the mild washed out taste. Those recipes start by cooking some burger and then dumping into a crock pot with the taco seasoning. The spices are minimal, to begin with, and then diffuse into the liquid, so the meat has little, if any, flavor.
I originally called this "Kicktail Taco Soup" due to the spicing and the great taste. I don't want a hamburger soup with a bit a taco spices. I want to taste TACO. This is it.
Is it Taco Soup or Taco Chili?
This is a thick soup as published but if you want a very thick chili-like result, leave out the beef broth.
My Rating
It is only a 1 to 5 scale, but this is a 6. I loved it—a personal favorite of mine.
🐄The Meat
This recipe requires ground meat. Generally, that will be beef, but turkey or chicken will be fine.
The ground meat must be browned, spiced, and drained before adding to the pot. Crock pots are great for a lot of things but cooking ground meat is not one of them. You will have clumps of meat along with all the fatty drainage in your dish. Please cook ahead.
👨🍳Spicing
The spicing is the key to a great taco soup. Most are way under spiced on an envelope of taco season diluted across the meat and soup base. So hamburger soup with a little spice.
I started with a modified version of my spicy taco meat. Then I bumped up the spices even more and added a little jalapeno. I added all the spices to the meat when cooking to keep some flavor and not have it all washed out in the soup. Excellent, just right.
How hot is it?
This is 6/10 on the heat-o-meter with a teaspoon of cayenne pepper and one jalapeno. Add more spices or another jalapeno if you want to burn.
If you want less heat, cut back the cayenne pepper and/or eliminate the jalapeno pepper. You will still have great taste without the heat.
The Dry Ranch Dressing
I looked at a lot of recipes and really can't claim an "inspired by." This Paula Deen recipe had ranch dressing powder, as did several others. It added an interesting taste, a little cool to oppose the heat of the jalapeno. I recommend it, but it is optional.
Can I just a packaged taco season?
Please, no. It will be washed out with no taste.
✔️Tips
Recipe Size
I estimate a serving size of about 1 ½ cups.
This is a relatively easy recipe to cut in half. Just adjust the serving area in the recipe card. It will do the math. But the instructions do not adjust. Cooking time is unchanged.
Crock Pot Size
A half recipe will fit nicely in a 3-quart crock pot. A full recipe needs 5-quart or larger.
Storage
Good in the refrigerator for 3-4 days and good in the freezer for 3-4 months.
♨️Stovetop Method
This is easy and fast on the stovetop. Just prepare the meat, onion, and spice in a Dutch oven type pan. Drain well, then add all the other ingredients. Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes but better of a full hour.
📖Crock Pot Soups
Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup
Healthy Crockpot White Bean Chili Spiced Up
Crock Pot Chicken Parmesan Soup
🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
Use the ground meat and beans of your choice.
Prep a medium onion with a medium chop and optionally, one jalapeno by mincing.
Combine 1 lb lower fat ground beef with the onion over medium-high heat. Cook and break up the beef.
While beef is starting to cook, combine the spices: 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon oregano, ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper.
When beef and onion have cooked for 6-8 minutes and just browned, drain fat. Add the spices and about half the can of tomato sauce. Continue to cook until beef is well browned–about 10 minutes total cooking time. Add the beef to the crock pot.
Rinse 1 can of black beans and 1 can of kidney beans, and add to the pot. You may substitute any beans you want.
Add all remaining ingredients: 1 small can green chilies, two cans diced tomatoes, 1 - 14oz can tomato sauce, the diced jalapeno, one-half envelope of dry ranch dressing mix (optional), and a 14 oz can of beef broth. The beef broth may be omitted if you want this thick.
Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
📖Full Recipe
Crock Pot Taco Soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef - lower fat preferred
- 1 onion - medium chopped
- 1 jalapeno pepper - optional, minced
- 3 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 4 oz green chilies
- 14 oz black beans - drained and rinsed
- 14 oz light kidney beans - drained and rinsed
- 28 oz diced tomatoes
- 14 oz tomato sauce
- 14 oz beef broth - Optional-leave out if you want very thick
- ½ envelope ranch dressing powder - Optional
Instructions
- Use the ground meat and beans of your choice.
- Prep a medium onion with a medium chop and optionally, one jalapeno by mincing.
- Combine 1 lb lower fat ground beef with the onion over medium-high heat. Cook and break up the beef.
- While beef is starting to cook, combine the spices: 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon oregano, ½ to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon of pepper.
- When beef and onion have cooked for 6-8 minutes and just browned, drain fat. Add the spices and about half the can of tomato sauce. Continue to cook until beef is well browned–about 10 minutes total cooking time. Add the beef to the crock pot.
- Rinse 1 can of black beans and 1 can of kidney beans, and add to the pot. You may substitute any beans you want.
- Add all remaining ingredients: 1 small can green chilies, two cans diced tomatoes, 1 - 14oz can tomato sauce, the diced jalapeno, one-half envelope of dry ranch dressing mix (optional), and a 14 oz can of beef broth. The beef broth may be omitted if you want this thick.
- Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
My Private Notes
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- As written, this needs a larger crock pot of 5-quarts or more. The half recipe will fit in a 3-quart.
- This is a relatively easy recipe to cut in half. Just adjust the serving area in the recipe card. It will do the math. But the instructions do not adjust. Cooking time is unchanged.
- Use the beans and ground meat of your choice.
- Please do not use packaged taco seasoning.
- This is 6/10 on the heat-o-meter with the jalapeno and the 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper.
- If you want less heat, cut back the cayenne pepper and/or eliminate the jalapeno pepper. You will still have great taste without the heat.
- When browning the meat, when you get it all broken up and starting to brown, drain and add the spices. This will lock the flavor in the meat and not drain off with the fat.
- You can cook for a shorter period of time since everything is safe but it is better if cooked for the full time so the flavors to come together.
- The optional ranch dressing powder adds an interesting taste of cool vs. spicy heat.
- Good refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen for 3-4 months.
Stovetop Modification
This is easy and fast on the stovetop. Just prepare the meat, onion, and spice in a Dutch oven type pan. Drain well, then add all the other ingredients. Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes but better of a full hour.To adjust the recipe size:
You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.
Nutrition Estimate
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Publishing Note: Originally Published: January 13, 2012. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.
Darr
Reading the post and came across the two dogs at the bottom....Okay.
Make this to go and wrap them up, will do a pick up as soon as possible...
How absolutely beautiful can you get? Love, love them and thank you for sharing them with us....
Darr
Vickie
Thank you. Appreciate the quantity breakdown information, good to know for the future.
GREAT suggestion on the lemon bars. Looks easy!
Vickie
Vickie
Want to make this for a "girls" weekend, " ", meaning we are way past that age designation, but what the heck, you are only as young as you feel.
Just want to make sure this recipe really does feed, more than 2-4. There will be 5 of us, and if it's as good as it sounds, I'm sure there will be seconds, all round!
Have a great celery, fennel, and green apple salad with a walnut Dijon vinaigrette that I think would make a great accompaniment to this soup.
Looking for a light lemon-y desert, any ideas?
DrDan
The total volume is 12-14 cups. So a bowl of soup is considered 1 1/2 cups so 8 plus bowls. Also look at the lemon bars. https://www.101cookingfortwo.com/yummy-lemon-bars/
Have a good weekend.
Dan
Karen
We love, love, love this recipe! Thanks for republishing; reminds me that I haven't made it in awhile.
DrDan
Hi Karen,
I couldn't do a soup week without it. You will notice a slight change in technique. I drain the meat just as it is barely browned before the spices. I found that I was doing it that way. I wanted to get rid of the fat but not drain any spice. Before, I wasn't draining.
Thanks for the note and enjoy the soup.
Dan
Jim Comer
I am a big chili lover and love to try different recipes. Will try this for sure in a crock pot for 6 hours. Correct. Jimmy C.
DrDan
Hi Jimmy, 6 hours on low is fine. You can do 8 like most other chili recipes but not really needed.
Dan
marms
This looks great although I have no idea what "Kick tail" means. Must be an Americanism.. I'm making a version of this today, with what I have. or as a friend of mine says "what you got". I virtually never make a recipe the same as what I see, or the same way twice, because "what I got' varies. I do have cayenne pepper, chipotle hot pepper powder, Anjou fresh peppers and chipotle peppers in adobe sauce. Yee haw. What will mine be called? Canuck Woman's What You Got Chili.
Other substitutions here: Bison, and because it's so lean I add lots -- 1/4 cup at least, olive oil, and I will use half the amount of beans, or maybe none and more vegetables. ZUcchini for sure, I see one looking forlorn in my vegetable bin.
Thanks again for another superb recipe.
DrDan
All chili should be to use what you got just like soups. But I remember reading some Mark Bittman recipes that say just use what you have. I was more inexperienced then and it gave too little guidance to the beginners who are the majority of my readers. You have been around cooking enough to feel comfortable adding and subtracting. All recipes are just guidelines anyway.
Kick Tail is an old Americanism meaning excellent or great. I suspect it is too old of a phrase to use here and I may change the recipe name.
Dan
Mishele
Looking forward to trying this recipe ... Garlic powder is on the recipe twice, is this a typo or does it in fact call for 2 tsp of powder?
Thanks,
DrDan
Garlic Powder only once so 1 teaspoon only. Fixed and thanks for the proof read.
Dan
Chris
Wow, a 6? That's high praise and it looks wonderful. The ranch dressing is an interesting spin, I hadn't tried that before.