Taco Mac and Cheese
Published 4/18/2023
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It’s taco night, and we’re making taco mac and cheese! This recipe is a fun twist on tacos, and is perfect for an easy weeknight meal — ready to serve in 30 minutes!
The BEST Taco Mac and Cheese
It’s taco night! And you’re going to absolutely love this taco mac and cheese. It’s super creamy, packed with all your favorite taco flavors and ready to serve in 30 minutes. The whole family will enjoy it!
why you’ll love it!
- Super flavorful
- Easy to make
- A fun twist on taco night
What is Taco Mac and Cheese?
This taco mac and cheese recipe is full of Mexican-inspired flavors that, of course, include CHEESE. To be clear, this is NOT an authentic Mexican recipe, but rather our humble version of it transformed into delicious mac and cheese form!
try it!
Taco Lasagna
Want another twist on taco night? You’ll absolutely love our taco lasagna!
Featured Ingredients
- Elbow macaroni: we’re going with a traditional mac and cheese noodle for this recipe, but feel free to use any noodle of your choice!
- Ground beef: we are big fans of ground beef. If you aren’t a beef eater you can use ground chicken, ground turkey, or even vegan crumbles!
- White onion: chopped white onion or red onion works great.
- Green bell pepper: any color bell pepper will work!
- Taco seasoning: we used this homemade taco seasoning, but store bought works great too!
- Heavy cream: the heavy cream makes this taco mac super creamy 😀
- Salsa: any kind will do! We prefer a thinner / more blended salsa for this mac.
- Cheese: we used shredded cheddar cheese and shredded Monterey jack cheese. A perfect combo for flavor!
Garnishes
- Sour cream
- Chopped tomatoes or pico
- Cilantro
- Sliced jalapeños
How to Make Taco Mac and Cheese
Prepare Pasta
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions.
Cook groung beef
Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add avocado oil. Add the ground beef and cook until most of the pink is gone.
Add onions, Peppers & taco seasoning
Add the onions and peppers and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add the taco seasoning and cook for an additional minute.
Add salsa & heavy cream
Reduce the heat to low and add the salsa and heavy cream. Bring to a simmer and fold in the cheddar and Monterey jack cheese.
Add pasta back in
Transfer the cooked pasta to the pan and stir so that everything is fully coated in cheese sauce.
Serve & enjoy!
Serve topped with your favorite taco toppings.
Top Tips for Perfect Taco Mac and Cheese
- Make it vegetarian by using black beans instead of ground beef. Cook the onions and peppers, then add the black beans to the seasonings.
- All salsas are different. We used a thin blended salsa in this recipe, because chunky salsa was a bit overpowering texture-wise. The level of spice in will vary depending on the salsa you use.
- Don’t overcook the pasta. No one likes mushy pasta! Overcooked pasta will break apart when folded into the taco sauce.
Storage
Store this taco mac and cheese in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.
Taco Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 8 oz. elbow macaroni
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 lb. 85% ground beef
- ½ large white onion, chopped
- ½ green bell pepper, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning, we used this homemade taco seasoning
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup salsa, any kind
- 8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese, ~2 cups
- 4 oz. shredded Monterey jack cheese, ~1 cup
Garnish
- sour cream
- chopped tomatoes or pico
- cilantro
- sliced jalapeños
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package instructions. About 7 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add avocado oil. Add the ground beef and cook until most of the pink is gone. About 3 or 4 minutes.
- Add the onions and peppers and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add the taco seasoning and cook for an additional minute.
- Reduce the heat to low and add the salsa and heavy cream. Bring to a simmer and fold in the cheddar and Monterey jack cheese.
- Transfer the cooked pasta to the pan and stir so that everything is fully coated in cheese sauce.
- Serve topped with your favorite taco toppings.
Tips & Notes
- Make this vegetarian by using black beans instead of ground beef. Cook the onions and peppers, then add the black beans to the seasonings.
- All salsas are different. We used a thin blended salsa in this recipe. The level of spice in this will vary depending on the salsa you use.
Watch It
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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