Ground beef is spiced with homemade taco seasoning and stuffed into crunchy taco shells with all the fixings. These Ground Beef Tacos are one of my favorite weeknight meals!

This is one of those fallback recipes where no matter how tired you are, it’s pretty easy to pull this together for dinner.

Ground Beef Tacos - on Wooden Board with Cheese, Salsa, and Lettuce

It only takes 15 minutes to cook, and it always tastes awesome when you put it together with cheese, tomatoes, and more toppings of your choice.

Whenever we have a big group of family over, it’s one of the regular recipe options that I go to. I’ll often double the recipe to make a big batch of taco meat, and set it out on the counter with all the fixings around it.

That way everyone puts together their own plates, and it’s pretty low-stress.

Not to mention, the taco meat is really delicious and nearly everyone loves tacos!

Ground Beef Taco Recipe - Served Stuffed Into Hard Shells with Tomatoes, Cheese, and Sour Cream

How to Make Ground Beef Tacos:

To start, heat oil in a nonstick skillet and add red onion and salt:

Diced Red Onion in Skillet with Oil  

Cook for about 5 minutes, to soften the onion slightly. Then add minced garlic:

Softened Diced Red Onion in Skillet with Oil and Garlic

Stir for 30 seconds until the garlic is fragrant, then add a pound of ground sirloin beef, seasoned with salt and pepper:

Brick of Ground Beef Added to Skillet

Brown the beef for a few minutes, breaking the meat into small clumps with a spatula. Then add two tablespoons of taco seasoning:

Ground Beef Taco Seasoning On Top of Ground Sirloin

I use a Homemade Taco Seasoning mix for my tacos.

The flavor is off the charts and I like it so much better than the store-bought stuff!

Homemade Taco Seasoning - In White Bowl on Wooden Board

Keep cooking the beef for another couple minutes, until no pink remains in the beef:

Ground Beef in Skillet Seasoned with Taco Seasoning

Finally, add a cornstarch slurry (just water and cornstarch mixed together) and a touch of tomato paste:

Ground Beef in Skillet Seasoned with Taco Seasoning with Cornstarch Slurry Added and Tomato Paste

This step is optional in some ways, but I love that it makes the ground beef a little bit saucy, which you can see:

Saucy Ground Taco Meat in Skillet with Spatula

It’s just a touch. The meat won’t drip or anything, but it will be very flavorful and moist.

Serve the taco meat in the shells of your choice, whether hard or soft, and add your favorite toppings.

Tacos in Crunchy Yellow Corn Shells on Wooden Board

I love hard taco shells, and often buy these blue corn taco shells (affiliate) from my grocery for a more fun color. Soft shells work well too.

Just make sure you follow the instructions for warming up the taco shells you use.

Usually the hard taco shells are stale right out of the package, and have to be heated in the oven for a few minutes to crisp up.

Guacamole, Jalapeño Tomato Salsa, and Mexican Street Corn Salad with Black Beans are great sides for making the meal even better. Enjoy!

Ground Beef Tacos on Wooden Board with Cheese, Salsa, and Lettuce

Ground Beef Tacos

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Ground beef is spiced with taco seasoning and stuffed into crunchy taco shells with all the classic fixings.
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Ingredients

For the tacos:

  • 1 tbsp avocado oil (or other neutral oil of choice)
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion (red, yellow, or white onion all work)
  • 1 tbsp minced garlic
  • 1 lb ground sirloin (90/10, which means 90% lean/10% fat)
  • 2 tbsp taco seasoning
  • 1/2 tsp cornstarch whisked with 1/4 cup of water
  • 1 tbsp tomato paste
  • taco shells for serving
  • salt
  • black pepper

Topping ideas:

Instructions 

  • In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat, and add the onion. Season with 1/8 tsp salt, and cook for 5 minutes until slightly softened.
  • Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant.
  • Turn the heat up to medium high and add the ground beef. Season with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp black pepper, and brown the beef for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently.
  • Add the taco seasoning, and keep cooking for 2-3 minutes, until no pink remains in the beef.
  • Add the cornstarch water slurry and the tomato paste, and cook for 3 more minutes, until the cornstarch thickens the liquid in the pan. Taste the beef, and make any necessary adjustments with salt and pepper before removing the skillet from the heat.
  • Serve the ground beef in taco shells with the toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 252kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Protein: 21g, Fat: 17g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 77mg, Sodium: 213mg, Potassium: 375mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 185IU, Vitamin C: 1.5mg, Calcium: 17mg, Iron: 2.6mg

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Author: Fifteen Spatulas

Post updated in June 2019. Originally published May 2012.