This is how to make the best Instant Pot taco meat with ground beef plus 4 other ways to make Instant Pot tacos you will love. Taco Tuesdays are set!
We are all about taco Tuesdays and love a good rotation of different flavors and meats, this is how to make our ground beef Instant Pot taco meat! Of course you can use ground turkey as well but you’ll get the idea either way, these and 101+ other easy Instant Pot recipes are listed on The Typical Mom to make dinnertime easier! (originally published 10/18, affiliate links present)
Why I love Instant Pot dinner recipes
- I can cook dinner in less than 30 minutes
- My pressure cooker allows me to cook more homemade meals for my family
- There are fewer dishes to wash since I can sauté and cook all in one pot
- I don’t have to heat up my whole house using the oven to cook a casserole or large piece of meat
What kind of meat is used for tacos? The best meat to use for taco meat is a simple ground beef, a 70-80% lean variety. The fat is going to help give flavor to the meat and we are able to drain the grease prior to serving (or not).
On to making some easy Instant Pot taco meat for dinner!
Of course you can just brown a pound of ground beef and call it Instant Pot taco meat. But that is not my kinda’ taco Tuesday yumminess. I want flavor!!!
I swear, I never used to cook with onions a few years ago. They are so cheap for the amount of flavor and texture they give so now they’re a must.
Omit the diced tomatoes if you wish but those lend a lot of flavor too.
The trick on how to make the best taco meat:
- Do NOT overcook it! – I could just stop there, but I won’t. It is beef so you don’t need to stress out about it being pink like chicken or pork. So let there be a bare amount left.
- Add flavor!! – I actually love taco seasoning and add a bit more than 1 oz. a lot of times. I like to let the meat sit in the sauce for a few minutes after it’s cooked so it can really soak up all that goodness.
- Don’t drain it- Ok so you don’t want it soaking in grease but don’t drain all the fat that cooks off when the pink is going away. That has flavor in it! If you use 80/20 you shouldn’t have to drain any if at all, and I prefer this to anything leaner, it’s got more flavor.
- Load it up!! – I add onions, chiles and diced tomatoes…sometimes chives but if you love diced green peppers then add those with your onions too. Taco meat isn’t meant to be plain I say…..then load up the taco itself, oh my mouth is watering already……..
What you’ll need to make this easy Instant Pot taco meat
We keep our taco meat recipe fairly simple, and use what’s on hand. Feel free to add your own seasonings, or other diced veggies for taco night.
- 6 or 8 quart Instant Pot or Ninja Foodi
- Packet of taco seasoning – or you can make your own homemade taco seasoning if you’d rather
- Ground beef – or ground meat like turkey is fine too
- this is how to defrost Instant Pot frozen ground beef in case you forgot to thaw it out the night before. 😉
- Onion
- Diced chiles -mild to hot are available, hatch chiles are amazing
- Diced tomatoes – Italian diced tomatoes is our choice, you can omit entirely but it brings a lot of flavor. Could substitute with chunky salsa as well.
- Homemade flour tortillas for soft ground beef tacos
- Rice if you want to make Instant Pot taco bowls.
My family loves this served all different sort of ways. Want a keto and gluten free style, think about making lettuce wraps or a taco salad.
After you make these try our other 4 types of Instant Pot tacos so your family can make easy pressure cooker recipes each week and really enjoy them, here are a few more Instant Pot ground beef recipes too:
- Instant Pot Mexican pizza is amazing and sure to please everyone in your house
- This easy Instant Pot taco soup recipe is a pantry recipe using cans of this and that
- Kid favorite Instant Pot chili mac recipe is also something I love topped with lots of cheese.
Then try our Instant Pot carnitas that are out of this world and can be served on top of rice too, or in tortillas.
For more easy recipes, tips and free printables please LIKE The Typical Mom on Facebook and follow me on Pinterest! You can also sign up for my free weekly newsletter which is packed with goodies I know you’ll love. 😉
Instant Pot Taco Meat
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef or ground turkey
- 1 onion diced
- 4 oz chiles diced, canned
- 1 oz taco seasoning packet or homemade mix
- 1/2 c diced tomatoes Italian style
Instructions
- Set your Instant Pot to saute normal and add your ground beef.
- Break up into smaller pieces and add your diced onion.
- Dump in your can of diced chiles and cook (gently mixing) until ground beef is almost done, all pink is almost gone but there is still a little.
- Pour in your diced tomatoes, if you want to add those, and sprinkle in your taco seasoning.
- Gently stir to coat all meat and veggies.
- Immediately when pink is gone on your ground beef turn pot off and pour taco meat into a bowl to serve so meat doesn't continue to cook in pot and dry out.
- Serve inside small tortillas with cheese, sour cream, avocado and other toppings.
Angela S. Nunez says
Made this just an hour ago using ground pork. Oh My Gosh! Yum!
The Typical Mom says
Great with pork too!