Description
Hearty taco casserole brings layers of Mexican-inspired comfort to dinner tables everywhere. Spicy ground beef, melted cheese, and crisp tortilla chips create a delicious one-pan meal you’ll crave again and again.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb (454 g) ground beef (or ground turkey)
- 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (cheddar, Monterey Jack, or pepper jack)
- 8 small corn tortillas (or 4 large flour tortillas, cut in halves)
- 1 can (15 oz / 425 g) black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 can (10 oz / 283 g) diced tomatoes with green chilies (Rotel)
- 1 cup frozen or canned corn (drained)
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 packet (or 2 tbsps) taco seasoning
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup sour cream (optional)
- Diced tomatoes
- Chopped cilantro
- Sliced jalapenos
- Sliced avocado
- Salsa
Instructions
- Layering Foundation: Meticulously line the baking dish’s bottom with tortillas, creating a robust base that will support the subsequent flavor-packed layers.
- Beef Infusion: Evenly spread the seasoned beef across the tortilla foundation, ensuring complete coverage and a uniform distribution of robust, spicy notes.
- Cheese Cascade: Liberally blanket the beef with a generous layer of shredded cheese, allowing it to melt and create a luscious, creamy texture that binds the ingredients.
- Strategic Stacking: Carefully position additional tortillas over the cheese layer, mirroring the initial base structure and building a multi-dimensional culinary landscape.
- Flavor Intensification: Replicate the beef and cheese layering process, constructing height and deepening the flavor profile with each carefully crafted stratum.
- Creamy Intervention: Strategically dot sour cream between layers, introducing cool, tangy pockets that contrast beautifully with the warm, spiced beef.
- Finishing Touch: Crown the casserole with a final cheese sprinkle, guaranteeing a golden, bubbling surface that promises a visually appealing and mouth-watering result when baked at 375°F for 25-30 minutes until the cheese melts completely and edges turn crisp and golden.
Notes
- Prevent Soggy Bottom: Layer tortillas tightly without gaps and pat them dry to avoid moisture buildup that could create a mushy foundation.
- Maximize Flavor Depth: Toast beef seasonings in the pan before adding meat to enhance spice complexity and develop richer taste profiles.
- Cheese Melting Technique: Use room temperature cheese and shred it freshly for smoother, more even melting across casserole layers.
- Dietary Flexibility: Swap beef with ground turkey or plant-based crumbles for lighter protein options; use low-fat cheese for reduced-calorie version.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Mexican
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 7
- Calories: 420
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 600 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 38 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 28 g
- Cholesterol: 80 mg