Description
Mexican-inspired Taco Soup delivers hearty comfort in a single pot. Home cooks discover a delicious meal that comes together quickly with minimal ingredients and maximum flavor.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 lbs (907 g) ground beef
- 1 can (16 oz / 454 g) mild chili beans, undrained
- 1 can (15 oz / 425 g) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can (15.25 oz / 432 g) whole kernel corn, drained
- 1 can (14.5 oz / 411 g) stewed tomatoes
- 1 can (10 oz / 283 g) diced tomatoes with green chiles
- 1 envelope taco seasoning mix
- 1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
- 1 can (4 oz / 113 g) chopped green chiles, optional
- 1 ½ cups (360 ml) water
Instructions
- Browning Protein: Heat a Dutch oven over medium flame and thoroughly cook ground beef, breaking it into small crumbles until no pink remains, approximately 7-10 minutes.
- Flavor Foundation: Drain excess fat, then coat beef with taco seasoning, ensuring even spice distribution and depth of flavor.
- Ingredient Assembly: Combine corn kernels, chili and pinto beans, stewed and diced tomatoes with green chiles, ranch seasoning mix, and optional green chile pieces into the seasoned meat.
- Liquid Fusion: Stir all ingredients vigorously, creating a uniform mixture that allows flavors to interconnect and develop complexity.
- Temperature Management: Raise heat to trigger a robust boil, then immediately reduce to a gentle simmer, allowing ingredients to meld and intensify for 15 minutes without a lid.
- Serving Presentation: Ladle the steaming soup into individual bowls and garnish with optional toppings like crisp tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sour cream, or freshly chopped green onions for added texture and visual appeal.
Notes
- Meat Browning Technique: Ensure ground beef is crumbled into small, uniform pieces for even cooking and better texture, preventing large clumps that disrupt soup’s consistency.
- Fat Drainage Strategy: Remove excess grease completely to reduce soup’s heaviness and prevent an oily surface, enhancing overall flavor and healthiness.
- Seasoning Layering Tip: Massage taco and ranch seasonings thoroughly into meat for deep, balanced flavor penetration, avoiding concentrated spice pockets.
- Simmer Secret: Maintain gentle heat during 15-minute cooking to allow ingredients to blend seamlessly, developing rich, complex taste without losing ingredient integrity.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Snacks
- Method: Simmering
- Cuisine: Mexican
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 9
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 5 g
- Sodium: 800 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 1 g
- Carbohydrates: 30 g
- Fiber: 7 g
- Protein: 25 g
- Cholesterol: 80 mg