Ground Beef Tacos

Beef tacos on a wooden board covered in garnishes such as lime, coriander and tomatoes

5 from 5 votes

These Ground Beef Tacos are loaded with juicy, flavour-packed beef and piled high with your favourite toppings. Easy to make, endlessly customisable and perfect for Taco Tuesday!

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time20

Course: Dinner, Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican, Tex Mex

Servings:

Author: Chris Collins

Equipment

Large, Deep Frying Pan
Wooden Spoon
Sharp Knife & Chopping Board

Ingredients

10-12 Taco Tortilla Wraps, warmed in the microwave (see notes)

Homemade Seasoning (see notes)

2 tsp EACH: Paprika, Cumin
1 tsp EACH: Oregano, Onion Powder, Garlic Powder
1/2 - 1 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp EACH: Sugar, Cayenne Pepper
1/4 tsp Black Pepper

Taco Beef

1lb / 500g Ground/Minced Beef (see notes)
1/2 cup / 120ml Water or Beef Stock, or as needed (see notes)
1 heaped tbsp Tomato Paste (Tomato Puree in UK)
1 tsp Cornstarch/Cornflour, optional (see notes)
Olive Oil, for frying

Topping ideas

Cheese, grated (I like Cheddar)
Lettuce, shredded
Tomatoes, finely diced
Jalapeños, thinly sliced
Sour Cream
Lime Juice + Coriander/Cilantro, to serve

Instructions

In a small pot or bowl, combine the taco seasoning, then place to one side.
Add a drizzle of oil to a large pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the beef and break it up with your wooden spoon until completely browned. Stir in the seasoning and fry for a minute or so, then stir in the tomato paste and fry for another minute.
Add the stock/water, then stir in the cornflour/cornstarch. Simmer and stir until the liquid gets soaked up and the beef is nice and juicy. It shouldn't be watery at all.
I like to serve them unbuilt because it's more fun to have everyone build their own. Just for reference, I stack mine in the following order: beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato, jalapeños, sour cream, then garnish with lime juice and coriander/cilantro. Of course, you can use any toppings in any order, but I do recommend placing the cheese on top of the beef, just so it gets the chance to melt.

Video

Notes

a) Homemade Taco Seasoning - Here I use my Homemade Taco Seasoning for Ground Beef, but you can sub 1x store-bought sachet of taco seasoning. If you're doing that, just make sure you adjust the seasoning afterwards with salt and pepper if you need to.

b) Taco Tortilla Wraps - You'll find these (i.e small and oval) in most supermarkets, often called 'Street Market' tortillas. If you can't find them, just use the smallest wraps they offer.

c) Hard Taco Shells - You can also use hard taco shells if you'd prefer; just heat to package instructions. In the video I actually make my own. To do this, brush each side of your wraps with olive oil, fold over your wire rack (see video) and pop in the oven for 10-15mins at 170C/340F, or until golden and crispy. Take them out and allow to rest for 5 or so minutes; they will actually crisp up as they rest. As every oven/tortilla wrap will be different, timings do vary quite considerably, so just be vigilant past 10mins. These go from perfect to burnt VERY quickly, so increase the temp only slightly (with caution) if they're struggling to crisp.

d) Ground Beef - I usually get beef with around 10-12% fat. This gives a bit more flavour than lean mince (say 5%) but doesn't go oily like fattier beef. If you've only go non-lean beef (say 20%) consider pouring out some of the fat after the beef has fried BEFORE adding the spices.

e) Adding Water/Beef stock & Cornstarch - Firstly, beef stock will add more flavour to the mince, but if you only have water it'll still be great. Secondly, if you're using cornstarch (which will add a glossy kind of gravy to the mince) then use around 1/2 cup of liquid to 1 tsp cornstarch and allow to simmer until it thickens. If you're not using cornstarch, then just add 1/4 cup/60ml liquid and simmer until the water reduces and the beef is juicy.

f) Calories - just the tacos and mince (no toppings), using 1 tbsp olive oil and 10% lean beef.

Nutrition