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One Pot Taco Pasta

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This easy Taco Pasta Recipe is a creamy and delicious one-pot meal you can make in 30 minutes! It’s a quick, go-to, easy dinner that’s a hearty mashup of all the taco flavors you love!

One Pot Taco Pasta in a white Dutch oven with fresh parsley.

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Why You’ll Love This Cheesy Taco Pasta Recipe

  • One-Pot Dinner: This hearty mac and cheese recipe is made with ground meat, fresh vegetables, taco spices, and cheddar. Much like my Easy One Pot Pasta with Ground Beef and Broccoli, this pasta dish is perfect for simple meals and cooked entirely in one pot!
  • Weeknight Dinners: Like most of my One Pot Meals, this cheesy taco pasta is a 30 minute dinner perfect for hectic evenings.
  • Family-Friendly: Pasta nights are great, but when you tell the family that dinner is mac and cheese, you become a hero! If you love using your pressure cooker, you may also like Instant Pot Taco Mac and Cheese, which cooks in 4 minutes.
  • Super Adaptable: I love recipes that can be adapted to dietary needs and flavor preferences and to what you have on hand. You can swap out the ground meat for your favorite or add or subtract the vegetables and cheeses you prefer.
Taco Pasta ingredients on a white background.

Taco Pasta Key Ingredients

The ingredient measurements are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

  • Ground Turkey: Ground turkey is a tasty and lean way to add protein to this meal. If you prefer ground beef or chicken, both are delicious as well.
  • Vegetables: I’m using onions, bell peppers, and garlic in this pasta recipe to boost its nutritional value. Plus, it adds delicious texture to the creamy pasta. To make meal prep super quick, I use my handy vegetable chopper (affiliate link).
  • Spices: A simple taco seasoning is used in this recipe to keep it simple, but you can also use a mix of chili powder, cumin, dried oregano, salt, and pepper instead.
  • Tomato Paste: For that concentrated tomato flavor perfect in tacos, all you need is a small amount of tomato paste.
  • Pasta. I used the Cavatapi pasta that I had in my pantry, but any pasta shape like penne, pasta shells, rotini, rigatoni, or macaroni works great.
  • Shredded Cheese: The cheese just might be the star of the show, so use your favorite taco cheese cheese, like sharp cheddar or Monterey Jack!

How to Make Taco Pasta

Step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post, but here is a quick overview:

Step 1: Brown the meat and veggies

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground meat and cook for 5-7 minutes. Then, stir in the onion, peppers, garlic, and taco seasoning. Cook for an additional 5 minutes or until the onion softens and the meat begins to brown.

Top view of browned ground turkey in a white Dutch oven.
Top view of browned ground turkey, onions, garlic, and taco seasoning in a white Dutch oven.
Top view of pasta and broth, ready for cooking in a Dutch oven.

Step 2: Stir in broth & cook

Stir in the broth, pasta, and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, ensuring the pasta is submerged in the liquid. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the pasta is cooked through.

Step 3: Stir in cheese sauce

Remove the cover, reduce the heat to low, and stir in the butter, milk, and grated cheese until melted. Garnish with parsley or cilantro, and serve!

Closeup side view of taco pasta in a blue bowl with shredded cheddar cheese and parsley.

Storing Leftovers

  • To Store: Refrigerate leftover taco pasta in an airtight storage container for up to 4 days.
  • To Reheat: The sauce will thicken in the refrigerator. Rewarm pasta in a Dutch oven on the stovetop, adding water or broth as needed, over medium-low heat or in the microwave.
  • To Freeze: Store leftover pasta in an airtight freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.

What to Serve with Taco Pasta

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Top view of taco pasta in a white Dutch oven on a wooden board.

One Pot Taco Pasta Recipe

This creamy and delicious Taco Pasta Recipe is perfect for a quick and easy dinner in just 30 minutes. It's a hearty one-pot meal packed with all your favorite taco flavors.
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Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Stephanie Wilson

Ingredients 

  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lb lean ground turkey or ground beef or ground chicken
  • 1 large onion chopped
  • 2 bell peppers chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves minced or pressed
  • 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
  • 1/2 pound pasta short
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste undrained
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 cup milk dairy or non dairy
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese sharp or pepper jack
  • 1/2 cup parsley finely chopped

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the ground meat and cook for 5-7 minutes. Then, stir in the onion, peppers, garlic, and taco seasoning. Cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until the onion softens and the meat begins to brown.
  • Stir in the broth, pasta, and tomato paste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, ensuring the pasta is submerged in the liquid. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked through.
  • Remove the cover, reduce the heat to low, and stir in the butter, milk, and grated cheese until melted. Garnish with parsley or cilantro, and serve!

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 385kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 69mg | Sodium: 884mg | Potassium: 591mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 2134IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 196mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

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Course: Pasta
Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Keyword: pasta, mac and cheese, taco pasta

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