Slow cooker taco pasta is everything you love about pasta and tacos combined into one saucy, cheesy, taco-seasoned beefy dish loaded with bell peppers, black beans, corn, and salsa!
Taco pasta is almost like a taco twist on American goulash, and it has become one of my favorites. Thank goodness, because with how busy life gets, I need all the easy recipes I can get.
With just 15 minutes of prep time, everything is slow-cooked and done by dinner time. Uncooked pasta gets dumped in towards the end and cooks right in the mix, just like in my crockpot ziti, which makes for minimal cleanup.
Keep it warm until everyone is ready to eat and serve it with one hour dinner rolls or even some tortilla chips or a light salad on the side for a complete and hearty family-friendly meal!
Crock Pot Taco Pasta
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Filling, satisfying, and so much flavor.
- Made with simple, budget friendly ingredients.
- Can easily sneak more veggies in there.
- Enjoy reheated leftovers for a few days!
Helpful Tools
- Slow Cooker – I have loved this Hamilton Beach model for years but I newly got this GreenPan and love it for recipes like this since you can brown the meat right in the same pot.
- Meat Chopper
- Cheese Grater
Ingredients
Below is a list of the ingredients you’ll need to gather to make this recipe, why you need them, and possible substitutions. Scroll all the way down for the full recipe card with measurements.
Jump- Lean ground beef: I prefer to use lean (or extra lean) ground beef. Usually a 91/9 or even 93/7. If you want to use 80/20 you can, you’ll just need to drain the extra grease before you add it to the slow cooker.
- Taco seasoning, salt, and pepper: The taco seasoning is really what gives the pasta its smoky, earthy flavors. You can use homemade taco seasoning or pick up a packet.
- Red bell pepper: I use diced red peppers because they’re sweeter and pair well with the sauce and the corn. I find green bell peppers a bit too savory for this dish, but you use what you want!
- Salsa, fiesta corn, and black beans: The trio of Mexican-inspired dishes. Drain and rinse the black beans and use your favorite salsa. If you can’t find fiesta corn, regular canned corn will do.
- Beef broth: The liquid needed to eventually cook the pasta. You can substitute with water if you don’t have broth.
- Pasta shells: I use medium pasta shells. As you can imagine, any short pasta will work. It’s best if you use one that has nooks and crannies to hold all the saucy goodness.
- Shredded cheddar: Freshly grated cheddar is the way to go for best flavor. It also melts much better into the mixture.
- Toppings: Scallions, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, and additional shredded cheese.
How to make Slow Cooker Cheesy Taco Pasta
This section shows you how to make this recipe, with process photos showing the steps to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
Jump- Step One: Cook the ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat until no longer brown. Break it apart as it cooks and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Once browned, add it to the bottom of the slow cooker.
- Step Two: Sprinkle in the taco seasoning and add the diced pepper, salsa, corn, drained and rinsed black beans, and beef broth. Stir to combine.
- Step Three: Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or if you’re pressed for time, on HIGH for 2-3 hours.
- Step Four: 30 minutes before the cooking time is up, stir in the pasta shells and continue cooking. Check for doneness a 10-minute intervals and once they’re ready, stir in the shredded cheese to melt. Enjoy!
Every slow cooker runs differently. Times given are a general recommendation and should be tested in your own slow cooker and adjusted as needed.
How to serve it
I always like to have serving bowls of various toppings on the table. That way people can pick and choose their own. Things like sour cream, extra cheese, jalapenos for some heat, sliced green onions, etc.
To complete the meal, because it’s pretty saucy/soupy, have a basket of copycat Texas Roadhouse Rolls on the table. If you want a simple salad, I’d say go for something crisp and refreshing like an easy chopped veggie salad.
- I have an easy homemade taco seasoning recipe I like to use, but if you’re using a store-bought packet, one should suffice.
- Homemade salsa is another part of this recipe I recommend making if you’ve got the time. You can’t beat the fresh flavors of making it from scratch.
- Rotel is another option if you don’t have any salsa, as is dicing fresh tomatoes.
- You can also use frozen corn if preferred. No need to drain it, you can toss it in frozen.
- Use ground chicken or ground turkey for a lighter cheesy taco pasta.
- For a meatless option, swap the beef for an extra can of black beans.
- Toss in some diced mushrooms, onions, spinach, zucchini, carrots, etc.
- Any combination of beef broth, chicken broth, and water can be used. One or all, depending on what you’ve got on hand, just as long as it makes up 4 cups of liquid.
- Avoid overcooking the pasta, it’ll get mushy! This is why checking every 10 minutes is helpful.
Storage & Reheating
How to store leftovers
Keep leftover taco pasta in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Freezing Instructions
I don’t recommend freezing this dish as the pasta can be quite mushy once thawed.
If you know you’ll want to freeze leftovers ahead of time, cook the pasta separate so you can freeze the meat portion and just make pasta as needed.
Reheating Instructions
If you’ve made it ahead and are planning to reheat the whole batch, use the slow cooker. If it’s just a serving bowl or two, a quick reheat in the microwave or a saucepan on the stove is all you need.
Need more slow cooker pasta recipes? Try these:
Slow Cooker Garlic Parmesan Chicken Pasta
Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Pasta
Slow Cooker Chicken Zucchini and Spinach Pasta
Click here to view my entire collection of slow cooker recipes.
Did You Make This?
If you made this recipe, I’d love to know how it went in the comments section below.
You can also tag me on Instagram – @melissa_ppplates or share a pic in the Persnickety Plates Community Facebook group. I love seeing what you’ve tried!
Slow Cooker Cheesy Taco Pasta
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground sirloin I prefer 91/3
- salt & pepper to taste
- 3 Tablespoons taco seasoning homemade or 1 packet
- 1 medium red bell pepper diced
- 16 ounces salsa
- 11 ounce fiesta corn
- 15 ounce black beans drained & rinsed
- 4 cups beef broth or water
- 16 ounces medium shells
- 1 cup shredded cheddar plus more for topping
- scallions, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, additional cheese for topping
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the ground beef, seasoning with salt and pepper, and browning while breaking apart.1 pound lean ground sirloin, salt & pepper
- Once browned, add the ground beef to the basin of a 6 quart slow cooker.
- Add in the taco seasoning, diced bell pepper, salsa, corn, black beans, and beef broth. Stir to combine.3 Tablespoons taco seasoning, 1 medium red bell pepper, 16 ounces salsa, 11 ounce fiesta corn, 15 ounce black beans, 4 cups beef broth
- Cover and cook on LOW for 5-6 hours or HIGH for 2-3 hours.
- 30 minutes before cook time in up, stir in the uncooked pasta, checking for doneness at 10 minutes and then at 20 minutes.16 ounces medium shells
- Once the pasta is tender, stir in the shredded cheese and let melt.1 cup shredded cheddar
- Serve with your favorite toppings.
Notes
- I prefer to use a lean ground sirloin (93/7 or 91/9). If using a fattier blend (80/20), you may need to drain off any grease. Ground turkey or chicken can also be used.
- Homemade taco seasoning or 1 packet of store bought can be used.
- I like fiesta corn that has peppers in it, but regular canned corn, or frozen corn, can be used.
- Black beans are optional but add more protein. If you want a meatless option, add two cans of black beans and skip the ground beef.
- Homemade salsa or your favorite jarred will work fine. If you don’t have any on hand, diced tomatoes and/or Rotel will work.
- Beef broth, chicken broth, water, or a combination will work for the liquid, just total 4 cups.
- I like to use medium shells as the pasta but any short pasta will work.
- Start checking the pasta for doneness after 10 minutes since every slow cooker is different. If it overcooks, it can get mushy.
- I don’t recommend freezing this one as the pasta can change texture, but leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Top with your favorite toppings – scallions, sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, more shredded cheese, etc.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
This sounds delicious. If I make the pasta separately, should I omit the broth?
I would try reducing it by half…unless you like a drier pasta, it will likely be a little soupy, but that will be good (to me) over the pasta. Let me know if you try!
I really like this and will be making over and over. I always follow the recipe and then make tweaks sometimes. I think I’ll add green chili enchilada sauce for some of my liquid. I just love the flavor of it. But either way it’s yummy!
I love that idea, thanks for reporting back & sharing 🙂
So delicious, and so quick and easy! From start to crockpot was less than ten minutes, and my whole family raved about the taste! The pasta takes it from normal to extra special.
I’m so glad you your fam liked it! Thanks for letting me know 🙂