Taco Pasta
Taco Pasta is creamy, spicy and an easy Italian meets Mexican dinner. I love making this pasta when I want the whole family to be happy. A great recipe for those busy weeknights full o taco flavor in a nice creamy sauce.
EASY TACO PASTA
Lately it’s been an all out drag down fight to get my kids to eat dinner.
I gave up. I told my husband, “I think I’m boycotting cooking dinner this week.”
But then I made this pasta. Two of my kid’s favorite things in one dinner. Sure to be a hit. It’s like a Mexican version of Hamburger Helper.
The other tip for success is to make sure your kids are starving. Or if you don’t have kids make sure your husband is starving.
Usually as I’m making dinner, the kids are ambushing the refrigerator without me looking (no wonder they never eat). But this time my husband had them outside in the hot tub for a pre-dinner swim.
Dinner was silent. Everyone was busy eating. It was fabulous. And my barely two-year-old ate more than my husband and I put together. My oldest son said that the pasta shells looked and tasted like miniature tacos.
This meal comes together really quickly and doesn’t require the oven so it doesn’t heat up your house. A-hem. Parents 1 – Minions 3.
This easy recipe is versatile and a great way to switch up taco night. You can use any type of pasta here really and bulk it up with some black beans or sprinkle it with your favorite taco toppings.
OTHER TACO RECIPES:
- Taco Salad Pasta
- Taco Lasagna
- Walking Tacos
- Taco Pizza Rolls
- Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Salsa
- Taco Pasta Salad
- Taco Party Bread
- Easy Taco Pasta Casserole
Taco Pasta
This Taco Pasta is creamy, spicy and an easy Italian meets Mexican dinner. I love making this easy pasta dish that the entire family loves.. A great way to switch up Taco Tuesday.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
- 8-12 ounces medium pasta shells or other small dry pasta shapes (about 3-4 cups dry)
- 1 small onion chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 (14 ounces) can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies drained (if making this for kids you might want to use just plain diced tomatoes)
- 1 packet of taco seasoning (4 tablespoons)
- 3 ounces cream cheese
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
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Cook pasta according to the package directions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water. Set aside.
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Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the ground meat over medium-high heat until no longer pink. A few minutes before the meat is cooked through, add the chopped onion to the skillet. Once the meat is cooked through, mix in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add in the diced tomatoes and taco seasoning and let simmer over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes.
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Stir in the cream cheese, sour cream and reserved pasta water, and continue stirring until the cream cheese is melted and the sauce is well blended. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer over medium-low heat 3-5 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit if it is still too thin. Add the cooked pasta a little at a time to the ground beef mixture. You may not need all of it. Stir to coat.
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Toss in the cilantro right before serving for some fresh color and flavor. Serve with a green salad.
Recipe Notes
slightly adapted from Fake Ginger
We really enjoyed this. I had a lot of leftover taco meat from an event, so used it to make this. The only change I made was to add about 4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese.
So glad you liked it!
I added a can of black beans, it was amazing. Everyone loved it
Yay!
Made this with pre seasoned ground turkey…AMAZING!
Can this be served hot or cold? Looks delicious! If it’s good cold, it would be a great make a head meal or salad.
This one is served hot but I have not tried it cold.
Delicious! Made a small amount for one and used jalapeño cream cheese. The cilantro made all the difference.
Ooh sounds amazing.
Made this tonight for dinner. Easy to make while the pasta is cooking. My husband loved it, even had seconds. Definitely adding to my monthly rotation.
Thank you Emme! That makes me happy!
This was so easy to make and sooooo good! Highly recommend
how much water did you use. it says to add reserved pasta water but not how much
never mind found it
I made this for me and my picky boys one evening and we absolutely loved it! Have been following you and using your recipes for years now and I finally drop a comment. This has become one of our favorites….thanks!!
Thank you Glenda.I’m glad they approved!
no comment at this time.
I’ve been making this for years, my favorite recipe of yours!
Aww thanks!
This is one of our all-time favorite recipes! Any chance you’ve made it in an Instant Pot?
I got brave and tried it myself! Here’s how I made it in the Instant Pot:
* Set Instant Pot to Saute and add about a tablespoon of oil (I used olive). When it is heated, add diced onion and saute until it starts to soften.
* Add the ground beef and cook until browned. Drain grease if needed (I only had very lean beef, so it wasn’t necessary, but ordinarily I would). Turn off the Instant Pot.
* Add taco seasoning, a tsp of garlic powder (I’m sure you could use fresh and just saute it a minute or two with the meat. I just didn’t have any), 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper, and about a Tbsp or two of tomato sauce from an 8oz can. Mix ingredients well.
* Add uncooked pasta (I only had bowtie available) on top of the meat mixture. Don’t stir.
* Add the rest of the 8oz can tomato sauce, 14oz can undrained diced tomatoes (with chilies for spicier dish, but we typically just use diced tomatoes), and 3 cups water. Don’t stir.
* Put the lid on the pot, set it to Seal. Select Manual (make sure it is on High) for 5-6 minutes (I did 5, checked it, and added another minute).
* Quick release pressure, remove the lid, and add the 3oz cream cheese (cut in smaller cubes), and 1/2 cup sour cream. Stir until cheese is melted. Add cilantro if using.
There ya go! So, so easy! Not that the original way was hard haha, but nice to be able to have all the mess in one pot and feel like I can walk away for a bit. I was worried it was going to taste too tomato-y with the tomato sauce and definitely without green chilies, but it turned out great and was still the taco pasta we love! Thanks for the original recipe. 🙂
Thanks for testing this out and for the detailed instructions.
No but people have done it in the comments.
Wasn’t what I expected…
What were you expecting?
Good question!
Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate yoou writing this article and the rest
of the site is also really good.
Hello! I’ve been reading your website for a lonjg time now and
finally got the courage to go ahbead andd give you a shout out
from Huffman Texas! Just wanted to tell you
keep up thhe good work!
Thank you!
Just made this for the first time. Think it just might replace boring old tacos on Taco Tuesdays. Think I might add a little shredded cheese and black olives on top. Thanks.
Ooh that would be great!
Do you drain the meat after browning? Or do you keep all the juices in? This is making me soooo hungry! haha
I always drain the meat.
Found this recipe on Pinterest and loved it immediately. Made a giant pot for a family picnic and practically had to pry the empty pot out of their hands so they wouldn’t lick it clean. Thanks a bunch
Haha. Love hearing that!
You are an excellent writer, typist, and blogger (assuming you do your own work). Your recipes are as delicious as they are easy to make! This is an incredible combination. I made this for my soon-to-be wife and added some cheap canned nacho cheese. She; well. Lets keep this food chat clean ;).
I truly wish you the best,
Jake K.
Oh geez Jake. Haha. Glad to know it went over well. Yep. I do everything here!
Made this tonight for my family which includes a couple of picky minions. Happy to say that they both loved it! I used Rotel and forgot to drain it so I just left the pasta water out. It still turned out great! Thanks for sharing!
I think Rotel would be perfect. Glad your minions liked it too!
Hi Christy, I finally wanted to drop you a note in regards to the Taco Pasta recipe – ever since I saw it on your blog and made it for the first time, it has been a staple in our rotation. It is absolutely addicting. Now, I am a huge Cooking Light fan and therefore can’t leave any recipe alone: I use Neufchatel cream cheese and reduce the sour cream to a 1/4 cup plus 1/4 cup of 1% milk. The dish remains very creamy and oh-so yummy but I feel I lightened it up a little bit. I also mix the ground beef with ground pork (about half and half) 🙂
Thank you so much for sharing – this one is a family favorite!
Susanne
Susanne,
Thank you so much. I’m sure we all need it lightened up a bit and I want to try it your way soon.
This was so good, and easy to make! Hubby and I devoured it, I followed the recipe exactly but added some corn, and served it with diced fresh jalapeños, shredded mexican cheese, and tortilla chips that we crushed on top! Thanks for the delicious recipe!
I made this into a vegan dish using veggie ground and tofutti sour cream and cream cheese. Absolutely fantastic!!