Slow Cooker Taco Soup

Using our small 2 quart slow cooker, we're making Slow Cooker Taco Soup today. This recipe makes a small batch, about 4 bowls of soup, which is perfect for your spicy soup craving without a ton of leftovers.

Most versions of slow cooker taco soup include many, many canned ingredients and multiple seasoning packets. That is delicious, but this is a simpler version that uses less ingredients with maximum flavor. Plus, if you have a little taco seasoning left in the packet, this recipe only uses a heaping tablespoon.

We're using basic pantry staples that we already have on-hand for this recipe. If your pantry has canned tomatoes and beans, and your freezer has corn and ground meat, you're in business!

The other way my slow cooker taco soup is different than most is that it's supposed to serve just 2 to 4 people. We're using a 2 quart slow cooker today to make this recipe.

If you need more recipes to use your small crockpot, check out all of my Slow Cooker Recipes for Two people.

How to Make Slow Cooker Taco Soup

While this is not a dump and start crockpot recipe, like my Crockpot Creamy Chicken, I promise the extra step of browning your meat is going to bring so much flavor.

After browning the meat, everything else gets dumped in the slow cooker before being turned on for just 4 hours on HIGH. These days, slow cookers cook at a much faster rate, so I tend to do high for 3-4 hours or low for 6 hours.

If you're looking for the instant pot version, I have Instant Pot Taco Soup here for you.

The Ingredients

• Olive Oil. Just a small amount to brown the meat; doesn't need to be extra virgin because this recipe has a long cook time.
• Ground Meat. You can use ground turkey, ground chicken, or even ground beef. It's entirely up to you--just make sure you drain any extra grease after browning the meat before you place it in the slow cooker.
• Black Beans. One 15-ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed.
• Corn. Just ½ cup of frozen corn or one small can of corn, drained.
• Tomatoes. I really recommend fire-roasted tomatoes when cooking. I hardly buy regular tomatoes anymore, because the flavor of fire-roasting is so good, especially in a slow cooker taco soup! You can use a 14-ounce can of diced or crushed tomatoes. Diced tomatoes make a chunkier soup, and crushed tomatoes make a smoother soup.
• Tomato Paste. One tablespoon of tomato paste brings so much flavor to the broth.
• Green Chiles. One small 4-ounce can of fire-roasted chopped green chiles. Mild or spicy is your choice.
• Onion. One small onion, diced, or half of a medium onion. Freeze the rest.
• Garlic. Two cloves, minced.
• Taco Seasoning. Just one heaping tablespoon of a taco seasoning that contains salt.
• Chicken Broth. Regular, not low-sodium chicken broth.

The Directions

1. Gather all ingredients and have ready a 2, 4 of 6 quart slow cooker. This recipe has been tested in all of them, and I double it when I make it in the 6 quart model.

2. First, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, and then add the ground meat. Cook until the meat is cooked through, breaking it up with a wooden spoon while it cooks. The photos have lean ground turkey meat.

3. Add the cooked ground meat to the bottom of your slow cooker. Add all remaining ingredients: the can of black beans, the corn, the can of tomatoes, tomato paste, green chiles, diced onion and garlic, the taco seasoning and the chicken broth.

4. Stir everything together, place the lid on and set the slow cooker to HIGH. If it has a timer feature, set it to 4 hours. Otherwise, set an alarm for yourself elsewhere.

5. After 4 hours, lift the lid, give everything a stir and taste! Add more salt, if you think it needs it, and serve with shredded cheese, sliced green onions, and tortilla chips.

What to Serve with Slow Cooker Taco Soup:

I like this soup with tortilla chips, cornbread muffins, or even a bagged salad mix or chopped salad on the side.

Ingredient Substitutions

There are so many ways this recipe can be adapted to use what you have in your pantry, or use things you like better.

• This recipe works with ground chicken, ground turkey or even ground beef.
• Use any type of beans. I use black beans, but pinto beans or red beans are welcome here.
• You can use frozen corn or a small can of corn.
• Any type of canned tomato product works--diced, crushed, sauce, etc. Just don't use anything labeled with Italian herbs or pizza sauce, which contains sugar.
• Instead of a can of diced tomatoes and a can of green chiles, you can use two 10-ounce cans of Rotel in this soup!
• You can use onion powder and garlic powder if you don't have either fresh. Use 1 tablespoon of onion powder and 2 teaspoons of garlic powder.
• Taco seasoning comes in a packet or in a larger jar. If you don't have it, add a good shake of chili powder, oregano, ground cumin, smoked paprika and salt.
• Chicken broth, vegetable broth, or even beef broth all work here for the liquid. If you have the bullion paste, use that with the recommended amount of water right in the crockpot.