Simple to make, this Crock Pot Ground Beef Taco Meat is a great dump and go recipe, perfect for Taco Tuesday or those busy weeknights! This slow cooker ground beef is incredibly flavorful, saucy, and made with just a few simple ingredients. It’s also freezer-friendly and great for batch cooking! {Gluten-free, dairy-free & low carb}
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Crock Pot Ground Beef Taco Meat
It’s no secret that in our house, we love tacos! With this crockpot taco meat recipe, the ground beef is cooked low and slow during the day for the ultimate tender and flavor-packed meat!
All that you have to do is toss the ingredients for the taco meat together in the crockpot, set it and forget it!
Cooking the taco meat in the slow cooker is a total game changer because it helps to tenderize the meat, giving it the perfect texture. Also, by allowing it to simmer in the sauce in the slow cooker all day, it makes for super flavorful and saucy tacos. No dry tacos here!
For more delicious taco recipes, be sure to check out these Grilled Chicken Street Tacos, Cauliflower Lentil Tacos and Spicy Shrimp Tacos.
Why You’ll Love This Crock Pot Taco Meat Recipe
- Dump and go: It takes about five minutes to place the ingredients into the crockpot, then you just set it and forget about it until it’s time to eat! It’s a super easy recipe with minimal prep work, and the slow cooking process makes the best taco meat. It’s always tender and juicy!
- Great for a crowd: This recipe makes a big batch, great for entertaining! We like to use this method on game days, family parties, and more.
- Simple ingredients: You don’t need many ingredients to make this flavorful taco meat. The best part is, you probably already have many of them on hand.
- Versatile: You can use this slow cooker taco meat for so many meals including tacos, taco salad, stuffed sweet potatoes, burrito bowls, and more. So many ways to switch it up! We like to use it for meal prep, too!
- High in protein: This recipe contains a good amount of protein thanks to the ground beef which makes it super filling and a great base for so many meals!
Ingredient Notes
- Onion and garlic: For a base layer of flavor. I used a yellow onion and freshly minced garlic, but you could also used garlic paste if necessary.
- Raw ground beef: Use extra lean ground beef, grass-fed if you can find it, for more omega-3s and lower saturated fat content.
- Green chiles: I used mild chiles to make it more kid-friendly, but if you like your meat extra spicy, you can also sub in hot.
- Salsa: Salsa adds a nice kick of flavor and contributes to the overall sauciness of the meat. Use your favorite brand of tomato salsa or sub in homemade if you have some on hand. Use a milder salsa if you don’t like it spicy or sub in a spicier variety to kick up the heat!
- Tomato paste and sauce: These two ingredients incorporate a really rich tomato flavor. Look for a tomato sauce that’s lower in sodium and contains less processed ingredients for a healthier option.
- Taco seasoning: I like to use this healthy homemade taco seasoning made with chili powder, garlic powder, and a slew of flavorful spices. I always try to make up a batch to keep on hand for these types of recipes. If in a pinch, you can sub in a lower sodium store-bought taco seasoning packet.
How to Cook Taco Meat in Crockpot
- Step 1 – In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook the ground beef, onion and garlic until browned and fragrant, about 5-7 minutes. Drain off any excess grease. You can also do this step in the slow cooker if it has a saute function.
- Step 2 – Transfer the cooked meat, onion and garlic to the crockpot and add the remaining ingredients. Stir to combine. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Serve warm on tacos or your preferred way to serve up taco meat!
Scroll down to the recipe card below for the full crockpot taco meat recipe!
Expert Tips
- Use extra lean ground beef to cut down on saturated fat content and to prevent too much of the fat from being released into the sauce when cooking. We don’t want greasy taco meat!
- If preferred, you can add all of the ingredients to the crockpot raw. Just be sure to break up the meat with a spoon once it starts cooking to allow the meat to cook evenly and be fully immersed in the sauce.
- To make this recipe go even further and to add some extra texture, you can add a can of black beans and some corn kernels to the mix as well.
- For even more flavorful taco meat, mix in some of this Hello Fresh Tex Mex Paste!
- You can use a slotted spoon to serve the taco meat if you don’t want as much sauce on your tacos.
Recipe FAQs
This is completely a personal preference. Some prefer to brown the ground beef in a skillet or use the saute function on the slow cooker first as it gives the meat a bit more shape and texture after adding the sauce ingredients. If you’re short on time, however, you can skip this step. I’ve done it both ways and enjoyed it both times. It’s totally up to you!
Yes! This recipe works well in the crockpot or on stove top. To make it on stove top, fry up the onions and garlic in a large skillet and then add the ground beef and cook until no longer pink. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and allow the mixture to simmer over low heat for 25-30 minutes, stirring it occasionally.
If you make this recipe on the stovetop, be sure to stir it occasionally and keep an eye on the pot to ensure that the meat doesn’t dry out. If it becomes dry, you can stir in a little beef stock.
Storage & Reheating Guidelines
Refrigerator: Once you have cooked the taco meat, let it cool to room temperature before transferring to an air-tight container. It will keep well in the fridge for up to four days.
To freeze: You can freeze taco meat either before or after cooking. Add the raw ingredients to large freezer bags or a freezer-safe container.
If you wish to freeze leftover taco meat after it’s been cooked, allow it to cool completely before freezing. Frozen taco meat will keep well for 4-6 months.
To defrost: Allow it to thaw for 24 hours in the fridge and then dump the ingredients in the slow cooker. Cook it for 6-8 hours on low heat.
To reheat: The easiest way to reheat the ground beef is in a pot on the stovetop. Heat it up until warmed through over low heat, stirring occasionally. You can also toss it back into the crockpot and adjust it to the warm setting to reheat the mixture.
How to Use Taco Meat
You can use this crockpot ground beef taco meat in a number of different ways!
Try serving it:
- In flour or corn tortillas
- In this mason jar taco salad
- On lettuce wraps
- On a bed of lettuce for a Mexican salad
- Over tortilla chips for homemade nachos
- With rice and this Mexican three bean salad
- As burritos in large flour tortillas with cheese
- On a sweet potato or baked potato for beef taco stuffed potatoes
Topping Suggestions:
This taco meat is amazing on its own but tastes even better with the following toppings:
- Greek yogurt or sour cream
- Shredded lettuce
- Diced tomatoes
- Salsa (try this jalapeno salsa recipe)
- Sliced jalapenos
- Shredded cheese
- Hot sauce
- Avocado or guacamole or avocado creme
- Corn kernels
Recipe Variations
- Use different meat: Any type of ground meat will work! Try out lean ground turkey or ground chicken to switch it up!
- Add extra veggies: Try adding diced peppers or corn into the mix! You could also try shredded carrot or finely diced mushrooms as a great way to add in some extra fiber and nutrients. Keep in mind that adding vegetables may make the sauce a bit more liquidy, so you may wish to cut back on the tomato sauce or salsa a bit to accommodate the addition of veggies, which tend to have higher water content.
- To make vegetarian: Sub in meatless ground crumbles as a substitute for the ground meat to make it a plant-based option. You can also add some black beans to the mix to make it even more hearty!
- Make it hot: Add some chipotle peppers and/or adobo sauce or a few dashes of cayenne pepper. Just be careful – a little goes a long way!
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Healthy Freezer Crockpot Meals
- High Protein Chili
- Epic Beef Nachos Supreme
- Ground Beef Quinoa Bowl
- Taco Dip with Ground Beef
- Quinoa Chili with Meat
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Crock Pot Ground Beef Taco Meat {with Tomato Sauce}
Ingredients
- 2 lbs extra lean ground beef
- 1 small onion diced
- 3 large garlic cloves minced
- 4 oz can green chiles (mild)
- 1 cup salsa
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 5 tablespoons reduced sodium taco seasoning (can use homemade or store-bought)
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook the ground beef, onion and garlic until browned and fragrant, about 5-7 minutes. Drain off any excess grease. You can also do this step in the slow cooker if it has a saute function.
- Transfer the cooked meat, onion and garlic to the crockpot and add the remaining ingredients. Stir to combine.
- Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours. Serve warm on flour tortillas, on a salad, in burritos or on sweet or baked potatoes.
Notes
- Use extra lean ground beef to cut down on saturated fat content and to prevent too much of the fat from being released into the sauce when cooking.
- If preferred, you can add all of the ingredients to the crockpot raw. Just be sure to break up the meat with a spoon once it starts cooking to allow the meat to cook evenly and be fully immersed in the sauce.
- To make this recipe go even further and to add some extra texture, you can add a can of black beans and some corn kernels to the mix as well.
- You can use a slotted spoon to serve the taco meat if you don’t want as much sauce on your tacos.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in November 2020 and was updated in September 2024 with more helpful tips and photos.
Made this tonight, we all loved it. I did double the taco seasoning. But didn’t add more until the end so I could taste it. It needed a lot more taco flavor. But my kids and husband loved it too!
Awesome! I appreciate the suggestion about doubling the taco seasoning! I just made it again with more taco seasoning, and agree that it tasted even better with the extra taco seasoning, so I’ve updated the recipe card accordingly :) So glad it was a winner with your family!
When you say brown the ground beef on the stovetop, are you fully cooking it? or just browning it to get flavor? (not fully cooking the meat).
Thanks :)
I like to cook the ground beef to a point where it starts to release the grease so that I can drain it off. Technically, you can cook the beef in the slow cooker from an uncooked state, but I find that the taco meat turns out a bit greasy if you don’t cook the beef a bit first and drain off the fat. Hope that helps! Keep me posted on how it turns out if you decide to try it out :)
Thanks Elysia for this great recipe! So good and it lasts for other meals as well. It’s also good served with rice! This is one of my favourites!♥️
So glad that you’ve been enjoying the taco meat! I agree, it’s so versatile. Always a favourite in our house too!