Freezing taco meat allows you to have a quick and easy dinner any night of the week!
This could also be called how to freeze taco meat because you need keep taco meat in your freezer. It is one of the things that you will almost always find in my freezer.
I love freezing taco meat because it is so easy to make a large batch, place it into Ziploc bags, and freeze. It really doesn’t take that much more time to cook six pounds of taco meat than it does to cook one or two pounds.
But what I love the most is that I can use taco meat for so many things. Yes, it works for tacos, but you can change it up and use it in so many ways.
Recipes for Using Taco Meat
It works great for tacos, taco salad, nachos, taco fries, taco quesadillas, and more.
I use it in enchiladas and burritos.
You can also use it in taco pasta, taco soup, and oven tacos.
There are so many ways to use seasoned taco meat, which is why it is one of my favorite things to keep in the freezer.
How To Freeze Taco Meat
I have been making and freezing my taco meat for years. My sister gave me a recipe for freezing taco meat a long time ago, and I have been using it ever since then.
The trick to this recipe for freezer taco meat is the tomato sauce. You do not want to freezer water, or at least you should try to avoid it.
Most seasoned taco meat contains water. I don’t like water in my freezer meals, because water is more likely to form ice crystals and cause your food to have freezer burn.
If you can avoid it don’t freeze items that contain water.
This recipe uses tomato sauce in place of the water. Not only does it freeze better this way, but I think it also tastes better. I like the flavor that tomato sauce gives the meat.
Yes, you can use water, but give tomato sauce a try. I don’t think you will use water again.
- Cook your meat.
- Drain off the fat.
- Stir in taco seasoning and tomato sauce.
- Cook completely.
- Freeze in zip-top type bags or freezer-safe containers.
Ingredients
- ground beef, ground chicken, ground venison, or ground turkey
- taco seasoning or homemade taco seasoning
- tomato sauce
Freezer Taco Meat
Filling your freezer with taco meal allows you to have tacos in no time any night of the week.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 package of taco seasoning
Instructions
- Brown ground beef and drain.
- Mix tomato sauce and seasoning into meat and combine well.
- Cook for several minutes or until heated through.
- Divide into containers or Ziploc bags, cool, and freeze.
Notes
I love to use my homemade taco seasoning since it is gluten free.
Ground turkey, chicken, venison or a combination of meats work well too.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 212Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 67mgSodium: 200mgCarbohydrates: 1gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 21g
More Ways To Use Taco Meat
Fourteen Ways To Use Taco Meat
Originally posted April 2010. Updated April 2022. Photos and content were updated, but the recipe is the same recipe that I have used for over twenty years.
I am totally going to try this!! I am just getting started in the whole freezing meals business :). Thanks for the fabulous blog! I love it!!
love this – thanks for this recipe! With the softball/baseball and end of year activities upon us this spring, I need to speed up prep and I am definitely going to plan on cooking big batches of this recipe for the next few weeks. My kids like most kids LOVE anything taco, so this will be a lifesaver!
I often cook the ground beef during my lunch break from work (I work from home) and throw it in the crock pot to keep it warm until its dinner time…wondering if I can throw the frozen taco meat in there midmorning and let it thaw and keep warm on low until afternoon/evening??
@s, I think that might work well. You might check it a few times the first time you try it. I am guessing it may need stirred a few times, if you start with it frozen, but I think it would work.
@Lynn,
I might even put this in at noon on the “keep warm” setting and I bet it would still be warm enough by 5 pm dinner…..Julie
.-= Julie Anne´s last blog ..It makes life easier when you want omelet’s but you are lazy – Kitchen Gourmet Omelet Maker – Viewpoints =-.
I have found that you may want to add a tiny bit more tomato sauce to the crock pot when reheating that way. You can decide when to lower heat when you like the consistency of the mix
So funny you posted this today I was just thinking yesterday about fixing meat up and freezing it, but wasn’t sure how it would turn out. Thanks a bunch – I will give this a try. We eat taco items around here all the time. Do you do anything else with hamburger and then freeze it?
@Amy, I hope you enjoy this taco meat Amy. I will try to do more posts on what I freeze. I also freeze hamburger cooked/browned with onions and green peppers. I like to keep that on hand especially during the fall and winter when I am making more soups, chili, and things that I use that combo in. I used to freeze the majority of my meals, so I will work on doing a few posts on what has worked for me.
Amateur question: You freeze the taco meat, and then want make tacos for dinner one night. You take a bag out to thaw. Then what? (aka how do you reheat it?)
@Megan, The best way to do it is thaw in the fridge overnight and then reheat when ready to use. I usually just microwave it. But there have been times that I just microwave the frozen meat because I forgot to take it out. I hope that helps.
Thanks for the tomato sauce tip. I have been adding black beans to my taco meat–about 30% bean, 70% meat. It stretches my meat budget and adds a bit more nutrition. Kids love the mix, hubby is getting used to it. 🙂
Hi Lynn! I absolutely love your blog. You have given me so many ideas for dinner and I thank you!
I have a couple of questions about freezing the taco meat. I have never done this so I was wondering how long do you suggest keeping it in the freezer (longest length of time before it’s unusable)? Also, what size freezer bags do you use for this?
.-= Stephanie´s last blog ..Essie. =-.
Taco meat is a staple in our freezer! One other way I store it is to make taco meat “muffins”. I put the cooked meat into muffin tins (regular size). Once they are frozen, I pop them out and freeze in a freezer bag. Its a perfect size for one tortilla/two hard shells/one baked potato. Its a great way to make indvidual portions for lunches.
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Great idea using tomato sauce instead of water. I think whether you do the “freezer meal” thing (which is a fantastic idea, by the way) or not just think of the extra flavor that you add when you substitute out the water.
Thanks for the recipe – I’m thinking I’ll have some of these in my freezer VERY soon.
.-= Kat´s last blog ..Life’s Little Lessons =-.
Have you ever used chicken breast instead of hamburger for frozen taco meat? What amounts of seasoning would you use? Thank You….
I have frozen chicken taco meat, but I usually do the seasoning to taste. I also like this recipe for freezing. https://www.lynnskitchenadventures.com/2010/06/crockpot-chicken-tacos.html
I mix in refried beans or lentils to a combination of ground turkey and ground beef. It lowers the fat content.
if you do this and don’t add taco seasoning, you can pull out the frozen meat/tomato sauce combo and add Italian seasoning, garlic and onion and more tomato sauce for a great Spaghetti sauce. I always have this in my freezer for a fast taco or spaghetti type meal.
If I want to use this recipe for taco meat that will immediately be eaten, how long do I cook the meat with the tomato sauce and ingredients after the meat has been browned and drained?
Just enough to heat it through. When I make this I usually make a large batch and we eat some that day and I freezer the rest. I hope that helps.
When using your homemade taco seasoning, do you add in the coen starch & 1/2 cup tomato sauce before freezing it?
Yes, I cook it and add the seasoning mix and tomato sauce and then freeze it. That way all I have to do is reheat it to use it. I hope that helps.
Can ground turkey be used instead of ground beef or chicken?
Yes, I have used ground turkey and ground chicken and it works fine. I also use a mix of beef and turkey or chicken. I have also used venison. Pretty much any basic ground meat will work. I hope that helps.