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Perfect Never-Dry Slow Cooker Ground Beef Tacos

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This slow cooker ground beef taco meat stays tender and juicy without browning first. Just dump the raw beef into the slow cooker with simple pantry ingredients and let it cook low and slow for a hands-off, crowd-pleasing dinner.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 pounds ground beef (80/20 or 85/15 works best)
  • 1 small yellow onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced (or 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
  • 1 packet (1 ounce) taco seasoning (McCormick or Old El Paso preferred)
  • 1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth (or chicken broth)
  • 1 can (4 ounces) diced green chiles, undrained
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 12–16 taco shells (hard or soft, for serving)
  • Shredded lettuce (for serving)
  • Diced tomatoes (for serving)
  • Shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese (for serving)
  • Sour cream (for serving)
  • Salsa or pico de gallo (for serving)
  • Fresh cilantro, chopped (for serving)
  • Lime wedges (for serving)

Instructions

  1. Prep the aromatics: Dice the onion and mince the garlic.
  2. Combine everything in the slow cooker: Add the ground beef directly to the slow cooker insert. Break it up gently with a wooden spoon. Add the diced onion, minced garlic, taco seasoning, beef broth, undrained diced green chiles, tomato paste, smoked paprika (if using), cumin, salt, and pepper.
  3. Mix thoroughly: Stir everything together until the seasoning and tomato paste are evenly distributed.
  4. Cook low and slow: Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or HIGH for 3-4 hours. About halfway through, give it a quick stir to help the meat break into smaller pieces.
  5. Break up the meat: About 30 minutes before serving, use your spoon to break the beef into your desired crumble size. Taste and adjust salt or seasoning if needed.
  6. Drain (if necessary): If there’s more liquid than you’d like, use a slotted spoon to serve, or tilt the slow cooker and spoon off excess fat.
  7. Keep warm: Switch the slow cooker to the ‘Warm’ setting until ready to serve. The meat will stay juicy for up to 2 hours on warm.

Notes

For best texture, avoid extra-lean ground beef (93/7 or leaner). The fat keeps the meat moist. If using homemade taco seasoning, use about 3 tablespoons and adjust salt accordingly. This recipe can also be made with ground turkey (93/7) by adding 1 tablespoon of olive oil and reducing cooking time to 4-5 hours on LOW. The meat freezes well for up to 3 months.

Nutrition

Keywords: slow cooker ground beef tacos, never-dry taco meat, easy taco recipe, slow cooker taco meat, juicy ground beef tacos, no-browning taco meat

Find it online: https://elvafood.com/perfect-never-dry-slow-cooker-ground-beef-tacos/