Taco Casserole
This Taco Casserole Recipe is loaded with all of your Mexican favorites and topped with Doritos, Fritos, or Tortilla Chips! It’s easy to assemble days ahead of time and bake later for an easy dinner!
Be sure to try my Copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizza recipe next!
I’ve been on a casserole kick lately, especially ones that you can make ahead of time. It’s amazing how much easier your life becomes when you do a little meal prep ahead of time.
The fact that you can assemble this up to 2 days ahead of time is really handy. And the ingredients are really easy to customize.
Layers in Taco Casserole
This recipe includes the following layers of ingredients, in order from first to last:
- Refried Beans
- Sour Cream
- Seasoned Ground Beef and Onions
- Cheese
- Black Olives
- Tomatoes
- Crunchy Toppings. (Tortilla Chips, Doritos, and/or Fritos.)
Additional Ingredient Options:
- Shredded Chicken, beef, or Pork
- Finely sliced steak. (Sirloin, flank steak, or skirt steak is best.)
- Ground chicken or turkey.
- Guacamole
- Salsa
- Black Beans
- Rice
- Diced Jalapenos
- Bell Peppers
- Corn
- Cilantro
- Tator Tots (because, why not?!)
How to Make it
Cook/crumble the ground beef and onions in a pan over medium-high heat.
Drain excess grease, add water and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat.
Spread the refried beans in an even layer over a 9 x 13″ casserole dish. Top with sour cream.
Add the seasoned ground beef and onions on top.
Top with cheese. Bake uncovered at 350°F for 15 minutes, until the cheese is hot and melted.
Add the black olives, tomatoes, and crunchy toppings. Bake uncovered for 8 minutes.
Garnish with green onions and/or shredded lettuce if desired and serve!
Make-Ahead Method
This Taco Casserole can be made up to 2 days ahead.
- To do so, cook the ground beef and onions and layer all of the ingredients in a casserole dish.
- Let it cool and cover it. Refrigerate for up to 2 days.
- Bake, covered, in a 350° oven for 25 minutes.
- Uncover, and bake for 5 more minutes to fully melt the cheese.
- Add the tomatoes and black olives along with the crunchy toppings. Bake for 8 additional minutes.
- Add the shredded lettuce/green onions and serve.
Crock Pot Taco Casserole
- This recipe is easy to assemble within a Crock Pot and heat right away or up to 2 days later.
- You’ll still need to brown the ground beef first, then layer the ingredients per the recipe instructions.
- Save the crunchy toppings and shredded lettuce/green onions until you’re just ready to serve.
Heating right away: High 2-3 hours or Low 4-5 hours
Heating from a cold state: High 4-5 hours or Low 6-7 hours
This Crock pot allows you to sear/brown meat right on the stove top. It also switches to warm once the cooking time is up.
Note that Crock Pots vary in terms on how quickly they heat up and how hot they get.
Taco Casserole for a Crowd or Potluck
- These aluminum foil pans make it easy to prepare this recipe for a crowd and the pans can be disposed of afterwards.
- This recipe serves 6 people. Click the number of servings to reveal a slider. Move the slider right to increase the number of servings if you’re making this for a larger crowd.
Storing Leftovers
- Leftovers should be refrigerated in an airtight container and are best if used within 3-4 days.
- Reheat in a microwave or a 350°oven until heated through.
Pro Tip: Leftovers make a great dip or filling for burritos!
Freezing
- Taco casserole makes a good freezer food and can be stored for up to 3 months.
- Remove the crunchy toppings and shredded lettuce before you freeze.
- Let it defrost overnight and reheat in a microwave or 350°oven until heated through.
More Mexican Favorites!
- Copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizza
- Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps
- Taco Stuffed Peppers
- Homemade Restaurant Salsa
More Make-Ahead Casseroles
- Copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrown Casserole
- Broccoli Cheddar Chicken and Rice Casserole
- Ground Beef Stroganoff Casserole
- Cheeseburger Casserole
- more Casseroles
Taco Casserole
This Taco Casserole Recipe is loaded with all of your Mexican favorites and topped with Doritos, Fritos, or Tortilla Chips! It’s easy to assemble days ahead of time and bake later for an easy dinner!
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef, I use 80% lean
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 1 oz. taco seasoning, equivalent to 2 Tablespoons
- 16 oz. refried beans
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded*
- ¼ cup black olives, sliced
- 1/3 cup tomatoes, diced
- ¾ cup crunchy toppings such as tortilla chips, Doritos, and/or Fritos
To garnish:
- 1/3 cup lettuce, shredded
- Green onions, (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Add the ground beef and diced onions to a large pan and cook and crumble over medium heat until the meat is cooked through.
- Drain excess grease.
- Add ¾ cup water and taco seasoning.
- Bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
- Spread the refried beans in an even layer within a casserole dish. (Mine was 9 x 13" but varying sizes are fine.)
- Spread the sour cream over the refried beans.
- Top with cooked ground beef mixture, then with cheese.
- If you’re preparing this head of time, let it cool and cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.
Baking:
- If baking right away: Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is hot and melted.
- If baking after the casserole has been refrigerated: Bake, covered, for 25 minutes. Remove the cover and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
Add the toppings:
- Top the casserole with black olives, tomatoes, and crunchy toppings. (Add additional cheese if you like as well.)
- Bake uncovered for 8 minutes.
- Garnish with green onions and/or shredded lettuce and serve!
Video
Notes
*A combination of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese works well too!
Crock Pot Taco Casserole
- This recipe is easy to assemble within a Crock Pot and heat right away or up to 2 days later.
- You'll still need to brown the ground beef first, then layer the ingredients per the recipe instructions.
- Save the crunchy toppings and shredded lettuce/green onions until you're just ready to serve.
Heating right away: High 2-3 hours or Low 4-5 hours Heating from a cold state: High 4-5 hours or Low 6-7 hoursThis Crock pot allows you to sear/brown meat right on the stove top. It also switches to warm once the cooking time is up.
Nutrition
Calories: 547kcal, Carbohydrates: 24g, Protein: 28g, Fat: 38g, Saturated Fat: 18g, Cholesterol: 108mg, Sodium: 1273mg, Potassium: 359mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 1175IU, Vitamin C: 4.9mg, Calcium: 374mg, Iron: 3.2mg
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Miss Stephanie!! Girl!! This Taco Casserole is off the chain!! My sister and I used Burrito seasonings since that is what we had on hand, and we made fresh pico de Gallo that we’ve sprinkled on top after the Casserole finished baking in the oven. We also used Nacho cheese Doritos. My sister would like to make this dish for her lunch soon. I don’t think that I will have leftovers within the next 2 days lol. Thank you so much for sharing.
Shawnae!!!!! YAYYYYY!! I’m so glad you liked it, reading your description made me SO hungry! (Especially the fresh pico de gallo, my weakness!!)- We never have leftover for long, one night MAX!! I love putting leftovers inside a burrito!! MMMM. Well you’re just the best, thank you for taking the time to leave a comment and a rating, your support is everything! -Stephanie
This is now my favorite!!! I added one thing: I made a sauce/dressing by zesting half a lime, squeeze half a lime for the juice, 1 clove minced garlic and 1 cup fat free sour cream into a Mason jar. Mixed and added some water to thin it out. Drizzled over the lettuce and added a spoonful of the casserole. Holy smokes!!!!!! Sooooo good! Thank you!!!
Hey Kim! Wow, that is so awesome! You totally made my day! And I love the tips that you provided too! It’s going to be really helpful for others! You’re the best! ❤️ -Stephanie
I wanna do salsa instead of tomatoes- any tips on when to add it?
I would add it on top of the ground beef layer, before the cheese, the proceed as outlined! 😁
Thank you!!!
Can you substitute the sour cream for something else?
Hi Laura! Yes, this recipe is very forgiving. If you want something really similar, you could use plain Greek yogurt. Otherwise, you could add in some avocado or guacamole, Salsa, Black Beans, Diced Jalapenos, Bell Peppers, or Corn.
THANK YOU for the recipe! It has been such a lifesaver for me because it’s easy to make and I can always count on my family to eat it! We never have leftovers! Thank you so much!