Update Taco Tuesday with Easy Taco Pasta Casserole. With only 8 ingredients and 45 minutes, you’ll have a tasty meal your family will love!

Casseroles are a busy cooks go-to for an easy throw together meal. Easy Taco Pasta Casserole is a great choice when it comes to simple, quick and delicious. With pasta, lots of cheese and a cornbread crust, it checks all of the comfort food boxes.  The ingredients are easy to find and you may already have many of them in your pantry.

One of the best things about this recipe is that the pasta cooks right in the pan. No boiling pots of water or extra pans to clean up!

Taco seasoned meat makes even the simplest dishes taste amazing, and the kids will love it! As far as I’m concerned, you can’t have too many taco night recipes. One of our favorites you might want to try is Easy Taco Biscuit Casserole. It’s easy, delicious and this recipe is made in one pan too!

HOW TO MAKE EASY TACO PASTA CASSEROLE

It doesn’t get much easier to put a quick meal on the table than this one-pan pasta meal.

Ingredients needed to make this recipe:

• Ground Beef – 80% lean or better will give the best results. And don’t forget the bonus of not having to drain off any extra fat:)
• Uncooked Pasta – egg noodles are used for this recipe for flavor and creaminess. Macaroni, twist or shell pastas are perfect too.
• Taco Seasoning – we use homemade taco seasoning so we can control the salt and flavor but use can your favorite packet mix if you prefer.
• Tomatoes with Green Chilies – for flavor, texture and mild heat. You can omit the green chilies if you don’t care for them.
• Cheddar Cheese – buy a big block and shred your own…it’s budget-friendly and melts more evenly. Don’t want to go to the trouble? Buy a bag of shredded!
• Cornbread Mix – we used cornbread mix that comes in the small blue box. It’s always no-fail.
• Egg – for the cornbread mix
• Milk – for the cornbread mix

Directions:

1. First, preheat your oven to 400°. Let it get to temperature while you are prepping the other ingredients.
2. In a large oven-proof skillet, brown the ground beef over med-high heat. When no pink remains, drain off the fat if needed.
3. Add the uncooked pasta,  taco seasoning, both cans of tomatoes with chilies (undrained), and water to the browned beef. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes or until any excess liquid is gone. You’ll want to stir occasionally. 
4. When ready, the pasta will be tender and all of the liquid will have been absorbed.  Add the shredded cheese to the meat mixture and stir until the cheese is melted. 
5. Stir the cornbread mix, egg and milk in a small bowl until they are well blended.  Drop the cornbread mixture by the spoonful on top the taco/pasta mixture, carefully spreading it out so most of the taco mixture is covered. 
6. Bake in the skillet in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until the cornbread topping is golden brown.  Cool slightly before cutting and serving. Garnish as desired.

HOW TO STORE TACO PASTA LEFTOVERS

Though we generally don’t have any leftovers of this meal, this taco casserole will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Store in an airtight container or tightly covered with plastic wrap.

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CAN I MAKE THIS CASSEROLE WITH CHICKEN?

Yes, this recipe can be made with chicken. Substitute 1 pound of raw ground or diced chicken for the beef and prepare the casserole the same way. You can also use shredded or diced cooked chicken. If you’re using already cooked chicken, just omit the step for browning the meat.

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Post and photos updated 5/6/2019.