Taco Spaghetti is a quick, comforting weeknight meal that combines seasoned taco meat, spaghetti noodles, and melty cheese into one delicious dish. Ready in just 20–30 minutes, it’s perfect for busy nights when you want something hearty without the hassle. Kids and adults alike love it, and it’s easily customizable with whatever you have on hand.
Love More Dinner Ideas? Try My Easy Taco Lasagna or this Creamy Rotel Pasta with Ground Beef next.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Taco seasoning transforms ordinary pasta into a flavorful, family-friendly meal with minimal effort. The one-pan prep keeps cleanup simple, and kids and adults alike love it. It tastes like a planned, gourmet dinner even though it comes together in minutes.
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Easy Taco Spaghetti
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 generous portions
Description
The perfect fusion of taco flavors and spaghetti! This easy 30-minute recipe uses ground beef, taco seasoning, and cheese to create a family-friendly dinner everyone will love. Perfect for busy weeknights!
Ingredients
For the Base:
- 8 oz spaghetti noodles (regular thickness works best)
- 1 lb lean ground beef (80/20 blend is perfect)
- 1 small yellow onion, diced small
- 1 packet taco seasoning (any brand works)
For the Flavor:
- 1 can tomatoes with green chiles (Rotel or similar brand)
- 4 oz shredded cheddar cheese (freshly grated tastes better)
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro for garnish
- ½ cup reserved pasta cooking water
Optional Toppings (set these out buffet-style):
- Sour cream
- Diced fresh tomatoes
- Extra shredded cheese
- Sliced green onions
- Hot sauce
- Crushed tortilla chips for crunch
- Sliced jalapeños for heat lovers
Instructions
Boil water in your big pot. Add salt. Put in spaghetti and cook it how the box says. Before you drain it, scoop out about half a cup of the water and put it in a bowl. Then drain the pasta. Don’t rinse it.
Put your big pan on the stove and heat it up. Add the ground beef and onion. Break up the meat with your spoon. Cook until the meat isn’t pink and the onion is soft. Maybe 5 minutes. If there’s a lot of grease, pour most of it out.
Dump in the taco seasoning and mix it around. Open the can of Rotel and pour the whole thing in. Add some of that pasta water you saved. Let it bubble for a few minutes.
Put the cooked spaghetti in the pan with the meat stuff. Mix it all up. Add the cheese a little bit at a time and keep stirring so it melts. If it’s too thick add more pasta water.
Put it in bowls. Put cilantro on top if you want. Let everyone add whatever else they like.
Notes
Cook the meat and onion together. Saves washing another pan and the onion tastes better this way.
Ground turkey works too but it’s more expensive and doesn’t taste as good in my opinion. If you use it, add a little oil so it doesn’t stick.
I throw in frozen corn sometimes because my youngest likes corn in everything. Doesn’t matter what kind, just dump some in at the end.
Make double and freeze half. It’s not as good reheated but it’s better than ordering pizza again.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian-Mexican
Ingredients
For the Base:
- 8 oz spaghetti noodles
- 1 lb ground beef (I use whatever’s on sale)
- 1 small onion, chopped up
- 1 packet taco seasoning
For the Flavor:
- 1 can Rotel tomatoes (or store brand, whatever)
- 4 oz shredded cheddar cheese
- Some cilantro if you have it
- Pasta water (don’t dump it all out)
Other stuff people like to add:
- Sour cream
- More cheese
- Hot sauce
- Crushed up tortilla chips
- Green onions
Why These Ingredients Work
Ground beef because it’s cheap and filling. I buy the regular kind, not the expensive lean stuff. You drain the grease anyway so who cares.
Taco seasoning because I’m not measuring out eight different spices. The packet works fine and my kids recognize the taste. I’ve tried making my own and honestly can’t tell the difference.
Rotel is better than regular tomatoes because it already has peppers and stuff in it. Saves me from having to chop more things. The liquid in the can is important so don’t drain it.
Cheddar melts good and doesn’t get stringy. I tried using what was in the fridge once and it was gross. Stick with cheddar.
Essential Tools and Equipment
- Big pot for pasta
- Large pan (biggest one you have)
- Strainer thing
- Wooden spoon
- Knife
- Cutting board
That’s it. Don’t need anything fancy. I use my biggest skillet because you need room to mix everything up without making a mess.
How To Make Taco Spaghetti
Step 1: Get That Pasta Going
Boil water in your big pot. Add salt. Put in spaghetti and cook it how the box says. Before you drain it, scoop out about half a cup of the water and put it in a bowl. Then drain the pasta. Don’t rinse it.
Step 2: Brown That Beef
Put your big pan on the stove and heat it up. Add the ground beef and onion. Break up the meat with your spoon. Cook until the meat isn’t pink and the onion is soft. Maybe 5 minutes. If there’s a lot of grease, pour most of it out.
Step 3: Season and Simmer
Dump in the taco seasoning and mix it around. Open the can of Rotel and pour the whole thing in. Add some of that pasta water you saved. Let it bubble for a few minutes.
Step 4: Bring It All Together
Put the cooked spaghetti in the pan with the meat stuff. Mix it all up. Add the cheese a little bit at a time and keep stirring so it melts. If it’s too thick add more pasta water.
Step 5: Serve and Enjoy
Put it in bowls. Put cilantro on top if you want. Let everyone add whatever else they like.
You Must Know
Buy the block cheese and shred it yourself. The bagged stuff doesn’t melt right – gets all clumpy and weird. Takes two minutes to shred it and it’s way better.
Don’t rinse your pasta. I see people do this all the time and it ruins everything. You want that starch on there.
If it gets too dry, add more pasta water. If it’s too wet, just wait a minute and it’ll thicken up.
My Personal Secret: Don’t throw away all the pasta water. I did this for years before my mom told me to save some. Makes the cheese melt better and keeps everything from being dry.
Don’t wash the pasta after you drain it. I know it seems weird but trust me on this one. All that starchy stuff helps everything stick together.
Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks
Cook the meat and onion together. Saves washing another pan and the onion tastes better this way.
Ground turkey works too but it’s more expensive and doesn’t taste as good in my opinion. If you use it, add a little oil so it doesn’t stick.
I throw in frozen corn sometimes because my youngest likes corn in everything. Doesn’t matter what kind, just dump some in at the end.
Make double and freeze half. It’s not as good reheated but it’s better than ordering pizza again.
Flavor Variations & Suggestions
Use whatever ground meat you want. Add bell peppers if you have them – chop them up with the onion. Black beans make it more filling but my kids pick them out.
My sister uses spicy cheese instead of regular cheddar. Makes it hotter but still good. You can add cream cheese at the end to make it creamy.
Make-Ahead Options
Keeps in the fridge for maybe 4 days. Actually tastes better the next day because everything mixes together more. When you heat it up, add a little water or it gets all dried out.
You can freeze it but the noodles get mushy. I usually just freeze the meat part and make fresh pasta when I want it.
Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips
Use regular spaghetti, not the thin kind. The thin stuff breaks when you mix everything up and then it’s just mush.
If you’re making it for a lot of people, keep it warm in a crockpot on low. Stir it sometimes so it doesn’t stick.
Taste it before you serve it. Sometimes it needs salt or I squeeze lime juice on it. Depends what brand of seasoning you use.
Serving Suggestions
We eat it with chips on the side. The crunch is good with the pasta. Kids always want extra cheese even though there’s already cheese mixed in.
Sometimes I put out bowls of toppings and let everyone fix their own. Sour cream, tomatoes, more cheese, whatever. Makes them feel fancy.
Goes good with beer if you drink beer. Kids have milk because they think everything is spicy even when it’s not.
Storage and Food Safety
Let it cool off before you stick it in the fridge. Don’t leave it out too long or you’ll get sick. My friend’s kid got food poisoning from pasta salad once and it was awful.
Put leftovers in containers. Use it up in 4 days. The pasta soaks up the sauce so it looks different but still tastes fine.
Microwave works for heating up small amounts. For bigger portions, heat it on the stove and add water so it doesn’t burn. Don’t get it too hot or the cheese gets weird.
How to Store Your Taco Spaghetti
Refrigerator: Put it in containers and eat it within 4 days. Tastes fine the next day, maybe even better. Add water when you reheat it because the noodles soak up the sauce.
Freezer: I’ve frozen it but the noodles get soft and gross. If you want to freeze something, freeze just the meat sauce and make fresh pasta later.
Reheating: Microwave is fine for one person. If you’re heating up more, use the stove and add a little water. Don’t burn it.
Allergy Information and Substitutions
Has: Gluten from pasta, dairy from cheese
No gluten: Use gluten-free pasta. The corn ones are pretty good and my nephew who has celiac likes them.
No dairy: Skip the cheese or use the fake stuff. Some of it’s okay now but doesn’t melt the same.
Questions I Get Asked A Lot
Can I use ground turkey instead of beef?
Sure but it doesn’t taste as good and costs more. If you use it, add oil so it doesn’t stick to the pan.
What if I don’t have Rotel?
Regular diced tomatoes work. Add a can of green chiles if you want some heat. Or just use plain tomatoes.
Is it spicy?
Not really. My kids eat it and they don’t like spicy stuff. Depends on your taco seasoning I guess.
Q: Can I put beans in it? A: Yeah, black beans or whatever. Drain them first and add them with the tomatoes. My kids pick them out but adults like them.
What about other vegetables?
Bell peppers are good, add them with the onion. Corn works too. Mushrooms if you like them but I don’t.
Different pasta?
Penne works, so does rotini. Just not the really thin pasta because it falls apart.
My cheese got lumpy, what happened?
Probably used the bagged cheese or added it when everything wasn’t hot enough. Grate fresh cheese and make sure the pasta is still hot.
💬 Did you make this? Let me know how it went! My family’s always trying to add weird stuff to it so I’m curious what other people do.
