If you love tacos, then you’re going to love this quick and easy taco soup that’s made with a handful of really simple ingredients. It’s also dairy-free, gluten-free, and can easily be made vegan.
Adding soup to the weekly menu is a must in the colder months of the year. There are a few reasons we love taco soup so much. For starters, it’s a 1-pot meal. Which means fewer dishes, and is something we can all cheer about.
Another reason is that it can be made in 40 minutes from start to finish. And of that time, you only have to do about 10 minutes of work. Minimal effort is another thing we can all cheer about.
Taco Soup Ingredients
You probably have everything you need to make this right now because the majority of ingredients are pantry staples with a few fresh ingredients thrown into the mix. Here’s what we used:
- olive oil
- ground beef
- onion – yellow or white
- taco seasoning
- beef broth
- bell peppers – we used green and red for a fresh pop of color, but any color is great
- fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- kidney beans
- frozen corn
How to Make Taco Soup
In a dutch oven or soup pot, you cook the onion first for 1-2 minutes to build flavor before adding the ground beef and cooking it until it’s browned. Stir in the taco seasoning and cook for another minute.
Then, you’ll add in the rest of the ingredients and let it simmer for 30 minutes. It’s that easy.
Make It Your Way: Ingredient Substitutions
Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.
How can you make this taco soup using what you already have? Here are some ideas…
- No ground beef? ➝ you can sub ground chicken or turkey instead
- No onion? ➝ sub shallot or leek
- No beef broth? ➝ chicken, mushroom, veggie, or water in a pinch, but for an extra boost of flavor use broth
- No fire-roasted tomatoes? ➝ just used regular diced tomatoes and also a couple shakes of smoked paprika
- No kidney beans? ➝ sub black beans or pinto beans
- Make it vegan ➝ sub 2 additional cans of beans of choice in place of the meat
Tools Needed
- chef knife
- cutting board
- 5-quart dutch oven or soup pot
- measuring spoons
- can opener
- liquid measuring cup
- wooden spatula
Helpful Tips
HOW TO THICKEN YOUR SOUP
Taco soup is pretty thick on its own, if you make it any thicker, it’ll have more of a have a chili consistency. So, if this is what you prefer you can add in more vegetables or additional beans. Alternatively, you can use less broth.
HOW TO STORE TACO SOUP
Let it cool completely before storing it in an airtight container in the fridge for about 1 week or several months in the freezer.
HOW TO SERVE
Taco soup is really great served with toppings such as a little shredded cheese, cilantro, and a dollop of cashew cream or thick, unsweetened yogurt. It’s also really nice to scoop it up with your favorite chips or serve them crushed on top of the soup.
More Recipes You’ll Love
Dairy-Free Taco Soup
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1½ tablespoons taco seasoning
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 green bell pepper, cubed
- 1 red bell pepper, cubed
- 28 ounces fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1½ cups frozen corn
Toppings
- shredded cheese
- cilantro
- cashew cream
- chips
Instructions
- In a dutch oven or soup pot over medium heat, cook the onion for 1-2 minutes to build flavor. Then add the beef, breaking it up with a wooden spatula and stirring occasionally until browned.
- Stir in the taco seasoning and cook for another minute before adding in the rest of the ingredients. Simmer for 30 minutes.
Notes
- No ground beef? ➝ you can sub ground chicken or turkey instead
- No onion? ➝ sub shallot or leek
- No beef broth? ➝ chicken, mushroom, veggie, or water in a pinch, but for an extra boost of flavor use broth
- No fire-roasted tomatoes? ➝ just used regular diced tomatoes and also a couple of shakes of smoked paprika
- No kidney beans? ➝ sub black beans or pinto beans
- Make it vegan ➝ sub 2 additional cans of beans of choice in place of the meat
This is delicious and every bit as easy as Lindsey says it is. Used shredded cooked chicken rather than ground beef. So good!
Shredded chicken sounds amazing – great idea! Thanks, Vicki!