Weeknights can be tricky and so one of our family’s go to’s are one pot meals. This one is in a regular rotation in our house and will be in yours once you know how to make taco soup. This is a perfect meal for the instant pot, but if you've got a little extra time there’s no reason you can’t make it on the stove or slow-cooker as well. See the tips below for all the variations.
I love this meal for multiple reasons. First, it basically cooks on its own. It’s packed with delicious Mexican flavours. Our kids love it as much as we do. And lastly, you can deck this out with a huge variety of toppings. Do you like spice - add some jalapeños or hot sauce! A cheesy zing - toss on some of my plant-based cheese sauce! Add in some olives for a little salty flare. We pretty much always serve these with a bowl of tortilla chips. Sometimes I even eat it with them instead of using a spoon.
This stores well in the fridge and freezes beautifully. Feel free to make a huge batch and store it for later use - but it comes together so quickly that there’s no reason you can’t make it fresh every time now that you know how to make taco soup. However you make it - smash it into your face today!
This is something I dream about - it’s so good. If you like Mexican flavours this is a no brainer. It’s Whole Food Plant-Based comfort food goodness. Our family devours this. Might be worth making a double batch because it freezes well! We make this in the Instant Pot - so the timing is based around that. If you don’t have one I got you covered in the tips below. I'll even tell you how to do it in the slow-cooker - that's what I lovely guy I am!
Gather everything (except the red lentils) on the Taco Soup ingredient list and toss it into your Instant Pot. Seriously, it’s that easy. Stir that beautiful mixture up until it’s well combined.
Sprinkle the lentils on top and just gently press them in. If you mix these in they’ll sink to the bottom and cause you to get a “burn” warning on the Instant Pot… because you're burning it! It’ll be a mess to clean up - you don’t want to mess this step up.
Set the Instant Pot to high pressure for 15 minutes and walk away.
Allow natural pressure to release. (Alright, agreed - it takes some time. Read a book or do some push-ups or something. Or get your toppings ready!)
Now all you gotta do is scoop that beautiful stuff into bowls, pile on your toppings, and grin like a lucky SOB while you eat this wonderful dish.
Heat up a pot on the stove and add 1/8 inch of water (don’t use oil, okay? water sautéing does the trick just fine and you don’t add on stupid calories that you don’t actually need - save those calories for your TOPPINGS!). Sauté the onion for a few minutes then add in the peppers and corn. Cook till pepper are tender - probably five minutes. Pay attention!
Now you throw in everything else - crank that thing up till it boils then bring it down to medium-low and simmer it for 25-30. But the longer you let it sit the more the flavours dance around and soak in. You do you.
Do everything the same as in the Instant Pot directions, except slow-cook it on high for 4-6 hours or high for 7-8 hours. Keep checking it though - really you just need to make sure the veggies are tender and the lentils are cooked.
Servings 6
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Calorie information doesn't include the toppings. Cause, I mean, I don't know what you're going to put on this thing!
