Taco Lasagna

Taco Lasagna elevates the humble taco to new heights in this easy, cheesy, creamy, hearty, make ahead, freezer friendly ground beef casserole. In just a little more time than it takes to make taco filling, you'll be sinking your teeth into stacks of juicy taco meat, charred corn tortillas, cheese, salsa verde sour cream all smothered in salsa roja and more cheese, then baked to bubbly perfection. Pile on your favorite toppings such as lettuce and tomatoes and the masterpiece is complete! This Taco Lasagna recipe is a weeknight and family-friendly meal, always a crowd-pleaser, can be prepped in the morning and baked at night, made in mass quantities, and/or frozen for later. It also makes terrific leftovers – should you be so lucky. Serve it alongside Mexican rice and Mexican Salad for a dinner everyone will inhale!

Course Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 40

Total Time 1 10

Servings -16 servings

Ingredients

GROUND BEEF

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped (may sub 1 1/2 tsp onion powder)
1 ½ pounds lean ground beef
6 garlic cloves, minced (or 1 tsp garlic powder)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tsp EACH ground cumin, smoked paprika, dried oregano, salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional, possibly omit if using medium salsas)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 16 oz. can refried beans
1 ½ cups salsa (I use Mateo's Medium-Hot)
½ cup water
1 4 oz. can mild chopped green chilies

LAYERS

20 6-inch corn tortillas (cut 12 in half)
2 cups freshly grated Monterrey Jack cheese
2 cups freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 ½ cups salsa (I use Mateo's Medium-Hot), divided

CREAMY FILLING

1 1/2 cups sour cream
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
½ cup salsa verde (I use medium Herdez)
pinch of salt

Topping Ideas

lettuce
sour cream
tomatoes
olives
jalapenos
cilantro
Nacho Cheese Doritos

Instructions

PREP: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a deep 9X13-inch pan; set aside.
COOK BEEF: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for 2 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook and crumble until the beef is cooked through; drain off excess grease.
Return to medium heat. Stir in the garlic and all seasonings, followed by the tomato paste and continue to cook for one minute.
Stir in the refried beans, salsa, water and chopped green chilies. Continue to cook and stir until the refried beans are fully incorporated. Season to taste with cayenne pepper if desired; set aside.
CREAMY FILLING: Whisk all of the Creamy Filling ingredients together in a medium bowl, set aside. Combine cheeses in a separate bowl; set aside.
OPTIONAL: Char tortillas over the flame of a gas burner or in a cast iron skillet until lightly charred in spots.
ASSEMBLE: Add ½ cup salsa to the prepared baking dish and spread into an even layer (it will be thin). Add a layer of tortillas by placing 2 whole tortillas in the middle and surrounding them with 6 tortilla halves (see photos) to cover. Spread 1/3 of the Creamy Filling over top, followed by 1 cup combined cheeses and 1/3 of the meat mixture. Repeat the tortillas, creamy filling, cheese and meat mixture two more times to use up all of the Creamy Filling and meat. Top with a layer of tortillas to cover, remaining salsa, and cheese.
BAKE: Cover and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the casserole is heated through. Let casserole stand 10 minutes before cutting. Top with lettuce, tomatoes, olives, avocados, cilantro, jalapenos and sour cream if desired.

Video

Notes

Tortillas: If you’ve been following me for long, you know I usually recommend La Tortilla Factory corn tortillas HOWEVER, do not use them in this recipe. I find them a little too thick. Instead, use any less expensive corn tortillas from your grocery store. I love La Paz corn tortillas for this recipe.
Control the heat. For medium heat, I used medium-hot Mateo’s Salsa and medium salsa verde and omitted the cayenne pepper in the ground beef. For less heat, use mild salsas and a pinch of cayenne.
Ground turkey: I suggest adding 1 ½ teaspoons beef bouillon if using ground poultry and reducing the salt. You may also use shredded rotisserie chicken. See post for more recipe variations.
Storage: Leftover Taco Lasagna should be tightly covered in plastic wrap or foil or transferred to an airtight container; store for up to 5 days.

Meal Prep

This Taco Lasagna recipe is the perfect make-ahead meal to either assemble and bake within 24 hours or to bake and freeze.

Assemble and refrigerate: Make and assemble the entire recipe in advance, tightly cover and refrigerate (without baking) for up to 24 hours. When ready to cook, bake according to recipe directions, increasing the baking time by approximately 10 minutes or until the lasagna is hot and bubbly and completely heated through. Note, that the longer the tortillas are refrigerated, the softer they will become.
Make the ground beef taco filling: Make the taco filling complete with all the add-ins up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. You will need to warm up the taco filling before using so it's nice and spreadable.
Prep toppings: Chop and store toppings in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours.
To freeze: Let the ground beef casserole cool completely (or freeze before baking for meal prep). Wrap securely with plastic wrap, then with aluminum foil; freeze for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, tightly covered with foil, at 425 degrees F for 60 minutes, uncover and bake an additional 15-30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.