This is a tasty taco dish that has it all: it bakes quickly in a hot oven and can be made ahead of time if you like. Made with ground beef, pinto beans and canned tomatoes that are delicately seasoned with chili powder, they taste just like inside-out nachos.
This is how you make a simple taco dish
Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground beef
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 tablespoons safflower oil
- 1 medium green pepper, diced (1 ½ cups)
- 1 medium white onion, diced (1 ½ cups)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 ½ teaspoons chili powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
- 1 15-ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups yellow corn tortilla chips, lightly crushed
- 1 ¼ cup freshly grated Monterey Jack cheese (3 ounces)
- 1 ¼ cup freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese (3 ounces)
- Thinly sliced radish, thinly sliced jalapeño, sliced black olives, sour cream and fresh coriander leaves for serving
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Heat a 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef; season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon to loosen the meat, until the meat is browned, 10 minutes. Place the beef in a colander to drain. Discard excess oil.
- Wipe the frying pan clean, add oil and place it back on the heat. Add pepper and onion. Cook, stirring, until cooked through and browned, 7 minutes. Add tomato puree; cook, stirring, 1 minute.
- Add the reserved beef, chili powder, oregano and cumin, tomatoes (with liquid), pinto beans, and 2 tablespoons water; bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.
- Combine tortilla chips, 1 cup Monterey Jack, and 1 cup cheddar cheese in a large bowl.
- Top skillet with chip mixture, followed by remaining 1/4 cup Monterey and Cheddar cheeses.
- Cook until the cheese is melted and golden brown, about 3 minutes. Serve with radishes, jalapenos, olives, sour cream and cilantro.
Recipe options
- Use canned black beans instead of the pinto beans.
- Replace the ground beef with ground turkey meat or plant-based meat. You may need to use more oil with both varieties because they contain less fat than ground beef.
- For a spicier taco casserole, you can replace half or all of the canned tomatoes with canned Rotel tomatoes and chili peppers.