Taco casserole is a fiesta in a baking dish! With layers of savory seasoned taco meat, crunchy Doritos, and melted cheese, there’s quite a bit to like. I garnish this Tex-Mex casserole with bitter cream, guacamole, lettuce, and tomatoes, similar to an actual taco.
This recipe is a bit like a simplified model of my authentic Doritos casserole. For one more tacky, beefy Tex-Mex dinner, strive my Frito pie and this simple taco pasta.
As we speak’s taco casserole has layers of Dorito crunch and savory taco meat blended with veggies, corn, beans, and a gooey, melty cheese mix. It’s on the desk in beneath an hour and such a enjoyable solution to put a contemporary spin on taco evening!
What Makes This the Finest Taco Casserole Recipe
Crowd-pleasing. I really like that this casserole packs all of the flavors of a taco right into a 9×13” baking dish. It makes cooking tacos for a crowd that a lot simpler! It’s an amazing possibility for a celebration or sport day menu.
Easy elements. The filling is simple to make with just a few of my favourite Tex-Mex-inspired elements. All of them are available in grocery shops and infrequently already within the cabinet.
Large taco flavors. I fill my casserole with juicy floor beef, tender veggies, savory spices, crunchy Doritos, and loads of melted cheese. It’s loaded with taste and all the time successful at any time when I make it for taco evening.
Substances You’ll Want
You don’t want any fancy elements to load up this weeknight casserole with scrumptious, Mexican-inspired taste. I’ve included my notes on what goes into this recipe beneath. Scroll right down to the recipe card after the put up for the printable listing with quantities.
Floor Beef – I like to make use of lean floor beef, however you may also make this casserole with floor hen, turkey, or sausage, corresponding to chorizo.
Onion and Bell Pepper – Yellow onion and any shade pepper you’d like (I exploit crimson), diced up.
Garlic – Freshly minced, or you possibly can substitute every clove with ¼ to ½ teaspoon of garlic powder.
Taco Seasoning – Select your favourite store-bought taco seasoning, like Previous El Paso.
Corn and Black Beans – When you’re utilizing canned beans and corn, drain and rinse them nicely beforehand. You possibly can swap black beans for one more form, like pinto or kidney beans for those who’d like.
Rotel Tomatoes – Rotel comes with diced peppers included. If wanted, substitute canned diced tomatoes and add gentle or sizzling diced inexperienced chilies to style.
Shredded Cheese – I like to make use of half cheddar and half Monterey Jack cheese, however any shreddable cheese will work, like Colby Jack, Pepper Jack, or Asiago.
Doritos – Any taste, or corn chips, calmly crushed (I gently squeeze the bag just a few instances to interrupt them up a bit).
Toppings – Lettuce, onions, bitter cream, avocado, inexperienced onions, or any of your favourite taco toppings. See additional within the put up for extra serving strategies.
The way to Make a Taco Casserole
Let’s get this casserole going. It’s fast and straightforward, with about 5 minutes of hands-on prep. After that, the oven does the remainder! You’ll discover an summary of the steps right here and the complete printable recipe within the recipe card.
Brown the meat and add the veggies.Stir in seasoning, beans, corn, Rotel, and cheese.
Brown the meat and veggies. First, add the bottom beef to a skillet and brown the meat over medium warmth, breaking it up because it cooks. You need the meat to be about half-browned once you add the onions, peppers, and garlic. Prepare dinner the meat till it’s absolutely browned and the veggies are softened.
Add the remaining elements. Stir within the taco seasoning, then the black beans, corn, and Rotel, adopted by about half the shredded cheese.
Layer Doritos and the filling right into a baking dish.High with cheese and bake!
Assemble the casserole. Unfold about 2 cups of Doritos into the underside of a 9×13” baking dish. High this with a fair layer of taco meat, then one other layer of Doritos. Lastly, sprinkle during the last of the shredded cheese.
Bake. Bake the casserole in a 350ºF oven for quarter-hour, till the chips are calmly toasted and the cheese is sweet and melty. Then, scoop and serve!
Recipe Ideas
Depart the Doritos in large-ish chunks. Don’t crush the Doritos up too finely. You continue to need chunks that gained’t soften an excessive amount of contained in the casserole.
Totally different flavors. I really like Dorito’s Nacho Cheese flavored chips on this taco casserole, however you possibly can mess around with different flavors like Cool Ranch, Spicy, and many others. When you’d relatively use plain corn tortilla chips, that works, too!
If the highest of the casserole browns too rapidly, loosely cowl the baking dish with foil whereas it finishes baking.
Taco Casserole Toppings
Identical to a traditional taco, there’s no incorrect solution to costume up your taco casserole. Absolutely anything goes. These are a number of the toppings you’ll discover on our desk on Mexican evening:
Refrigerate. Maintain the taco casserole in an hermetic container within the fridge. The Doritos change into softer over time, so I like to recommend having fun with leftovers inside 2-3 days.
Reheat. I prefer to heat the casserole within the oven at 350ºF and sprinkle in some contemporary crushed Doritos to revive the feel.
Freeze. Freeze the casserole hermetic for as much as 2 months. Thaw within the fridge earlier than reheating.
This simple taco casserole is a fiesta in a baking dish! With layers of juicy seasoned taco meat, Dorito crunch, and melty cheese, it’s loaded with Tex-Mex taste. Simply add your favourite toppings.
1 pound lean floor beef
1 cup yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup crimson bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bundle taco seasoning
1 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15-ounce can of corn, drained
1 10-ounce can Rotel tomatoes with diced peppers
2 cups shredded cheese (I used half cheddar/half Monterey Jack), divided
Add the bottom beef to a big skillet over medium warmth. Break the meat into items and prepare dinner till it’s about half-browned.
Add the diced onion, bell pepper, and garlic to the bottom beef and proceed to prepare dinner till the meat is totally browned and the greens are softened.
Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the meat combination and stir nicely. Prepare dinner for 1-2 minutes whereas stirring always.
Add the black beans, corn, and Rotel to the skillet and stir it nicely. Then stir in half of the shredded cheese.
Place about 2 cups’ price of damaged Doritos into the underside of a 9×13 baking dish.
Spoon the meat combination over the Doritos into a fair layer.
High with the remaining Doritos and shredded cheese.
Bake within the preheated oven for about quarter-hour or till the cheese is melted and the chips are toasted on high.
