Slow Cooker Taco Soup
Slow Cooker Taco Soup is made with ground beef, ranch seasoning, black beans, and corn, slow-cooked in a Crock Pot until it is packed full of southwest flavor.
This easy Crock Pot taco soup puts all the classic southwestern flavors into one cozy bowl. With easy prep, you’ll love making it almost as much as your family will love eating it!
The broth is flavored with ranch dressing and taco mix, and then you open up a can of tomatoes, black beans, and corn, a little ground beef and simmer it until all those flavors come together.
We make it in a Crock Pot so we can throw all of the ingredients into it in the morning and have a bowl of delicious comfort food at the end of the day. It’s one of the easiest slow cooker recipes you can make!
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Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s what you’ll need and possible substitutions.
- Ground beef – We use 80/20 ground beef and make sure we drain off the excess fat before adding it to the slow cooker. If you prefer, you could use ground turkey or chicken.
- Onion – Yellow or white onions work well for the soup.
- Ranch Dressing Mix – We make our own ranch dressing mix, but you should be able to find a packet at your local store.
- Taco Seasoning – We use our own blend of taco seasoning, but you could pick up a packet if you prefer.
- Chicken Broth – We highly recommend using homemade chicken broth, but you could use store bought if you prefer.
- Tomato Sauce – You can use your preferred brand.
- Diced Tomatoes with Chiles – You can use your preferred brand of tomatoes with chilies.
- Black Beans – We prefer black beans, but red or kidney beans could also work.
- Corn – We use canned, but you could use frozen if you prefer
- Garnish (optional) – We like to top the soup with tortilla chips, sour cream, and cheddar cheese.
We used a 6 quart Crock Pot for this recipe.
There are no hard and fast rules on what to add to this recipe so if you don’t like black beans and you prefer pinto beans, or kidney beans, then go for it.
Instructions for Crock Pot Taco Soup
Step 1 – Saute the onions. Lightly saute the onions in a large skillet over medium high head for 2 minutes.
Step 2 – Brown the meat. Once the onions have sauteed, add in the ground beef and brown the meat. Carefully drain the ground beef and onions to remove the excess fat.
Step 3 – Add ingredients. Add the ground beef mixture and other ingredients to your 6 quart Crock Pot without draining the corn or black beans. Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 6 hours.
Step 4 – Serve. Ladle the soup into a bowl and add your favorite garnishments.
Toppings for Taco Soup in the Slow Cooker:
This soup smells so good while it is cooking! I love that spicy tex-mex smell. When it is ready you can ladle it into some bowls and garnish it with anything you like. Some of my favorites are:
- Jalapenos, fresh or pickled
- Black olives
- Sour cream
- Shredded cheese
- Pico de Gallo
- Green onions
- Cilantro
- Squeeze of lime juice
Don’t forget the tortilla chips! I like to scoop my soup up with them, or if I’m feeling lazy, I crumble them into the soup like tasty tortilla croutons.
Yes, you can use lean ground beef, ground turkey, or chicken if you prefer. Both turkey and chicken have less fat and are a great source of lean protein. Which you use is really a matter of preference.
Yes, you can make this recipe in the Instant Pot. If you prefer, the Instant Pot, you can easily follow our Pressure Cooker Taco Soup, which has all the instructions you need to make the soup in the Instant Pot..
Yes! You can freeze it before cooking or after. Prepare your ground beef by browning it, add all of the other ingredients and then pour them all into a gallon freeze bag, or any other freezer-safe container that can be sealed. You can do this before you cook your soup or after it has been cooked.
When you’re ready to eat it remove it from the freezer and place it in the refrigerator to thaw for 24 hours. If it was not cooked before freezing pour it into your slow cooker and follow the instructions in the recipe below. If you have cooked it you can heat it up in the microwave, on the stove top, or in your Crock Pot.
How to Make it Ahead of Time
Soups are a great make ahead dish.
You can easily store the soup in individual containers, so you can heat up one serving at a time! For individual portions just microwave for 2 to 3 minutes or heat in a small pot over medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes or until warmed through.
Refrigerator: To refrigerate, allow it to cool completely and then store in a sealed container for up to 5 days. You can reheat the soup by pouring into a large pot and heating over medium heat, stirring often, for 20 to 30 minutes or until warmed through.
Freezer: You can freeze it before cooking or after. Prepare your ground beef by browning it, add all of the other ingredients and then pour them all into a gallon freeze bag, or any other freezer-safe container that can be sealed. You can do this before you cook your soup or after it has been cooked.
When you’re ready to eat frozen soup, remove it from the freezer and place it in the refrigerator to thaw for 24 hours. If it was not cooked before freezing, pour it into your slow cooker and follow the instructions in the recipe below.
If you have cooked it, you can heat it up in the microwave, on the stove top, or in your Crock Pot.
Looking for More Easy Recipes?
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- Chicken Taco Braid
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Slow Cooker Taco Soup
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Ground beef
- 1 medium Onion, diced
- 2 packets Ranch Dressing Mix
- 2 packets Taco Seasoning
- 32 ounces Chicken Broth
- 14.5 ounces Tomato Sauce, canned
- 29 ounces Diced Tomatoes with Chiles, canned
- 14.5 ounces Black Beans, canned
- 1 can Corn
For Garnish (OPTIONAL):
- Tortilla chips
- Sour Cream
- Cheddar Cheese
Instructions
- In a large skillet saute onions for 2 minutes.
- Add the ground beef to the onions and brown the meat.
- Drain browned ground beef and onions to remove the excess fat.
- Add ground beef mixture and all other ingredients (do not drain corn or black beans) to the slow cooker.
- Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 6 hours.
- Garnish with sour cream and cheddar cheese (optional).
Notes
Nutrition
Amazing Taco Soup. I’ve tried several Taco Soup recipes online and this was the easiest and best. The flavor was fantastic!!! I made it exactly as the recipe was written and it was perfect!
So glad you liked it as much as we do!
What is the serving size? A cup? A cup 1/2?
Hi Aimee, a serving size is 8 ounces.
Could you put pico de Gallo in it ??
Yes and yum!
This soup in crockpot now. Smells delicious. Can’t wait to try it !!
I add some spicy ranch and a bundle of cilantro while cooking and hit it with more cilantro at the end, top the bowl with a little cheddar and sour cream. Add a slice of corn bread on the side….. yes sir.