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Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos

May 6, 2016 By Patrick 26 Comments

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Do you ever get a craving for some home cooking that you grew up with?  No matter how  strange or ridiculously processed the cooking happened to be?

Well, these Classic Ground Beef Tacos are for all of you that grew up with a taco night that consisted of taco shells from a yellow box and mystery taco seasoning from a packet.

Whipping up your own ground beef seasoning will give you a reliable taco option that you can use to quickly satisfy a hunger for the days of yore.

Warning: reading our Mexican Cooking Survival Guide can be dangerous. Proceed with knife and fork in hand.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

Chipotle Ground Beef Tacos Recipe and Ingredients

These can also be made muy rapido with very little planning involved, so it’s a perfect go-to meal after a long day of all work and no tacos.

I’ll list everything out using 1/2 lb. of ground beef (usually enough for two people), but you can easily double or triple the recipe.

Start by cooking a roughly chopped 1/2 onion for a few minutes, then add the ground beef.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

Cook over medium-high heat until browned.  Depending on the cut of beef, you can drain off some fat at this point if you want.

Add a minced clove of garlic and briefly saute while you gather the other dry ingredients.

We’ll be using a chipotle in adobo to create flavor that will put the seasoning pack out of business.

Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos mexicanplease.com

I usually cut off any visible stem and remove some of the inner veins and seeds.

Mince up the chipotle and add to the beef along with 1 tablespoon of the adobo sauce from the can.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

We’ll also add 1-2 teaspoons of chili powder.  I’m using a crushed New Mexican red chile, but nearly any chili powder will do here.  (Here’s some chili powder alternatives).

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

Add 1/4 teaspoon of salt along with a couple tablespoons of water and let simmer over medium heat for a few minutes.  Taste for salt (I usually add a bit more than the 1/4 teaspoon).

And now for the only big decision you’ll have to make until you can eat these beauties.

Most taco seasoning packs are heavy on the cumin and oregano, giving them a distinct Tex-Mex flavor.

I tend to shy away from that flavor as I think the fresh onion, garlic and chipotle do quite well on their own, but I also fully sympathize with the nostalgic yearning for Mom’s cooking.

I don’t think you’ll miss the Tex-Mex flavor of the seasoning packs once you try this version, but just know that you’ve got the option of adding a bit of cumin and oregano just before this final simmer.

As photographed, I added a dash of cumin and black pepper, but no oregano.

Let simmer over medium heat.  By the time you have the taco fixings gathered up the meat will be ready.  (Note:  you can also use this beef mixture to make killer Ground Beef Nachos.)

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

My go-to method for doing away with the yellow box is to quick-bake some corn tortillas in the oven.

I think I’ll do a separate post on options for making these hardshells at home, but for now here is an easy method:

Warm up some corn tortillas in the oven or microwave.  Rub a light layer of neutral oil on them.  I used Canola oil and spread it over the tortilla with a pastry brush.  (You can also use cooking spray).

Then drape them over two rungs of the oven rack (375F):

Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos mexicanplease.com

In 10-12  minutes they will crisp up:

Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos mexicanplease.com

And they’ll even have a shape to ’em that looks built to house some ground beef.

I usually pull them out just before they turn fully brown.  This leaves them still slightly pliable and less lethal (crunchy).

Serve immediately with the ground beef and your choice of fixings.  Lettuce, tomatoes, cheese (Mozzarella or Jack), and a basic guacamole are all good choices.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

I’m normally a huge fan of building a fresh salsa to go along with a main course, but this dish can come together so quickly that defaulting to a healthy dose of Valentina hot sauce usually does the job.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

Adios yellow box and mystery seasoning packet?

Buen Provecho.

No mystery taco seasoning pack here! These Classic Ground Beef Tacos use homemade seasoning loaded with chipotles in adobo. Rich, full flavor. So good! mexicanplease.com

Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos mexicanplease.com

Classic Ground Beef Hardshell Tacos

These classic hardshell Ground Beef Tacos are a great way to do away with mystery taco seasoning packets.
3.81 from 26 votes
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 2
Calories: 731kcal
Author: Patrick Calhoun | Mexican Please

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb . ground beef
  • 6-8 corn tortillas
  • 1/2 onion
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 chipotle in adobo
  • 1 Tablespoon adobo sauce
  • 1-2 teaspoons chili powder (I used crushed New Mexican)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
  • dash cumin (optional)
  • dash oregano (optional)
  • dash black pepper
  • 2 tomatoes
  • fresh lettuce
  • Monterey Jack cheese (or Mozzarella)
  • guacamole (optional)

Instructions

  • Roughly chop 1/2 onion.  Saute the onion in a dollop of oil over medium-high heat for a few minutes.  
  • Add the ground beef and cook until browned.  Drain any fat if you want.  Add 1 clove minced garlic and saute briefly.  Add 1 minced chipotle, 1 Tablespoon adobo sauce, and 1-2 teaspoons chili powder.  You can optionally add dashes of cumin, oregano and black pepper.
  • Add 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a couple Tablespoons of water.  Let simmer over medium heat. By the time you gather all the taco fixings the meat will be ready.  Take a final taste for seasoning (I added another generous pinch of salt to this batch).
  • If you want to bake the taco shells, start by warming up the corn tortillas in the oven or microwave. Lightly brush them with a neutral oil (or cooking spray) and drape over two oven rungs for 10-12 minutes at 375F.
  • Serve the tacos with diced tomatoes, chopped lettuce, shredded cheese and guacamole (optional).  You can also serve them with a freshly made Salsa.

Notes

Most taco seasoning packets are heavy on the cumin and oregano. I tend to shy away from using too much of these to avoid Tex-Mex overload. As photographed I added a dash of cumin and black pepper, but no oregano.
I usually pull the taco shells out of the oven before they are fully browned. This will leave them still slightly pliable.
Like this recipe?Click the stars above to rate it or leave a comment down below! @mexplease

If you want, you can use the beef mixture to make an awesome Taco Salad.

This Taco Salad is my favorite meal over the past month -- super flexible and it has loads of flavor! The avocado dressing is the key so don't skip that part! mexicanplease.com

We’ve also got an awesome Mexican Picadillo recipe that uses similar ingredients.

This easy to make Mexican Picadillo is a classic meat and potatoes dish bursting with flavor and spice. It can be eaten straight out of the pan but it also works good in tacos, burritos, and empanadas. So good! mexicanplease.com

 

Been thinking about starting a food blog?  Here’s the easiest way to get started without shelling out too much cash:

Thinking about starting a food blog? Here's the easiest to keep costs down without sacrificing any quality. mexicanplease.com

 

 

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Filed Under: Main Dish, Most Popular, Most Recent, Tacos

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Sarah DM

    January 15, 2021 at 8:13 pm

    5 stars
    Really great recipe I used 1 KG of beef and 5 chipotles – which was pretty hot! Added more water to help absorb the spices and add some juice.

    Reply
    • Patrick

      January 15, 2021 at 10:21 pm

      Thanks Sarah!

      Reply
  2. Mimi

    May 24, 2020 at 12:46 am

    We love this recipe I stumbled across it as I had a jar of chipotle in adobo I wanted to use, I had bought it for another recipe from another blog that we did not enjoy. I made it with ground pork as it was what I had and added half a red capsicum (bell pepper) that I had in the fridge to cook with the onion. I also added a can of rinsed and drained black beans. I served it as a taco bowl meal with rice and a slaw made of red cabbage, green cabbage, carrot, radish and beetroot. I added guacamole, sour cream and shredded cheese. Three mouthfuls in my husband asked for it to go into regular rotation and it has. Now I make it with either ground pork or turkey and add red kidney beans, black beans and a can of corn as well. I love that I can get so many veggies into the meal, it does take a little longer to prepare but it is worth it. I always make enough for a couple of meals as the slaw is not dressed it lasts for a few days in the fridge. Thanks so much for sharing it.

    Reply
    • Patrick

      May 29, 2020 at 1:18 pm

      Hey thanks much for your note Mimi, I’m so glad it’s now on the regular rotation! And thanks for mentioning your adjustments. Cheers.

      Reply
  3. Anna Dominguez

    January 23, 2020 at 3:54 pm

    5 stars
    Husband loved it!!

    Reply
    • Patrick

      January 24, 2020 at 2:36 pm

      🙂

      Reply
  4. Will

    December 27, 2019 at 8:44 pm

    4 stars
    Overall it was good my wife said it was too spicy for her

    Reply
    • Patrick

      December 30, 2019 at 3:13 pm

      Cheers Will.

      Reply
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Hey, I'm Patrick! I spent 2 years living in Cozumel and got obsessed with Mexican food. I built this site to share all the recipes and techniques I've learned along the way. Read More…

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