Easy Taco Soup Recipe (2024)

Taco Soup Ingredients

• Ground Beef. Or use ground turkey for a healthier, lower calorie option. Ground chicken or pork are great, too.
• Olive Oil. As needed
• Vegetables. Onion, jalapeno peppers,serrano peppers,bell pepper, (use red or orange for a nice color) (you can also use a can of diced green chilies), garlic, corn (frozen corn works great here).
• Taco Seasoning. Try my homemade taco seasoning recipe - it has a big chili focus.
• Tomatoes. Whole canned or diced tomatoes - I love fire roasted tomatoes, too.
• Tomato Sauce.
• Black Beans. Other options include pinto beans or kidney beans)
• Chicken Stock or Broth. Beef broth is good, too.
• Salt and Pepper. To taste.
• FOR SERVING/OPTIONAL/IDEAS
• Lime wedges, chopped green onions, chopped cilantro, jalapeno slices, lime wedges, tortilla chips, shredded cheese or crumbly white cheese, sour cream, avocado - anything you might put on a taco. Choose your favorites! Don't forget the hot sauce!

How to Make Taco Soup - the Recipe Method

First, heat a large pot to medium heat and add a couple tablespoons olive oil. A Dutch oven is great for this. Add ground beef or ground turkey along with onion and peppers. Cook about 8-10 minutes to brown the meat and soften the onion and peppers. I have made this recipe with ground beef, turkey, chicken and pork and love every single version. The choice is up to you.

Add the garlic and stir. Cook another minute or so, until you can smell that gorgeous garlic. It doesn't take long to cook garlic.

Add the taco seasoning and stir to incorporate. This helps to bloom all the spices in the seasoning.

Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, black beans, corn and chicken stock or chicken broth. Stir. Season with a bit of salt and pepper.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 minutes. The flavors will develop more the longer you leave it. I usually like to simmer at least 30 minutes, but closer to 1 hour. It will smell so good in the house! It thickens up nicely as well. So thick and chunky!

Serve the taco soup into bowls and squeeze a bit of lime juice over the top, then swirl it in. Just a bit, about ¼ to ½ a lime.

Top with your desired remaining ingredients. We used some cilantro, green onions, jalapeno slices, tortilla chips, cheddar cheese and lime wedges. Today I used crumbly white cheese, spicy chili flakes, fresh chopped parsley and cilantro, and some serrano pepper slices for extra heat. So good!

Recipe Notes & Tips

• Lots of Seasonings. There is no one SECRET ingredient to making taco soup. The seasonings are highly important. Use your favorite taco seasoning blend.
• Ground Meat Options. Make taco soup with ground beef, ground turkey, chicken, pork, or a mix.
• Lots of Chili Peppers. Chili peppers carry in an outstanding layer of flavor, but also that zesty spiciness so many of us crave. I used both jalapeno peppers and serrano peppers to bring up the level of heat, but if that is too spicy for you, you can omit them. Or, just lose the serranos and up the jalapeno count. Bell peppers are good, too! I have some in there.
• Use Your Favorite Taco Toppings. The soup alone is brimming with flavor, but half the fun is in the fixings. If I had an avocado in the house, I would have topped each bowl with some of it. Curse me for not having avocados! Still, some lime, jalapeno slices or other green chiles, chips and cheese will go a long way, but consider anything you'd put on a taco, like crema/sour cream, crumbly white cheese, extra hot sauce, you name it!

Patty’s Perspective

These flavors are the epitome of Chili Pepper Madness. Talk about perfect. This recipe is mouthwatering and truly is a taco in a bowl of soup. Amazing.

Try Some of My Other Popular Soup Recipes

• Loaded Stuffed Pepper Soup
• Chicken Tortilla Soup
• Roasted Poblano Soup
• Creamy Roasted Hatch Chile Soup
• 30-Minute Sweet Potato Soup
• Cheesy Guajillo-Potato Soup
• Sweet Pepper-Sweet Corn Chowder
• Spicy Sausage Soup