Taco Casserole - 9 ingredients & 30 minutes! {VIDEO} - The Recipe Rebel (2024)

This easy Taco Casserole recipe is made with just 9 ingredients and ready in 30 minutes! Make ahead and freezer friendly!

*This recipe has been updated since originally posted — I added a few more ingredients and that add big flavor and made it in a 9×13″ baking dish to serve more people. The photos have not been updated quite yet, but will be shortly!

Today we’re kicking off a new month in my Six Ingredient Suppers series (<– see all of my six ingredient suppers over there), and this month is all about SKILLET recipes!

We’re talking easy, one pan meals, made with just 6 ingredients or less!

If you can’t tell, I’m a little excited.

There have been some awesome 6 ingredient dinners so far, but this month has some of my favorites! I can’t wait to show you what’s in store.

But back to this incredible Taco Casserole, friends.

When I came up with this idea, I wasn’t sure I would able to pack in as much flavor as I wanted with just a handful of ingredients. I had a few leftover tortillas and decided to test it out one night.

I was totally blown away — so easy, and so much flavor! But more than that? The kids didn’t complain once. Which is a pretty big deal around here!

How to make Taco Casserole:

• Start with your tortillas. Open up the bag. Yep, that’s it. Set aside.
• Brown your ground beef and veg — if you can do this in an oven safe skillet, even better because we can keep it to one pan!
• Add your salsa and seasoning, then pour into a bowl so we can use that skillet again.
• Layer tortillas, then beef, then cheese. Do it a couple more times. Add some more cheese.
• Bake for a little while, just until the cheese is melted. If you don’t have an oven safe skillet and don’t want to dirty a pie plate, you can cover the casserole and turn on low heat on the stove until the cheese is melted. Just be careful because you don’t want to burn the bottom tortilla!

Variations on this Taco Casserole recipe:

• Make this Taco Casserole vegetarian — use a can of black beans instead of beef, simmer with the other ingredients and then mash slightly so they stay put in your casserole. You can also just saute an assortment of veggies in place of the beef.
• Make this Taco Casserole gluten free by choosing corn or other gluten free tortillas.
• Make this Taco Casserole dairy free by choose dairy free cheese.
• If you want it spicy, choose a spicy salsa or spicy taco seasoning.
• Feel free to keep the beef and add in extra veg if you want to make it a little healthier.

How to make this Taco Pie ahead:

• You can make this Taco Pie ahead and refrigerate until baking — I prefer not to leave it in the refrigerator more than a day before baking, but it will be good up to 3 days.
• You can make this Taco Pie ahead and freeze — for this I recommend layering the mixture in a pie plate as it is easier to store in the freezer. Cover tightly and freeze flat. Then bake, covered, until warmed through. If you want to cut down on baking time and can plan ahead, remove the casserole and place in the refrigerator a day before you want to serve it.

More easy one pan meals you’ll love:

• Chicken Pesto Pasta
• Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs: Sheet Pan Dinner
• 7 Ingredient Chicken and Rice Bake