This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Ground Beef Tacos is one of our favorite weeknight family meals, especially on Taco Tuesdays! I have a quick homemade taco seasoning that I love to use for this recipe so I can cook the taco meat in 10 minutes. Give it a try and it’ll be your new go-to for taco night too!
Homemade taco seasoning
Making taco seasoning from scratch is super easy and can be cheaper than buying the prepared taco seasoning. Here are the spices I include in my recipe. Feel free to also add paprika, coriander, onion powder and crushed red pepper to give it some heat.
- Chili powder
- Cumin
- Garlic powder
- Mexican oregano
- Salt and pepper
I provide suggested amounts in the recipe card below because usually there’s more of the chili powder and cumin compared to the other spices. However, feel free to adjust the quantities, or use your favorite prepared taco seasoning.
How do you make ground beef taco meat
- Place the ground beef in a skillet with olive oil.
- Brown the beef with olive oil and then drain any fat.
- Add the spices along with the tomato paste and water (or tomato sauce)
- Bring the mixture to a simmer and then cook for a few more minutes until the sauce thickens.
And the end result is flavorful juicy homemade tacos that’s ready to be served in less than 15 minutes.
Toppings for Tacos
I like to keep it simple with usually a few different toppings when I’m making these just for the family on weeknights. However, I love having DIY taco bars with friends and family and I usually include the following toppings for tacos:
- Shredded lettuce or cabbage
- Tomatoes
- Shredded cheddar cheese or Mexican blend
- Red onions
- Guacamole (store bought or homemade) or avocado
- Olives
- Jalapeños
- Sour Cream
- Salsa or my Bean Tomato Salsa
Tips for making ground beef tacos
- Be careful not to dry out the taco meat when you add the sauce. Once the beef is cooked, you want to cook it with the seasoning and liquid on medium low and just until the sauce starts to thicken. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t dry out.
- Heat up the tortillas before adding the ground beef on top. You can heat them up in the microwave, oven or on a skillet for 1-2 minutes per side. This makes the tortillas soft, pliable and much less likely to break.
- Add onions to the mixture to make it more savory. You’ll want to cook the onions until they soften before adding the ground beef. It gives the taco meat a deeper flavor, but it’s totally optional. Adding onion powder is a quick easy update as well.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best ground beef for tacos?
I prefer to use 90% lean ground beef for tacos for the best flavor and consistency. If it’s any more lean, it may be too dry. If you use a less lean kind, make sure to drain off the fat after cooking the ground beef, before adding the seasoning.
How can make the tacos low carb?
The actual ground beef taco meat is low carb, so you can use low-carb tortillas or skip the tortillas all together as serve it as a taco salad or in a taco bowl.
How much taco meat do you need per person?
Using a traditional 6-inch tortilla or traditional size hard taco shell, you can use about 2-3 tablespoons of taco meat per taco. That means that depending on how much you load up the ground beef tacos with other ingredients, one pound of beef could serve between 8 and 12 people.
For more Tex Mex recipes:
- Mexican Street Tacos
- Baked Chicken Tacos
- Tempeh Tacos
- Beef Taco Burritos
- Shrimp Fajita Bowls
- Chicken Burrito Bowl
- Walnut Tacos
This is one of those family friendly recipes that is always in our rotation. They kids love, and I love how easy it is to prepare. I’ll often double or triple the recipe when I’m having people over, or to have leftovers for adding to a taco salad lunch bowl.
If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feel good Ground Beef Tacos recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!
Ground Beef Tacos
Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ½ cup water
For serving the tacos
- 8 Corn or flour tortillas
- Lettuce finely chopped
- Shredded Mexican cheese blend or cheddar cheese
- Tomatoes chopped
- Red onions chopped
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in skillet over medium high heat. Add the ground beef and cook until browned, about 5-7 minutes. Drain any fat.
- Add the chili powder, cumin, dried oregano, garlic powder, salt, pepper, tomato paste and water. Stir to combine and continue cooking over medium-low heat until the sauce has thickened, about 3-5 minutes
- Serve warm over tortillas with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and red onions, or your other desired toppings.
Equipment
Notes
- Instead of tomato paste and water, you can simply use tomato sauce.
- Instead of chili powder, you can use paprika.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
This recipe is my go to every time tacos are on the menu for my family. Sometimes I leave out the salt and add a packet of Goya sazón instead. Awesome recipe!!
Yay, so happy you and your family enjoy the recipe!! Thanks so much!
This was excellent. I did omit the salt because I’m not supposed to eat salt. It was still flavorful without it.
Yay, so happy to hear it! Thanks, Sheila!
This is so good, I made this and my family loved it!
Yay, so glad to hear that! Thanks!
I love this idea for Taco Tuesday! Ground beef tacos are always a hit, and having a homemade seasoning that cooks the meat in just 10 minutes makes it even better. Quick, delicious, and perfect for family dinners—this is definitely going on my list to try!
Yay! I hope you and your family like it!!
My go-to beef tacos recipe, great seasoning mix, delicious and easy! Thanks chef
You’re welcome! So happy you like it, Petey!
I will try it and let you know
Yay, I hope you enjoy it!
I made this last night and it will be my go-to taco recipe from now on. They were delicious AND easy.
Amazing! So happy you love the recipe. Thanks, Louise!!
This is the first time I’ve made taco seasoning and it was so much better than the store-bought packages. Everyone loved it!
Aww yay, I’m so happy everyone enjoyed it! Thanks, Kay!!
The beef taco filling was very yummy! A previous commenter mentioned sautéing some onion, which I did. I did find it a bit unusual that the original recipe does not include fresh onion, or fresh garlic. I will add some fresh garlic next time. All that being said, a yummy taco meat filling. Thank you for sharing.
Thanks so much! I’m so glad you liked the taco filling. I like adding some fresh onion and/or garlic occasionally as well!
nice
Glad you liked the recipe, Kendra!
I liked the well-rounded spices added to meat. Lots of flavor. I added a can of Rotel and roasted garlic tomato sauce. Yummy bible study group dinner!!
Yay! So happy you and your bible study group enjoyed!!
Hi Yumna, tried to print your recipe after sending it to my email, which was required; and yet could still not print it out. If you wanted my email, you could have given me an option.
Hi Darlene, you don’t need to provide your email to print recipes! Just scroll down to the recipe card and click on the printer button over the picture of the beef tacos, it will bring you to a new page that you can print from.
If I only have tomato sauce, how much should I use?
You can do a 3:1 ratio of tomato sauce to tomato paste, so 6 tablespoons of tomato sauce!
This taco meat recipe is so good we crave it and cannot stop eating it even by itself. My husband is Mexican and as such, SUPER picky about these things. I always hated package mix as it tasted bitter and none of them were any good. This recipe knocks it out of the park! Absolutely delicious! The only thing I do differently is sauté chopped onions with the olive oil before adding the beef. Delicioso!
Wow, I’m so happy to hear that your Mexican husband approves! What a compliment, thank you!! I love adding sautéed onions occasionally as well. So good!
Absolutely the best!
Thanks, Roxana!
Made this for my family tonight exactly as written (plus the recommended sautéed onion prior to browning beef) and it was a big hit! I doubled the recipe so we can have something else taco-adjacent later in the week. Thanks for a great, simple recipe!
You’re welcome, Amanda! So glad it was a hit with your family!!
What are the measurements for this???
Hi Maribel, you can find the recipe card with exact measurements at the bottom of the page above the comments. Hope you enjoy!
This recipe was simple yet AMAZING! I added a ton of side add ons like pineapple, avocado, onion, tomato, carrot, kale, arugula, shredded cheese, hot peppers and black beans! With small, street taco-style corn tortillas and tortilla shells.
I will repeat and repeat this recipe!
Thank you, Christina! Wow, those toppings sound delicious! So happy you liked the recipe!!
Very juicy and tasteful. Amazing. My mom loved it!
Yay, so happy you and your mom enjoyed these!! Thanks, Ramed!
Very good
Thanks, Zanab!
I would maybe have seasoned the beef before cooking it, just so that it absorbs the flavours better and saute some finely minced garlic too for a little extra flavour.
The gravy/mixture didn’t thicken up for me unfortunately and kind of just turned the beef into a less bouncy, slightly mushy consistency because it just soaked up the juice, which in terms of texture just isn’t really for me
I think next time I’ll try it this way:
-Pre-season the beef / work in spices you like before cooking, salt liberally.
-Pan fry with a bit of oil, drain excess oil like the recipe says.
-Make a hole in the middle for the garlic and once its a bit fried/sauteed, mix it in.
Open to more suggestions!
Thanks for the feedback, Anj! It’s possible your stovetop needed a higher temperature to get the right consistency. Next time, try turning up the heat slightly while cooking the beef. Your other adjustments sound great!
Looking forward to trying this recipe!
Yay! I hope you enjoy!!
Used ground pork instead of beef, turned out delicious.
Happy to hear it worked out, thank you for sharing!!
You do not give specific portions of spices. Why?
Hi, I actually have provided suggested amounts! Scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of the page or click on the Jump to Recipe button at the top of the page. Hope that helps!
I love this
I’m so glad!!
I enjoyed this recipe! I will say, I am not a fan of cumin and know from experience that more than just a little bit will taste overpowering to me. So, even with just a sprinkling of cumin instead of 2 teaspoons, I still found this very flavorful.
Yay! Love that you tweaked the recipe and liked how it turned out!!
I made this recipe for the first time for family taco night. The results are in; this is the most flavorful and delicious taco meat I have ever made. And it was so easy! Now I just need to figure out what to do with the extra tomato paste….maybe I should make more tacos! 🙂
Love this, thanks for sharing!
FYI tomato paste can be purchased at the grocery store in a tube, instead of a can. You can squeeze out just as much as you need for a recipe and recap it. No waste! A game changer when I found this. Mutti is my brand of choice.
I take tomato paste and measure into teaspoon amounts and freezer in ice cube tray. Then when frozen you can put them all in a baggie in the freezer for future use. I have also found it in a squeeze tube.
That’s a smart way to portion them out—what a great idea!! Thanks for sharing!
Scoop out tablespoonfuls of the tomato paste onto a cookie sheet, freeze and then put the cubes into a zip lock bag and freeze!
I just scrape the remaining tomato paste into a ziploc bag, seal it removing the air, spread out the paste inside so that it’s as flat as possible, and freeze it flat. This way, if I need to use less next time I can just break it off.
Thanks for the great recipe, I always use it when I need some quick Tacos!
Of course! So glad you enjoyed this one.
Making these tonight for the second time. I use ground sirloin (96% lean) for tastier meat and less mess, cleanup, etc. Super delicious! The combination of seasonings is the best I’ve had. Making your own taco seasoning is easy and probably healthier without the anti-caking ingredients.
Thanks, Diana!
Very easy and fast to make. Followed w/ all ingredients and instruction and came out soo delicious.
Thanks, Maria!
Made these tonight to rave reviews. I stuck to the seasoning ratio, only substitution was crushed tomatoes (what we had around) in lieu of tomato paste / water. I used a half cup or so, simmered it down and then added more to repeat. Tasted almost like stewed beef, the tacos were juicy and hit the spot with the standard fixings and a generous handful of cilantro.
Awesome recipe, definitely my go-to method for ground beef tacos from now on!
So happy you loved these!
OMG! Best tacos I have had homemade…taste just like my favorite taco place here in TX. I highly recommend this to everyone! I can’t have onions, and all of the bagged taco seasonings at the store include onion powder. So I was thrilled to find this recipe & am sending it to everyone I know! Delicious!
So happy you enjoyed these!
It was good. My son loved it.
So glad to hear!
The seasonings are spot on! I only had 85% ground beef, so I left out the olive oil. Otherwise, followed the recipe exactly, with great results.
Glad to hear!
Came out great!!!
So glad to hear!
These were delicious! Delicious heated up the second and third times too! Never again will I buy packaged taco seasoning. Excellent and Easy!
So happy to hear you enjoyed these!
just made this tonight with 2 pounds ground turkey, very good, but would not put as much cumin as they call for.
Happy you enjoyed it, feel free to always season to taste with my recipes!
This is my second time making this recipe and it’s so delicious!
Thank you so much!
Easy and delicious! I will never buy packaged taco seasoning again!
Thank you so much, Tricia! So happy to hear that you liked the seasoning!
We loved this recipe! So flavorful and delicious. This is a rotation meal, for sure.
Thanks for a great recipe 😊
Thank you so much!
I’m sorry but yes it’s yummy but one pound does not feed 8-12 people.
Hi Frank, the recipe card says it makes 8 servings, meaning 8 tacos in total – so depending on how many tacos each person eats is how many people the recipe feeds. But, you can get 8 tacos out of a pound of ground beef.
This is a great recipe! I added onion and red & green bell pepper to the meat as I was browning it. I’ll definitely be making this again.
Thanks!
Thank you so much. You’re so welcome!
This is a fantastic seasoning recipe, thanks for having it up to share! I caramelized some of my chopped onions and added them in with meat after browning and then added the spices. Am making this again for sure!
You’re so welcome. Thank you for making it!
Made this last night & it was delicious! I didn’t have chili powder & was so happy that the recipe included a swap out with paprika. Also the tomato paste & water gave the beef a lovely deep flavor.
So glad you liked it, Rebecca!
Thinking of having a taco night with a large group of friends and this seems perfect! Do you know if the beef can be subbed with chicken?
Hi Laura, great question! Absolutely you can substitute chicken. I’d do a quick shredded chicken and then season as instructed above. You’ll have to come back and let me know what you and your guests thought of it!
Hello! I’m going to try this for a big group soon! I was just wondering what brand of taco shell do you use?
Thanks!
I like Garden of Eatin’ or Whole Foods 365 taco shells because I like the minimal ingredients used in both without many unnecessary additives. But any taco shells will work!
Very tasty! Didn’t have tomato paste or sauce, so I used ketchup:).
Looks yummy! Can’t wait to try with my Youth Ministry group! 🙂
Thank you! Hope you all enjoy!
Loved this. So easy to make as well
Thank you so much!
Perfect as stated in the recipe. My family loved them. Easy to make too.
Thank you! That’s amazing!
Perfect! Easy! Delicious!
Thank you so much!
I made these for dinner tonight and was very impressed with the flavor and moisture of the beef tacos. My previous tacos have been pretty dry with my homemade taco mixture, but this was easy and delicious. I used 1/2 cup Rao’s tomato sauce instead of the water and tomato paste which worked nicely. Definitely a keeper, thank you!!
That’s amazing! So glad you enjoyed this recipe!!
If I used premade store bought taco seasoning how much should I add?
I’d say roughly 5-6 teaspoons.
This is the best blend I have ever had. Quantities are perfect, no adjustments are
needed. This will be my go-to taco blend. Thank you
Wow, thank you so much! You’re so welcome!!
Yum! We’ve had these tacos at least once a week for about a month. The taco spice is so delicious. We top the tacos with black beans,cheese, black olives, tomato, avocado. I’m going to make Mexican street corn next time and add to the tacos or have as a side. I’m loving the recipes on this site! 😋♥️
That sounds like such a great way to enjoy it, and the Mexican street corn is a delicious idea! Thank you so much!
That’s amazing.I wanna make everday.
That’s amazing.I wanna make everday.
Thank you! Sometimes I wish I could too!
I can’t believe in the result. That’s amazing and yummy. I think everyone should try this recipe. I don’t know how to make a meal as soon as I saw this recipe
Thank you so much
I really hope they do! Thank you so much!
Adding some cooked onions enhanced the flavor and made the tacos delicious.
OH MAN, Yumna!! ANOTHER winner!!! I put mine and my son’s on Romain lettuce, my fiancé will get his on corn tortillas! A LOT of flavor!
Great idea on the romaine lettuce, I’ll try that next time. My husband will stick with the corn tortillas I’m sure.
Some of the best tacos I’ve had. So much flavor!
So glad you liked them!!
These look so delicious, i love beef tacos!