Texas Tacos

Name: Texas Tacos
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 10 servings.
Ingredients: 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef (90% lean); 1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped; 1 small onion, chopped; 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, drained; 1-1/3 cups frozen corn, thawed; 1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce; 2 tablespoons chili powder; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 package (8.8 ounces) ready-to-serve brown rice; 20 taco shells, warmed; Optional toppings: shredded lettuce, chopped fresh tomatoes and reduced-fat sour cream

I created this recipe by combining a bunch of ingredients I know my kids always like. It's perfect for making ahead and I often keep the beefy mixture in a slow cooker on warm so the kids can simply stuff into taco shells after an afternoon of rigorous soccer practice. —Susan Scully, Mason, Ohio

Ingredients

1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef (90% lean)
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, drained
1-1/3 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 package (8.8 ounces) ready-to-serve brown rice
20 taco shells, warmed
Optional toppings: shredded lettuce, chopped fresh tomatoes and reduced-fat sour cream

Directions

In a Dutch oven, cook beef, red pepper and onion over medium heat 8-10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink and vegetables are tender, breaking up beef into crumbles. Drain.
Stir in tomatoes, corn, tomato sauce, chili powder and salt; bring to a boil. Add rice; heat through. Serve in taco shells with toppings of your choice.

Test Kitchen Tips

This meat mixture freezes beautifully. Make a big batch and freeze individual portions in plastic bags to thaw on the fly.

Skip the shells and serve this over a bed of lettuce for a tasty taco salad. Top with crushed tortilla chips if you love that crunch!

Nutrition Facts

2 tacos (calculated without optional toppings): 294 calories, 11g fat (4g saturated fat), 42mg cholesterol, 420mg sodium, 30g carbohydrate (3g sugars, 3g fiber), 17g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 2 starch, 2 lean meat.

Originally published as Texas Tacos in Simple & Delicious August/September 2013

Reviews

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Average Rating:

I_Fortuna

Oct 12, 2017

Looks look just about anything qualifies as Tex-Mex these days. Of course these are not Mexican.However, they are probably good. Kudos for leaving out packaged taco seasoning. These are more like Emeril's Italian tacos. And, where is the cumin and Mexican oregano? And, what is a medium sweet red pepper? There are so many kinds of peppers, perhaps the recipe could be more specific.I have to say, our Mexican family that live in Texas have never heard of this type of taco either in Texas or Mexico. But, everything is fusion these days. Many people north of the border make tacos and enchiladas in some very unauthentic or traditional ways. Seems people make it up as they go along trying to reinvent Mexican food.
hkpepin

May 24, 2017

My husband and I really liked these. They came together very quickly, always nice, and had plenty of flavor. I skipped the rice, mostly because I didn't have it in instant and I skipped the diced tomatoes because I felt they weren't necessary. I was right. I added some salsa instead for a little more heat. I would make this again, but probably still skip the rice. I liked the corn and peppers in the taco mix.
bratzygal

Mar 29, 2017

This was good, but not really "Texas Tacos". I've never eaten tacos that had corn or rice in them even when visiting Mexico. However as I stated, this was good. But hey, what ever floats your boat, right!
Grammy Debbie

Oct 3, 2013

Great, tasty, filling recipe. I was telling my daughter about it and she said my grandsons (5 and 2) would love it, so I've promised to make it for them soon. I actually just threw about a cup of minute rice into the skillet with the other ingredients after browning the hamburger, onion and pepper and it cooked right along without having to dirty up another pan. Thank you for sharing the recipe.
jeppsnorman

Aug 2, 2013

Delicious, easy to make - better than the taco packets/seasoning!