Easy Taco Soup Recipe - I Heart Naptime (2024)

FAQs

How do I thicken up my taco soup? ›

The best item to thicken a soup is some sort of starch, whether from flour, cornstarch, arrowroot, or even a lot of potatoes. If it is a powder, mix it with cold water and stir to make a smooth, lump-free paste, and stir constantly as you add it to the soup. A little goes a long way!

One option is to add crushed tortilla chips or tortilla strips to the soup. The chips will dissolve and create a thicker consistency. Another alternative is to use instant mashed potatoes. Simply sprinkle some into the soup and stir well, allowing it to thicken before serving.

Add more broth to help dilute the spices.

If it still tastes too spicy, keep adding more broth until you're satisfied with the flavor. You can put additional broth in any kind of soup. If you don't have any broth, you can also add water instead. You may need to add more salt to reseason your soup.

A typical 12-serving taco seasoning mix recipe uses about 1 ½ tablespoons of cornstarch. If you want to skip the cornstarch in your homemade seasoning to use it for other purposes, just sprinkle ⅓ to ½ teaspoon of cornstarch per pound of browned, spiced meat before adding ¾ cup of water and heat until thickened.

Add Flour Or Cornstarch

You can thicken soup by adding flour, cornstarch, or another starchy substitute.

It's important to note that cornstarch has twice the thickening power of flour. If you need to substitute cornstarch to thicken liquid in a recipe that calls for ¼ cup (four tablespoons) flour, you only need two tablespoons cornstarch.

A handful of uncooked rice. That's all folks, just a handful of white rice. Any kind will do: jasmine, basmati, short grain, long grain. When added to a brothy (or watery, even) soup, and left to simmer for 20-30 minutes, the rice breaks down, releasing its starch and thickening the liquid that it's cooking in.

Wheat Flour

Most households already have plain flour in their kitchens, which makes it an easy swap for cornflour in many recipes. The natural starches in wheat can be used to thicken soups and sauces. There's a reason every luxurious macaroni cheese sauce starts with flour.

Does sugar make soup less spicy? ›

Sweet Defeats Heat

Adding something sweet to a too-spicy dish is another great way to reduce spiciness. A sprinkle of sugar or honey should do the trick. Or add a touch of sweet ketchup. If it's a tomato-based sauce, stir in a little more tomato sauce and maybe a touch of sugar.

If your batch of soup is too spicy for your guests, try adding more broth or cream, depending on the base of the soup, to dilute the heat. A squirt of lemon or lime juice may also be a solution, as the acidity can help reduce the spiciness.

Baking soda works its magic on meat mainly on the surface, so it works well with ground beef, but it will work just as well on other ground or thinly sliced meats both working to tenderize them and encourage browning. Try it on thinly sliced chicken breast or thighs, pork, or steak.

If you're looking to upgrade your taco soup into a rich, creamy meal, you could turn to tried-and-true thickeners like cream cheese, heavy cream, flour, or corn starch.

Boiling ground beef is the best way to cook it so that it comes out in small, fine crumbles. Trust me, this is the secret to all those amazing tacos and pasta sauces at your favorite restaurant! It's also a healthier option, because the boiling process helps separate the fat from the meat, and it comes out quite lean.

Incorporate Cornstarch

Cornstarch is another popular thickening agent that can be easily added to your chicken tortilla soup. Mix cornstarch with a small amount of water to create a slurry.

If it's too thick.

Like a sauce that is too thin, a dish that is too thick is a simple fix! All you need to do is add more of the recipe's cooking liquid — such as wine, broth or cream.