Best Taco Meat Recipe (With Homemade Spice Mix)

Learn how to make the most delicious taco meat with my easy and straightforward recipe. Ditch the store bought, pre-mixed taco seasoning and up the flavour of your beef tacos by using my simple homemade mix. 

If you are a taco fan, you will love serving this Black Bean and Corn Salsa with your ground beef tacos!

This taco meat recipe has been long overdue. I can hardly believe I never shared it before as I’ve been making this ground beef taco and burrito filling for over a decade. My family believes I have perfected these beef tacos by now. 

The taco beef that comes out as a result of this recipe is truly the most delicious and flavourful thing that can be created while using very cheap ingredients. Let’s look at it, shall we?

How do you make taco meat?

The short answer is easily! The more involved answer includes a handful of ingredients that produces that most loved Mexican beef flavour. 

I never liked using a pre-made taco seasoning because of all the unnecessary ingredients like thickeners and too much salt. I prefer using a mix of 4 spices, that are always in my cupboards, fresh garlic and onions and a touch of tomato paste. 

I do have a secret ingredient that makes my ground beef creamy and luscious and I am sharing it with all of you today !

Homemade Taco Seasoning Ingredients

• Onions
• Garlic
• Cumin
• Coriander
• Oregano
• Chilli powder
• Tomato Paste

Will this seasoning mix work for chicken, fish or shrimp? 

Yes it will. Just adjust the onion quantity according to your taste or follow my Chicken Chilaquiles recipe as a guide. 

How can make my meat filling thicker?

Ground beef is a great and affordable ingredient but could be a bit crumbly. Not exactly what you want in a taco. I use blended black beans to naturally thicken and bond the taco meat mixture. Incidentally the black beans also give the taco beef a great creamy texture as well as an added fibre boost. 

If you don’t want to involve a blender, you can simply mash canned black beans with a potato masher or substitute them with refried beans. 

How versatile is this recipe?

What I also love about this beef recipe is its versatility. You can obviously use it in tacos. But did you know that this taco meat works equally well in other recipes?

• Taco Salad
• Burritos
• Beef Enchiladas
• Beef Taco Casserole (Just add some frozen or canned corn and beans, top with sharp cheese and crushed tortilla chips and bake in the oven. Then serve with rice and salsa.)
•  Taco Meat Stuffed Bell Peppers for a low carb version. Add a bit of melted cheese on top for extra flavour! 

Topping and Sides for Beef Tacos:

• 5 Minute Blender Salsa Fresca
• Blackberry Chilli Lime Salsa and Red Cabbage Coleslaw
• Perfect Guacamole Recipe
• Lettuce
• Sour Cream
• Grated Cheese
• Sliced Avocados

Taco Meat Recipe

Easy and straightforward taco meat recipe using a homemade taco seasoning blend that consists of just a handful of spices, onions, garlic and tomato paste.

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Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican, TexMex

Keyword: beef tacos, taco recipe, taco meat recipe

Servings: 4

Calories: 259kcal

Author: Julia Frey of Vikalinka

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 lbs lean ground beef (5% fat)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, pressed
• 2 tbsp cumin
• 2 tsp dried coriander
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp oregano
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 125ml/1/2cup water
• salt to taste
• 170g/1cup canned black beans, blended in food processor or blender see recipe notes for substitutions

Instructions

• Heat the oil in a large pan and saute the chopped onions over low heat for 5-7 minutes, then add the pressed garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer. Add the ground beef and brown until no longer pink. (Drain the fat if not using lean beef.)
• To the beef add the cumin, dried coriander, chilli powder, oregano, tomato paste and water with a pinch of salt, turn the heat up and bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover with a lid and let it simmer for 15 minutes.
• Process the black bean with the liquid in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add to the beef and let it simmer uncovered for 10 minutes longer until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the beef. Taste the taco meat and add more salt if necessary.

Notes

Recipe Substitutions

Any beans will work in place of black beans. I have successfully used red kidney beans, butter beans and chickpeas. 

You can also used refried beans. 

I prefer using extra lean beef but feel free to use 10% fat beef or higher if desired.

Nutrition Facts

Taco Meat Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 259 Calories from Fat 90

% Daily Value*

Fat 10g15%

Saturated Fat 5g31%

Cholesterol 70mg23%

Sodium 321mg14%

Potassium 734mg21%

Carbohydrates 14g5%

Fiber 4g17%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 28g56%

Vitamin A 380IU8%

Vitamin C 7.6mg9%

Calcium 74mg7%

Iron 6.1mg34%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Tried this recipe?Mention @vikalinka or tag #vikalinka!