Taco Soup

As the weather gets colder, it's nice to have something hot to warm up your insides. It's the perfect time to make a big ol' pot of Taco Soup.

Brown a couple pounds of meat with some chopped onions.

Add a couple packs of seasoning.

Add a few cans of this and that. Some of it's kind of hot.

Throw in a little chopped cilantro. It makes everything taste better!

It should look something like this when it's done.

Put some corn chips in your bowls.

And serve up some fresh Taco Soup.

Now, in case you're convinced, here's the recipe...

TACO SOUP

INGREDIENTS:
• 2 LBS LEAN GROUND BEEF
• 1 FRESH WHITE ONION
• 1 CAN DICED ROTEL
• 2 CANS DICED TOMATOS
• 1 CAN WHOLE KERNEL CORN (Drained)
• 2 CANS PINTO BEANS
• 1 CAN RANCH STYLE BEANS WITH JALAPENOS
• 1 PKG TACO SEASONING
• 1 PKG RANCH DRESSING MIX
• 1 "CLUMP" FRESH CILANTRO (OPTIONAL)

DIRECTIONS:
• Chop the onion.
• If you'll be using cilantro, chop it very finely.
• Brown the ground beef with the diced onion in a large soup pot.
• Stir in the taco seasoning and the ranch dressing mix until the meat is evenly coated.
• Pour in all the canned items, continuing to stir and heat.
• If you're using cilantro, put that in last after all the canned items.
• Heat the soup until hot. If you have the time, simmering makes it better.


Variations and Serving Suggestions:

For those who like it spicier, you can “turn up the heat" by substituting more Diced Rotel for one or both cans of the Diced Tomatos, substituting more Ranch Style Beans with Jalapenos for one or both cans of the Pinto Beans, and/or substituting HOT Taco Seasoning for the regular kind.

I like a thick soup and so I drain the water off the corn and leave the lid off the pot to let some of the water evaporate during heating. If you like a thinner soup, you don't have to drain the corn and you can keep the lid on the pot. For my tastes, the leaner the ground beef, the better. If you use ground beef that is not lean, you’ll probably want to drain off the grease after you brown it and before you add the other ingredients. For a wild game version, you can use ground venison or ground wild pork instead of the lean ground beef.

The soup is good poured over Fritos corn chips or crumbled tortilla chips. Try sprinkling grated cheese over the top and letting it melt in with the soup.

This makes, I'd say, about eight good servings. The original recipe didn't include cilantro, but I found that it really adds flavor and highly recommend it! The soup is actually quite a bit better when reheated the second day. So make a big pot and enjoy the leftovers!

Click here for an easy to download and print PDF file of this recipe.