Easy Taco Soup – Kalyn’s Kitchen

posted by Kalyn Denny on October 6, 2021

For this Easy Taco Soup recipe I cut down on the beans and used more ground beef to make it surprisingly low in net carbs! If you’d prefer a no-bean Taco Soup, see the link to my Instant Pot Low-Carb Taco Soup; both these soups are equally delicious!

PIN Easy Taco Soup to make it later!

There are some recipes that become favorites just because they’re simple and use ingredients you usually have on hand, and this Easy Taco Soup that I first made years ago is a family-friendly soup I’ve made over and over for parties. I adapted the recipe from A Pinch of Salt Lake (affiliate link) a classic old cookbook published many years ago by the Junior League of Salt Lake, and my version is equally delicious with fewer carbs.

Almost as fun is eating the soup is the story of how I got the cookbook as a gift from a third-grade student named Nathan. I’d always wanted the book, so when he showed up at school with it one day, I was quite excited. In the honest way kids have he said, “My mom didn’t think she’d ever use it.” Recently I saw Nathan’s mom in the grocery store and we realized it has been fourteen years since he was in third grade, which shows how long I’ve been making this soup!

And I know lots of people love making slow cooker or Instant Pot soups, but when the weather starts getting cooler I love making a pot of soup on the stove. And this delicious Taco Soup only needs to simmer about 45 minutes and it’s ready to eat!

Table of Contents

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

How did I make this recipe lower in carbs?

In this updated version, I cut down the pinto beans to only one can and increased the amount of ground beef, which made this into a taco soup recipe that’s surprisingly low in net carbs!

Want Taco Soup without Beans?

If you prefer a low-carb taco soup without beans, check out my Instant Pot Low-Carb Taco Soup! That soup can also be made on the stove if you prefer.

How to Make Easy Taco Soup:

(Scroll down for complete recipe with nutritional information.)

Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the ground beef, and cook until the meat is well-browned.
Put the meat in the soup pot.
Add the other teaspoon of olive oil to frying pan, add the onions and cook until they’re soft and barely starting to brown. Add the garlic, Mexican oregano, ground cumin, ground Ancho chile, and chili powder, and cook about a minute, until the spices are fragrant.
Add the onion mixture to the soup pot. Rinse out the pan with one cup of beef broth and add that to the soup.
Add the rest of the beef broth, canned tomatoes, and beans to the soup.
Let soup simmer on low 45 minutes, adding a little water if needed.
When the soup is done, stir in desired amount of lime juice. You can also add some Green Tabasco Sauce (affiliate link) if you’d like it a bit spicier!
Serve hot, with things like cheese, sour cream, and diced avocado to add at the table. Corn chips are good in this if you’re serving it to kids!

More Tasty Soup with Beans:

Black Bean and Rice Soup
Chickpea Soup with Spinach, Tomatoes, and Basil
Instant Pot Sausage Soup with Pesto
Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice Soup
Green Chile Turkey Enchilada Soup

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 tsp. + 1 tsp. olive oil

1 onion, chopped small

1 T minced garlic (more or less to taste)

2 T dried oregano (preferably Mexican oregano)

2 T ground cumin

1 T ground Ancho chile powder

1 T chili powder

two 14 oz. cans beef broth, (see notes)

two 14.5 oz. cans petite diced tomatoes with juice

one 15 oz. can pinto beans (see notes)

2 T fresh-squeezed lime juice (more or less to taste)

Optional Toppings to add to the soup:

diced avocado
grated Mexican Cheese Blend Cheese
sour cream
If you’re making this for kids, they’ll love it with Fritos.

Instructions

Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in frying pan, add ground beef and cook until well browned, breaking into small pieces with turner as you cook it. Remove beef to large soup pot.
In same frying pan heat second tsp. of olive oil, add onions and and saute until onions are starting to soften and brown, about 3 minutes.
Add garlic, Mexican Oregano, cumin, Ancho chile powder, and chili powder and saute about 1 minute, or until the spices are fragrant.
Add onion mixture to the soup pot, then rinse out the frying pan with 1 cup beef broth and add that to the pot.
Add the rest of broth, canned tomatoes, and can of undrained beans.
Let soup cook at very low simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding a bit more water if it cooks down too much.
When the soup is done, stir in desired amount of lime juice. You can also add some Green Tabasco Sauce if you’d like it a bit spicier!

Serve hot, with toppings as desired.

Notes

If you don’t have ground Ancho Chile just use more regular chili powder.

You can use 3 1/2 cups homemade beef stock if you have some.

Nutritional information does not include optional toppings.

Recipe adapted from A Pinch of Salt Lake. (affiliate link)

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 371Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 5.8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7.8gCholesterol: 101mgSodium: 913mgCarbohydrates: 18gFiber: 6.2gSugar: 3.6gProtein: 39g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
The new lower-carb version of this soup uses more beef and only one can of beans, which makes it a delicious low-carb soup or check out my Instant Pot Low-Carb Taco Soup if you’d prefer a Taco Soup recipe without beans. That one has also been really popular! With low fat ground beef, this Easy Taco Soup would be fine for any phase of the original South Beach Diet. South Beach would recommend low-fat cheese and sour cream if you’re using those toppings.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Soup Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe was posted in 2006! It was updated with better photos in 2014. In 2021 it was updated with better photos again, and the recipe was adapted slightly to make a soup that’s lower in carbs.