how to make taco seasoning

How to Make the Perfect Taco Bake Casserole

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This Tex-Mex dish makes a quick and easy meal. It won't take you more than 15 minutes to prepare so it's great for any night of the week no matter how busy you are. With a list of simple but tasty ingredients, this dish can be made to meet your tastes with as much or as little taco seasoning as you and your guests can stomach. A taco bake casserole is a cheap, convenient dish that can be made with meat or as a vegetarian meal. There are three basic dishes that can be made from scratch in 30 minutes to feed up to nine people.

Traditional Dish Preparation

The traditional taco bake casserole can be made with one pound of ground beef, 1.25 ounces of taco seasoning, one can of refried beans, two cups of Monterey Jack cheese, one cup salsa, two green onions, one chopped tomato, and one can sliced black olives. You'll also need two cups crushed tortilla chips. To start, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and crush the tortilla chips into the bottom of a casserole dish.

Cooking This Traditional Dish

While the oven heats, brown the ground beef, and then drain away any excess fat. Oil a 12-inch skillet, and then warm over a medium heat. Now add the beef and cook until it has browned completely. Add the taco seasoning at this point and continue to cook the beef, mixing both together. This will take five to seven minutes. It's ready whenever the beef is completely cooked. Now heat beans in a saucepan until they're re-heated, which should only take five minutes. Stir the salsa and half of the cheese into the beans until everything combines.

Finishing the Dish

To complete, layer the beef and beans on top of the crushed tortilla chips in the casserole dish. Now top with the rest of the cheese. Add green onion and black olives as toppings. If you don't like either ingredient, replace with bell peppers before baking the dish for 20 to 30 minutes. You'll know it's ready when the cheese has melted and bubbled up on the surface, so don't cover the casserole while it's baking. Let it cool for one minute, and then top with chopped tomatoes.

Vegetarian Dish

The vegetarian option is made using the same process but you'll need to cook at 400 degrees. You'll roast peppers, corn, and onions instead of ground beef in this dish, and you may wish to use avocado or coconut oil to add some flavor to the peppers, onions, and corn while they cook together in a skillet. When you've put everything together in a casserole dish cover it with tin foil before putting it in the oven. When it's done cooking, cover with cilantro, guacamole, or sour cream before serving.

Taco Casserole with Pasta

You can also make this dish with pasta. You'll cook at 350 degrees, but before you put anything in the oven cook a pan of pasta. You'll need bow ties, shells, or elbows as they'll retain the sauces you'll be including in this dish. Brown beef and onion over a medium heat, and then add cheese, salsa, tomatoes, and taco seasoning. Now drain the pasta and pour it in with the beef. Stir it all together and then pour everything into a casserole dish, which you cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes, and then take the top off and bake for a further 10.