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Home » Easy Dinners » The Best Homemade Tacos

The Best Homemade Tacos

July 1, 2019

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Homemade Tacos are the perfect busy weeknight dinner.  These Easy Ground Beef Tacos are better than take-out and ready in minutes.

2 homemade tacos with traditional toppings

Mexican Tacos

Traditional Mexican beef tacos are made with marinated sliced or shredded beef on soft corn tortillas.  Those are great!  But, that’s not what most Americans think of when we think of classic tacos.

Best Ground Beef Taco Recipe

Most of us grew up eating ground beef tacos in a crispy corn shell or a soft flour tortilla, with lots of toppings.  That’s the traditional taco we’re making in this recipe.  But, we’re not using a pre-packaged taco seasoning mix.  This recipe uses a flavorful homemade taco seasoning.

What Kind of Ground Beef For Tacos?

Lean ground beef is the best beef to use for making tacos because you don’t need to drain off any fat after cooking it. There is just enough fat in the beef to make it super flavorful, but not so much to make it greasy.  Skipping the step to drain the fat makes this a quick and easy taco recipe.

Of course, if you have ground beef with more fat, you can still use it in this recipe.  Just cook the beef and drain off the fat before you add the taco seasonings.

How To Make Tacos

*Note:  The full printable recipe card is at the bottom of this post.

  • Break apart lean ground beef in a skillet over medium-high heat.
  • Add chili powder, cumin, salt, oregano, garlic powder, and pepper.
  • Cook until the beef is browned.

Homemade taco seasoning on ground beef in a skillet

  • Add tomato sauce and water to the meat.

homemade taco seasoned beef in a skillet

  • Cook until some liquid has evaporated, but the meat is still saucy.

Cooked taco meat for homemade tacos

  • Spoon 2 tablespoons of the taco meat into hard taco shells or small soft tortillas.
  • Top the tacos with your favorite traditional taco toppings.

2 classic tacos with homemade taco seasoning and classic toppings

Taco Toppings

  • Shredded cheese
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Chopped tomatoes
  • Diced onion
  • Sliced avocado
  • Sour cream
  • Guacamole

How Much Taco Meat Do You Need Per Person?

If you use the traditional size hard taco shell, or small 6-inch flour tortillas, 2 tablespoons of taco meat per taco is the perfect amount.  This recipe, using 1 pound of lean ground beef, will make 12 tacos.  I tend to serve 3 tacos per person.  So I use 1 pound of taco meat for 4 people.

Watch the step by step recipe video for The Best Homemade Tacos Recipe below.

homemade tacos with classic taco toppings

The Best Homemade Tacos Recipe

The Best Homemade Tacos - Ground beef and homemade taco seasoning make the best taco meat in this classic easy recipe that's better than take out.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Servings: 12 tacos
Calories: 129kcal
Author: Amanda Finks
Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate this Recipe
4.98 from 46 votes

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. 90% to 93% lean ground beef
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/2 cup tomato sauce
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 12 taco shells - either hard shells or small 6-inch soft flour tortillas will work
  • Optional Taco Toppings: shredded cheese shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, diced red onion, taco sauce, sour cream, guacamole, etc.

Instructions

  • Add the beef to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Break the meat apart with a wooden spoon. Add the chili powder, cumin, salt, oregano, garlic powder, and pepper to the meat. Stir well. Cook until the meat is cooked through, about 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  • Reduce the heat to medium. Add the tomato sauce and water. Stir to combine. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 7-8 minutes, until some of the liquid evaporates but the meat mixture is still a little saucy. Remove from the heat.
  • Warm the taco shells according to their package directions.
  • Fill the taco shells with 2 heaping tablespoons of taco meat. Top with desired taco toppings: shredded cheese, shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, diced red onion, taco sauce, sour cream, guacamole, etc.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/12th | Calories: 129kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 265mg | Potassium: 199mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 240IU | Vitamin C: 0.7mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1.4mg
Course Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine American, Mexican
Keyword fish taco recipe, homemade tacos, the best tacos
Pin This Recipe

Try These Great Ground Beef Recipes

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  • Hamburgers
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Comments

  1. Andi Queens says

    August 29, 2020 at 6:58 AM

    5 stars
    My partner liked this recipe when I tried it today. Thank you!

    Reply
  2. Jason Jayanth says

    September 1, 2020 at 10:14 AM

    5 stars
    Very Tasty tacos

    Reply
  3. Anaya says

    September 2, 2020 at 1:00 PM

    5 stars
    Very good will make this for my family tomorrow 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼

    Reply
  4. Kay says

    September 8, 2020 at 2:25 PM

    5 stars
    Iz real good try it peeps

    Reply
    • Linomta says

      December 18, 2020 at 2:49 PM

      It so easy and i love it i wish it was in my mouth 🌮🌮😋

      Reply
  5. Ivette Sullivan says

    September 9, 2020 at 6:21 PM

    My husband and I really enjoyed this taco recipe. So easy and ingredients already in my pantry. Thank you

    Reply
  6. Danielle says

    September 10, 2020 at 8:58 PM

    5 stars
    Perfect everything! My eight year old son and hubby loved this tonight. Lots of flavor, really well balanced taste and consistency! If you prefer spicy you’ll want to up it a bit. This will be my go to for taco night! Thank you 👍🏽

    Reply
  7. Linda says

    September 11, 2020 at 7:49 AM

    5 stars
    These a delicious. I’m in the midst of canning tomatoes from my garden so I used homemade tomato paste instead of sauce. It was so much better than taco seasoning from a mix and was a huge hit with my family. I also made a triple batch of filling, divided into meal-size portions, then tossed them in my freezer. This is a keeper.

    Reply
  8. Lane says

    September 18, 2020 at 9:00 PM

    5 stars
    A little on the greasy side, but SO delicious.

    Reply
  9. Liza says

    October 2, 2020 at 4:13 AM

    I made this last night for my family & some of the meat in an Ezekial 4:19 tacos & the other half in half of a baked potato, along side a yummy collard green dish for hubby & I & carrots for my son. My 5-year-old & picky eater husband loved it! I paired it with chunks of avocado, jalepeno shredded cheese, Forager sour cream, sauteed onions, garlic & yellow bell pepper for the potato & taco & a little bit of melted butter mixed with coconut oil. They cleaned their plates! Definitely a keeper.

    Reply
  10. Margo says

    October 2, 2020 at 5:50 PM

    5 stars
    Very yummy! Made this on Wednesday night for the first time and my husband loved it so much that he requested again for tonight’s night. No more taco packets for us.

    Reply
  11. Tacolicious says

    November 5, 2020 at 3:00 PM

    5 stars
    This looks absolutely delicious! Can’t wait to try it out! Cheers

    Reply
  12. Carlee says

    November 17, 2020 at 7:34 AM

    5 stars
    No need to look for any other taco recipe. This is the one, the only one you’ll ever need. All natural ingredients that you easily have on hand, low sodium and no heartburn. We have taco Tuesday every week and this is our one and only recipe for taco filling.

    Reply
  13. Jill says

    November 24, 2020 at 9:20 PM

    5 stars
    I tried this easy recipe, using meatless ground “beef”, with all the ingredients I have as staples. It is was delicious. So no more using commercial taco seasoning!

    Reply
  14. Therese says

    December 8, 2020 at 1:05 PM

    5 stars
    This was an easy to follow, regular pantry ingredient recipe that tasted great! Thank you for sharing…

    Reply
  15. Dave says

    December 9, 2020 at 12:29 PM

    5 stars
    Very good recipe. I doubled the recipe, added 1/2 chopped white onion, sautéed and processed into a smoother “taco” consistency. The spice to meat ratio is right on, easy to double and freeze for future meals. Much better than taco seasoning packs sold in the store. Well done!

    Reply
    • Laura M. says

      December 29, 2020 at 3:00 AM

      5 stars
      This recipe turned out perfectly. (Next time, though, I’ll add some hot sauce to give it a kick.). Six hours later, My stomach is still reeling with happiness!

      In response to what one person wrote, it wasn’t at all greasy, but I used 5% fat beef.

      Thank you for this simple yet perfect recipe!

      Reply
  16. Nikos says

    December 19, 2020 at 8:20 AM

    5 stars
    Great recipe. but i was expecting homemade tacos. it could easily be a tomato beef with mexican spices recipe. But yeah it looks great !

    Reply
  17. Peg Schoell says

    January 4, 2021 at 6:38 PM

    5 stars
    This recipe tastes a lot better than that taco packet from the supermarket. My only suggestion would be to drain off some of the fat rendered from the ground beef before you add the tomato sauce and water.

    Reply
  18. MARITES Novenario says

    January 11, 2021 at 6:57 AM

    I did this yesterday and I’m surely gonna make it again

    Reply
  19. Monet says

    January 12, 2021 at 8:04 PM

    Best taco recipe ever. Followed step by step delicious. You will not be disappointed

    Reply
  20. Felecia says

    January 15, 2021 at 1:33 PM

    5 stars
    It was the best tacos I have ever had. Thank you so much!

    Reply
  21. Warwick says

    January 18, 2021 at 9:16 PM

    5 stars
    I have made your “The Homemade Tacos Recipe” a couple of times now. It is delicious and easy to make. Your recipe format and Nutrition information is very helpful. I highly recommend this to others. Thanks very much. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.

    Reply
  22. Jeremy Kiefer says

    January 21, 2021 at 5:46 AM

    4 stars
    Overall it is a great basis for making tacos, my only complaint is that a tablespoon of chili powder is a bit overpowering and takes over some other great flavors. In the future I will adjust the amount of chili powder to maybe half of that. Thank you for a solid recipe.

    Reply
  23. Allison Hamff says

    January 25, 2021 at 11:20 AM

    5 stars
    Oh how we LOVE tacos at our house, along with chips and salsa. queso, and guacamole. This is a great recipe that we will use again and again and again. Thank you for sharing it!

    Reply
  24. Sarah Winler says

    January 29, 2021 at 11:20 AM

    5 stars
    good good, but is there a verison for lets say, 10 people?

    Reply
  25. Holly says

    February 7, 2021 at 6:23 PM

    5 stars
    Thank you! So easy and really tasty, will make again.

    Reply
  26. Anne Silverstein says

    February 27, 2021 at 6:30 PM

    5 stars
    Delicious and simple. Much better than the typical packaged product available in the grocery store. I made my own Taco sauce, too, which was ridiculously easy and so much better.

    Reply
    • Anne says

      February 27, 2021 at 6:31 PM

      PS I used ground turkey.

      Reply
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Hi, I’m Amanda Finks –

Amanda Finks, RDN Profile Picture for The Wholesome DishI’m a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living in the St. Louis, MO area. I’m an avid cook, travel nerd, & lover of good food! I’m trained in Food Science & recipe development.  It’s my mission to bring you the BEST recipes your whole family will love!  See More.

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