Easy Best Taco Meat Recipe - Zesty and Delicious - Gonna Want Seconds (2024)

FAQs

Easy Best Taco Meat Recipe - Zesty and Delicious - Gonna Want Seconds? ›

Tips for Making the Best Taco Meat

If you prefer your taco meat a little spicier, add in a pinch of cayenne pepper or some red pepper flakes. If you like a more earthy flavor, add a few extra pinches of cumin. If you like it smoky, try adding ancho chili powder or smoked paprika.

Tips for Making the Best Taco Meat

If you prefer your taco meat a little spicier, add in a pinch of cayenne pepper or some red pepper flakes. If you like a more earthy flavor, add a few extra pinches of cumin. If you like it smoky, try adding ancho chili powder or smoked paprika.

Not enough people use cilantro. Iceberg lettuce can be refreshing in a burrito, but when it comes to tacos, cilantro, onion and lime are king. I know Tex-Mex enthusiasts love their dairy on a taco. Big pinches of cheddar cheese that lack flavor or the ability to melt.

Boiling ground beef is the best way to cook it so that it comes out in small, fine crumbles. Trust me, this is the secret to all those amazing tacos and pasta sauces at your favorite restaurant! It's also a healthier option, because the boiling process helps separate the fat from the meat, and it comes out quite lean.

When the meat is still a little pink, add in the peppers, onions, garlic, and jalapeño. Continue cooking until meat is completely cooked through. Add the spice mixture, cilantro, and ½ cup water.

Intensify the flavors of meat, poultry and fish with high-heat cooking techniques such as pan-searing, grilling or broiling, which help to brown meat and add flavor. Just don't overcook, burn or char meat. Roast veggies in a very hot (450°F) oven or grill for a sweet, smoky flavor.

Beef tastes great when seasoned with oregano, rosemary, sage, garlic or a combination of these seasonings. Poultry gets an added burst of flavor with spices like paprika, lemongrass and saffron. Fish can be made more flavorful with dry mustard powder, thyme and turmeric.

Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants boil raw ground beef with water and seasonings until cooked through to achieve a super fine texture, and the aforementioned Maid Rite sandwiches (aka Loose Meat Sandwiches, which are NOT Sloppy Joe's!) use steam to keep the cooked ground beef soft after cooking.

What you're doing when you add water is helping the cornstarch create a smooth sauce flavored with the spices. The heat then activates the cornstarch, thickening the mixture.

Do you add onions before or after ground beef? ›

Add onions or other chopped seasoning vegetables about 2 to 3 minutes before the beef is ready, or cook them separately. When the pan is hot, add about 1 to 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef. Use a spatula or wooden spoon to break the ground beef up into smaller pieces as it cooks.

Once the beef is cooked, you want to cook it with the seasoning and liquid on medium low and just until the sauce starts to thicken. Keep an eye on it so it doesn't dry out. Heat up the tortillas before adding the ground beef on top. You can heat them up in the microwave, oven or on a skillet for 1-2 minutes per side.

To cook ground beef with peppers and onions, there are two good options. You can start by sautéing the peppers and onions in oil or butter until the peppers are soft and the onion is translucent, then add the ground beef and continue to cook together.

Once the beef has rendered its fat, it's time to generously add your mix of seasonings — granulated garlic, granulated onion, ground cumin, and cayenne powder. These seasonings absorb the rendered fat, bloom, and beautifully transform the beef.

Mix the seasoning into the meat before cooking!

To get the most seasoning flavor in your taco meat, mix it into the meat and let it rest in the fridge like you would ground sausage. This also helps keep more moisture in the meat because you risk squeezing the juices out of the meat when you mix it in after it's cooked.