Taco pasta is an all-in-one pan 30-minute dinner with taco meat, tomatoes, beans, pasta and cheese. It's sure to be a hit!
Taco night is an absolute must in my house on the regular. And while I make our go-to turkey tacos every other week, I also like to have other taco themed dinners.
There's chicken taco casserole, shrimp tacos or vegetarian tacos plus baked shredded chicken tacos and turkey taco rice skillet to mix things up.
Obsessed like us? Browse all of our favorite healthy taco recipes. Or check out this fun collection of creative taco recipes.
(And if you love having a category for organizing dinner, check out these ideas for fun theme night dinners. It takes some of the mental load out of planning dinner.)
Today, we're combining a couple of favorites and making taco pasta!
What could be better than your favorite taco flavors mixed with pasta? Not much if you ask me! (Or my kids…)
We've got onions and peppers, seasoned ground turkey, diced tomatoes, black beans, macaroni pasta and of course, plenty of cheese.
Seriously so much YUM in every single bite!
Plus, this is ready in about 30 minutes!
Perfect for a weeknight dinner that will have the whole family running to the table.
OK, let's get cooking.
Ingredient Notes:
Peppers: You need 2 bell peppers and they can be any color or combination of colors: green, orange, yellow or red.
Turkey: I use a 93% lean ground turkey for this taco pasta. Ground beef could be substituted, but you may need to drain off any excess grease.
Taco seasoning: I use and prefer homemade taco seasoning, but it's fine to substitute store-bought if you prefer.
Tomatoes: Fire roasted diced tomatoes give some extra oomph to this dish, but regular diced tomatoes would be fine to use if that's what you have on hand. Petite diced tomatoes would be OK, too.
Beans: Black beans are our favorite, but pinto beans would also work well here.
Pasta: Elbow pasta works great in this recipe because it cooks quickly and is small enough to incorporate in every bite. You could use a different pasta but your cook time may vary and you may need more or less of the pasta.
Cheese: We go with regular cheddar cheese, but Monterey Jack cheese, pepper Jack cheese or a Mexican blend cheese would all be delicious, too. Also, we're stirring half of the cheese into the pasta mixture so every bite is cheesy, and then we're topping our bowls with the remaining cheese.
Spicy: If you want a spicy taco pasta, feel free to add a jalapeño pepper to sauté along with the other peppers. You could also stir in some cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes for some heat. And/or serve this with hot sauce.
See, it's very versatile.
Definitely a recipe you can tweak to make your own.
Oh, and if you want to skip the onions and peppers, you certainly could.
Or if you wanted to swap them out for other veggies, I think some diced zucchini would work great here. You could also wilt in some spinach at the end.
(You know me, I'd add ALL the veggies to this if my kids would let me get away with that.)
Finally, just to note, because this stores and reheats so well, taco pasta is an easy meal to make in advance.
Whether that's to have it ready to go for your family on a busy day or to take to a friend, both of which I have done, it works beautifully. (Because it's comforting and family friendly, it's a great option to take to a family in need, such as parents with a new baby or a family post-surgery or during a long illness.)
Alright, there you have it.
Yet another way to make taco night fun and interesting - so it can happen more often!
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
Taco Pasta
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 medium bell peppers, chopped (any colors)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb. lean ground turkey (such as 93% lean)
- 3 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 (14.5 oz) can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups elbow pasta
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
Optional toppings:
- Shredded cheese, avocado, sour cream/Greek yogurt, sliced green onions, chopped fresh cilantro, hot sauce, etc.
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and bell peppers and sauté until tender, 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds.
- Add the ground turkey and cook, breaking up with a spatula, until cooked through and no pink remains.
- Add the taco seasoning and stir to mix well and incorporate evenly.
- Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, black beans, water and pasta. Stir well.
- Cover the pot, reduce the meat to medium low and simmer for 10-12 minutes, until the pasta is al dente.
- Add 1 cup of the shredded cheese and stir to get it mixed in and melted.
- Serve hot with the remaining cheese sprinkled on top and any desired toppings.
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If you love these flavors, check out this taco mac and cheese casserole and this fajita chicken pasta.
And stay tuned because I'm sharing taco pizza and crock pot taco soup recipes very soon!
Tom says
This is so good!!! Made it three times and always have leftovers that we vac pack for later. Thanks for everything you do.
Kathryn Doherty says
Oh I love to hear that! I'm so happy you love this recipe and I really appreciate you sharing!