Easy Slow Cooker Taco Soup Recipe
This easy slow cooker taco soup recipe is the perfect dinner for busy weeknights. The whole family is going to love every bite!
February is usually one of the coldest winter months in Colorado. So I like to make lots of hearty, healthy soup recipes during this time of year. One family favorite is this yummy slow cooker taco soup recipe. It’s so easy but also so satisfyingly tasty!
Mexican flavored food is always a big hit in our house. So to us, this southwestern flavored taco soup is like a mild spice of cozy comfort in each bowl!
And when you see just how easy it is to make – you might even love it more than we do.
Taco Soup Ingredients and Substitute Suggestions
This recipe does require several ingredients. But please don’t let that discourage you from making this delicious soup!
I’m betting, you likely already have everything you need because most of the items required are very common pantry staples!
Ground Beef – I use lean, organic ground beef from Costco. But if you have ground turkey or chicken, those would be fabulous as well. If you’re vegetarian, just skip the meat all together!
Chili Bean and Black Beans – If you don’t have or don’t like the taste of these particular beans, you could easily substitute with pinto beans or red kidney beans.
Corn – I prefer to use canned corn because I always have some on hand. But you can use fresh corn as well.
Canned Tomatoes and Chilies – I prefer to use Rotel for my taco soup, but you can use any brand you prefer.
Canned Diced Tomatoes – I good mixture of quality tomatoes will add some great flavor to this soup. I definitely try to always include fire roasted tomatoes if I have them in my pantry.
Diced Green Chiles – You can use the canned version – works just fine. But my preferred brand of green chilies is the 505 Southwestern roasted chilis available in a jar. So good and not too spicy!
Black Olives – My whole family absolutely loves black olives – so I love adding these into the taco soup. If you prefer you could also add in green olives too!
Taco Seasoning Mix – If you prefer to skip the mix – you can make your own. Just combine chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper. For me, it’s just quicker to add the mix!
Ranch Seasoning Mix – Again, for me it’s just easier to buy a premade ranch dressing mix. But you can make your own by combining dry buttermilk with dried seasonings like parsley, dill weed, chives, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, minced onions, salt and pepper.
Fresh Lime Juice – For me, lime goes so well with Mexican food. It just adds a nice freshness to the whole soup. But if you are not a fan – just skip this step!
How To Make Taco Soup
First, sauté the meat with the onions in a large skillet. Then drain out the liquid and excess grease and toss it into the slow cooker. And basically, that was the hardest part of this whole easy taco soup recipe!
Now all that is left is to add the remaining ingredients to the slow cooker – the beans, corn, tomatoes, green chili, black olives, and seasoning mixes.
Give everything a good stir, then add the cover, set the timer and just walk away! See, I told you this was an easy recipe.
What To Serve With Taco Soup
My number one side to serve with taco soup has got to be corn tortilla chips. I love to toss the corn chips in the bowl first and then spoon the soup on top. So good!
When it comes to toppings, there are a ton! So I suggest to add whatever you family loves the most. For us, that’s lots of shredded cheese, a dollop of sour cream and sliced avocados. But chopped green onions and a few jalapeno slices are definitely great toppings too!
A great recipe to add with the soup would have to be my cheddar cheese cornbread muffins!
This recipe is also incredibly easy to make and would compliment the soup so well!
Tips When Making Taco Soup
This recipe is pretty fabulous as it is but just in case you want to tweak it a little, here’s a few tips I’ve learned over the past few years:
Worried It’s Too Spicy? I have young boys that can not handle too much chili heat. I don’t think the soup is too hot. Although next day leftovers may become a tad more spicy!
But, you can always reduce the amount of diced green chilies to keep the recipe on the milder side.
Always Rinse The Beans. This may seem like a rather odd tip, but I think it’s necessary. This can reduce the sodium and saltiness of the soup significantly!
Get Adventurous! There are so many bean combinations you could go with in this slow cooker taco soup. You could even use three different types at once, like pinto, black and kidney beans. So feel free to use whatever combination and quantity of beans you have in your pantry!
Storing and Freezing Instructions
This is one of those soups where you so look forward to the leftovers! Perfect for a quick lunch the next day.
Simply store any leftover taco soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Want to freeze your leftovers instead? Not a problem – this soup actually freezes great! For best results, place the soup in an airtight freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 months. Then simply thaw the soup overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
To reheat, add soup to a large pot with a little water. Then cook for about 25 minutes on the stove top. Or you can microwave until warm.
I do hope you give this fantastic recipe a try the next time you need an easy meal for your family. I’m sure after you do, this comforting soup will become one of your families favorite recipes too!
Easy Taco Soup Slow Cooker Recipe
This easy slow cooker taco soup recipe is the perfect dinner for busy weeknights. The whole family is going to love every bite!
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef (turkey or chicken is great option too)
- 1 cup diced yellow onions
- 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can chili beans
- 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can black beans
- 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
- 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes
- 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can tomatoes and green chilies
- 2 (4 1/2 ounce) cans diced green chilies
- 1 (4 5/8 ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced
- 1 (1 1/4 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
- 1 (1 ounce) package ranch dressing mix
- 1 lime
- corn chips, for serving
- sour cream, for garnish
- grated cheese, for garnish
- avocado, diced (optional)
- chopped green onion, for garnish (optional)
- sliced jalapeno, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Brown the ground beef and onions in a large skillet; drain off excess fat and transfer browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker.
Add the beans, corn, tomatoes (I like to mash all of the tomato products before I put them in the stockpot--sometimes there are very large chunks of tomatoes, especially in the stewed tomatoes), green chilies, black olives, taco seasoning and ranch dressing mix. Close the lid and cook on LOW for 4-6 hours or HIGH 3-4 hours.
Squeeze in half of lime juice before serving - stir to combine.
To serve, place a few corn chips in each bowl and ladle soup over them. Top with sour cream, cheese, diced avocado, green onions and/or jalapeños.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 271Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 55mgSodium: 640mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 5gSugar: 7gProtein: 22g
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This looks so good and cozy! Can you believe I still haven’t gotten out my slow cooker this winter…this might be the recipe that does it!
This looks so so good! I’m always searching for slow cooker recipes so I pinned and printed. It’s definitely soup weather here in California. Yum! xo
I can’t wait to try this, looks delicious!
I love all things taco! Looks so yummy!
Can I say YUM! I can’t wait to try this! My kids are going to love it! Thank you for the recipe!