This homemade taco meat recipe starts with ground beef, a delicious homemade taco seasoning, and a little broth. You’ll never go back to using a taco seasoning packet again after seeing how easy it is to make your own taco meat at home with this easy taco meat recipe! Plus, it tastes so much better!
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There are very few things that my oldest son will eat but one of them is taco meat. Not tacos actually in tortillas or a taco shell but the meat.
Because of that, we’ve had to come up with the best taco meat recipe ever so that the meat tastes good even without all of the toppings!
This homemade taco meat is our family’s favorite and a great addition to tacos, quesadillas, burritos, burrito bowls – you name it! It has an amazing flavor so even if you’re just eating it with a little sprinkle of cheese, it still tastes good!
And so much better than the taco seasoning packets (plus, have you looked at the ingredients in those??).
We make this recipe at least once a week both for our family and for when guests come over. Taco and nacho bars are always a huge hit! And it’s also my go-to when I’m taking a meal to someone. Just make a container of this taco meat and provide it with all of the fixings they’ll need to make tacos for dinner!
Don’t want ground beef tacos? Try our favorite chicken tacos instead!
Why you’ll love this Taco Meat
- Quick meal – this is our go-to meal when we have a busy week but still want to make dinner at home. It’s ready to go in under 20 minutes with very little active time.
- Great flavor – the combination of the different spices gives this taco meat a great flavor without being too spicy (perfect for kids)!
- Basic ingredients – you’ll likely have everything you need to make this taco meat at home already! It’s just ground beef, chicken broth, and some spices.
Homemade Taco Meat Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Garlic powder – I highly prefer using garlic powder rather than fresh garlic in this recipe so that it can coat and flavor the beef without having chunks of garlic. Plus, I’ve found kids like it better that way!
- Chicken broth – I have people ask me all the time why we use chicken broth instead of beef broth. Honestly, either one works – we just like the flavor of the chicken broth better. You can also use chicken bone broth if you’re doing something like Whole 30.
- Ground beef – we typically use something with a little fat left like 80/20 because the fat tends to keep the beef more tender and flavorful but if you want less fat, you can use whatever type you’d like. This also would work great with ground turkey if you’d prefer turkey!
- Chili powder – if you’re making this for kids or you don’t want it to be spicy, you can half the chili powder and it still tastes good!
- Oregano – if anyone in your family is sensitive to or doesn’t like oregano, you can also half this and the flavor will still be fine!
What’s in homemade taco seasoning?
The reason this is the best taco meat recipe is because the taco seasoning mixture we use is so good!
For the taco seasoning, you’ll need to have these spices available.
- Cumin
- Garlic powder
- Chili powder
- Oregano
- Smoked paprika
How to make Homemade Taco Meat
One of the most important parts of this taco meat recipe is how you make it. How you make it will determine whether you have dry meat or meat with a little moisture left.
It’ll also change whether or not the ground beef captures the flavor of the taco seasoning well or just a little.
Here’s how you make this taco meat from scratch!
1 – Brown the Ground Beef
- Add salt to both sides of your ground beef. If you’re using a block of meat, cut the block in half and salt both sides of both halves of the block.
- Heat a large skillet or saute pan to medium-high heat. Add your ground beef and cook for two minutes on one side, flip and cook for another two minutes on the other side.
- Break up the ground beef and cook until the meat is completely cooked.
Note!
If you’re using a fattier ground beef and there is a lot of extra fat in the pan, you can drain the excess fat out of the pan quickly before adding the taco seasoning. If you’re using a leaner version like 90/10 or 93/7, you don’t need to drain the fat out unless you really want to.
2 – Add the taco seasoning
- While the meat is browning, combine all of the spices to make the homemade taco seasoning.
- Once the meat is browned, sprinkle the seasoning over the browned ground beef, stir it in, and cook for one more minute to let the flavors sink in.
3 – Add the broth and simmer
- Add the broth, reduce the heat down to low, and allow the meat to simmer for another 4 to 5 minutes. The goal is to simmer most of the liquid away so you’re left with a taco meat that’s moist, flavorful, and delicious!
- Once the liquid has simmered away and you’re left with just taco meat, turn the heat off and serve immediately while the taco meat is warm!
Use this taco meat in all of your favorite Mexican appetizers, tacos, and even things like this taco soup recipe! It’s good with crunchy hard shells, soft flour or corn tortillas, on chips, and more! It’s even great in things like this layered taco dip with meat!
Top with your favorite taco toppings like lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, guacamole, and my favorite – olives! And serve with a side of fried sweet plantains and rice (or even coconut rice) for the ultimate Taco Tuesday meal!
How to Store Taco Meat
One of the reasons we make this taco meat so often is because it stores and reheats so well! We’ll have it for dinner one night then use it for something different like taco salads the next day!
Store any leftover taco meat in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to five days.
How to reheat homemade taco meat
To reheat the taco meat, put the ground beef taco meat in an oven safe container with a little bit of chicken broth. Then place the entire thing in a cold oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. When the oven is preheated, the taco meat should be warm and ready to enjoy!
The taco meat will heat up with the oven and the chicken broth will keep it nice and moist! It’s our favorite way to reheat pretty much anything that could ultimately dry out if heated too high too long!
How to Freeze Taco Meat
Another nice thing about this taco meat is that it freezes beautifully, just like any ground beef. You could double the recipe and freeze a batch for another day!
Freeze any leftovers in a freezer safe airtight container. Remove from the freezer the night before you’re planning to cook it and place in the fridge overnight to thaw.
Then when you’re ready to reheat the thawed meat, just use the instructions above for reheating!
Tips & tricks
Double this taco meat recipe and use it for another meal later on in the week! It’s great in taco meat, taco casserole, and pretty much anything that has taco in the week! We also use it for quick quesadillas and nachos for lunches. Just make sure to use a bigger pan when cooking two pounds of beef!
Adjust the spices as necessary. If you’re making this for kids or someone who has a sensitive palate, use half the chili powder or half the oregano. You can adjust those two pretty easily without sacrificing taste!
Make sure to season the ground beef well before cooking. The salt really enhances the flavor of the other spices.
Split blocks of ground beef in half before cooking. This helps the meat brown evenly and allows you to season all parts of the beef, not just the outsides of a large chunk of beef.
Taco Meat Recipe FAQs
How Long Will This Taco Meat Recipe Keep in the Fridge?
One of the best things about this taco meat recipe is that you can actually make a bunch of taco meat once and then use it in various recipes throughout the week. The taco meat keeps in the fridge for 4-5 days and then I’d probably toss it and make up a new batch.
So you could have regular tacos for dinner Sunday night, taco salad for lunch on Monday, and then taco stuffed baked potatoes for dinner on Tuesday night! Just double it if you plan on using it all week long.
Is taco meat Whole 30 Friendly?
I have this recipe listed in my Whole 30 meal plan so I get a lot of questions about this. This taco meat is Whole 30 friendly if you use chicken bone broth instead of the chicken broth, a super simple switch!
When do you drain the meat?
Whether or not you need to drain the taco meat depends on what kind of ground beef you’re using. If you’re using one with a higher fat content like 80/20, you may want to drain the ground beef after it’s browned and before adding in the seasonings.
We typically use a 93/7 or 85/15 ground beef and with that low fat content, we don’t normally drain the taco meat at all. The fat actually adds flavor and a lot of the liquid simmers out.
More Easy Dinner Recipes
If you love celebrating Taco Tuesday or eating Mexican for dinner, try one of these delicious recipes! And then one of these yummy Mexican desserts for well, dessert!
- White chicken enchiladas – the best creamy enchilada recipe!
- Mexican street corn pasta salad – this makes a great side for dinner or for a backyard bbq!
- Mexican charcuterie board – can’t choose between your favorites? Serve them all up with this fun idea!
- Instant Pot chicken tacos – another flavorful taco recipe that’s almost as simple as this taco meat!
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Best Taco Meat Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- salt
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp oregano
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 cup chicken broth or bone broth
Instructions
- Add salt to both sides of your ground beef. If you’re using a block of meat, cut the block in half and salt both sides of both halves of the block.1 lb ground beef, salt
- Heat a large skillet or saute pan to medium-high heat. Add your ground beef and cook for two minutes on one side, flip and cook for another two minutes on the other side.
- Break up the ground meat and cook until the meat is completely cooked. If you’re using a fattier cut, drain the excess fat from the meat before moving onto the next step.
- Combine all other spices while browning the meat.2 tsp cumin, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp chili powder, 1 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1 cup chicken broth or bone broth
- Once the meat is browned, sprinkle the seasoning over the browned ground beef, stir it in, and cook for one more minute to let the flavors sink in.
- Add the broth, reduce the heat down to low, and allow the meat to simmer for another 4 to 5 minutes.
- Once the liquid has simmered away and you’re left with just taco meat, turn the heat off and serve immediately while the taco meat is warm!
Tips & Notes:
- Chicken broth or chicken bone broth work or even beef broth!
- Ground beef – we typically use something with a little fat left like 80/20 because the fat tends to keep the beef more tender and flavorful but if you want less fat, you can use whatever type you’d like. This also would work great with ground turkey if you’d prefer turkey!
- Chili powder – if you’re making this for kids or you don’t want it to be spicy, you can half the chili powder and it still tastes good!
- Oregano – if anyone in your family is sensitive to or doesn’t like oregano, you can also half this and the flavor will still be fine!
Nutrition Info
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