One Pot Taco Spaghetti is a creamy pasta loaded with ground beef, bell peppers, and taco seasoning that’s ready in less than 30 minutes!
Why We Love One Pot Taco Spaghetti
- Tacos and pasta are the BBFs you didn’t know about. This One Pot Taco Pasta is super tasty with flavorful ground beef and a creamy, cheesy sauce dotted with veggies. YUM!
- I love love love dinners with minimal dishes! Having everything made it 1 pan + plates, a cutting board, knife, and forks is a total win for me.
- You can have dinner on the table in about 25 minutes, start to finish. This is one of m go-to recipes on nights when I don’t know what to cook. It’s always in the clean plate club.
What do I need for taco spaghetti
PASTA: We’re using spaghetti for this one pot pasta. It’s thin and cooks quickly making it great for busy weeknights.
MEAT: I like to use lean ground beef since there’s less grease once it’s cooked and the flavor is better. (in my opinion) That being said 85/15 blend will work just fine too.
SEASONING: All you need is 1 packet of taco seasoning or 4 tablespoons of homemade seasoning. It has all the spices, herbs, salt, and pepper you need.
VEGGIES: Salsa, Rotel tomatoes, and bell peppers punch up the flavor of this pasta. Then garnish with some tomatoes, jalapenos, and/or cilantro. Or grab your favorite taco toppings and try some different combinations.
DAIRY: To make this pasta creamy and cheesy you’ll need sour cream or plain Greek yogurt and some shredded Mexican cheese blend. You could so use cheddar or Colby-jack cheese if that’s what you have in the fridge.
How to Make Taco Spaghetti
Jump to RecipeSTEP 1 Add the olive to a large deep-sided skillet or a large pot. Once the oil is hot, cooked the ground beef until it’s browned, breaking it up as it cooks. Then drain off any excess grease.
STEP 2 To the same skillet you’re going to add the taco seasoning, bell peppers, and Rotel tomatoes with all the juices. Give that a stir.
STEP 3 Add the water and spaghetti to the skillet. You want to spread the past out on the top and then press down a little to submerge it. Bring everything to a boil, turn the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and simmer for about 15 minutes.
STEP 4 Once the pasta is al dente, turn off the stovetop and stir in the sour cream and cheese until it’s melted. Top the pasta with some tomatoes, jalapeno slices, and cilantro, and then dig in!
Tips & Tricks
- If you want to skip using red meat, ground chicken or ground turkey will work just fine for this recipe.
- I’ve only tested this recipe with spaghetti. Other pasta types will change the cooking time and liquid amount needed. I’m not sure how it’ll go, but if you try I’d love to hear so I can share it with other readers. 🙂
- If you have leftovers, you’ll want to add some more sour cream to the bowl to loosen up the pasta back up.
One Pot Taco Spaghetti Recipe FAQ
Can you cook raw spaghetti in sauce?
Yes. The trick to cooking pasta in the sauce is to make sure there’s plenty of liquid for it to absorb. This can mean adding some water to the pot (like we did in this recipe) or making sure that there is extra sauce to soak into the noodles.
Even if the sauce gets diluted with water, it’ll be fine once the pasta soaks up the extra liquid. Just check the seasoning once everything is ready and add a little salt and pepper as needed.
What does simmer taco meat mean?
Simmering is cooking food gently in liquid just below boiling. There are bubbles, but not a crazy amount.
So why simmer taco meat? The ground beef is already cooked, but we want to get all that yummy taco flavor going. By adding the taco seasoning and liquid (ex. Rotel tomato juice or water), the beef simmers and gets a concentrated coating of the seasoning all over as the liquid evaporates.
Other Recipes You May like
- 5-Minute Skillet Tortilla Pizza
- One Pan Beef Burrito Skillet
- Skillet Sloppy Joe Cornbread Casserole
- Sun-Dried Tomato & Balsamic Shrimp Pasta
- Cajun Chicken Pasta
One Pot Taco Spaghetti
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 4 tablespoons taco seasoning (1 packet)
- 1 yellow bell pepper seeded and diced
- 10 ounces Rotel tomatoes
- 3 cups water
- 8 ounces spaghetti
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 cup Mexican cheese blend shredded
- Grape tomatoes halved, for garnish
- Jalapeno sliced, for garnish
- Cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil in a large deep-sided pan (or large pot). Add the ground beef and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Drain any excess grease.
- Add the taco seasoning, diced bell pepper, and Rotel tomatoes (with juices) to the pan. Stir to combine.
- Add the water and spaghetti, spreading the spaghetti out slightly on the top so it’s somewhat submerged, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the pasta is al dente, about 15 minutes. Stir frequently.
- Remove from heat. Stir in the sour cream and Mexican cheese until melted.
- Top with tomatoes, jalapenos, and cilantro, if desired. Serve warm.
Notes
- This recipe was only tested with spaghetti. So I cannot speak to the cook time of other pastas or if they will work.
- Ground chicken or ground turkey can be substituted for the ground beef.
- When reheating, you may need to add additional sour cream to loosen the sauce back up.
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
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