Instant Pot Ground Beef Tacos
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Using frozen ground beef – no need to thaw! Cooks in just 20 min. Serve with desired toppings. So fast, so easy, so so good.
Do you ever forget to thaw your frozen ground beef and realize that dinner will be an absolute disaster?
Because this probably happens to me at least once a week. I always have some frozen ground beef to use up except I never remember to thaw it in time!
But now you don’t have to worry about any thawing at all. Nope. No thawing, no worries. You can use your ground beef and go straight from freezer to your Instant Pot.
You just need TWO 1 pound frozen bricks of ground beef here (totaling 2 pounds). I DO NOT RECOMMEND THROWING IN A 2 POUND BRICK AS ONE PIECE – it will not cook in the allotted time here.
So two frozen bricks, some seasonings and boom, you’re done. The IP will cook it absolutely perfectly with your homemade taco seasoning. And when you open up your pressure cooker, make sure you let it simmer for 5-6 minutes until it gets real saucy, breaking up the meat as it cooks.
Serve in warmed tortillas or crispy taco shells because dinner is served just like that.
Instant Pot Ground Beef Tacos
Ingredients
- ¾ cup beef broth
- 1 ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ small onion, diced
- 1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
- 2 (1-pound) packages frozen ground beef
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¾ teaspoon cumin
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For Serving
- Tortillas (flour or corn) or crispy taco shells
- Shredded lettuce
- Diced tomato
- Diced red onion
- Shredded Mexican blend cheese
Instructions
- Add beef broth to a 6-qt Instant Pot®; whisk in cornstarch.
- Stir in garlic, onion and green chiles. Gently place frozen ground beef on top; slightly overlapping.
- In a small bowl, combine chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; sprinkle over frozen ground beef.
- Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 20 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions.
- Select high sauté setting. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and slightly thickened, about 5-6minutes, making sure to crumble the beef as it cooks.
- Serve immediately in tortillas or shells with desired toppings.
Did you make this recipe?
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Is there any way to use less meat? There are only two of us so one pound is more ideal.
Instructions for 1-2 lbs ground meat.
Cover bottom of pot with 1 cup cold water for a 6 quart instant pot and 1.5 cups of cold water for an 8 quart instant pot. Add in trivet and place frozen or fresh ground meat directly on trivet.
Put the lid on the Pressure Cooker and turn valve to seal.
Set to High Pressure for 20 minutes if frozen, 6 minutes if fresh.
Once finished cooking, let pressure release naturally for 5 minutes and then do a quick release of any remaining pressure. Check temperature with meat thermometer–it should be 160-165 degrees. If it is not, seal again and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.
Carefully remove trivet from Instant Pot. Discard cooking liquid and grease and break up ground beef using a spatula into desired size. Use as desired. Source: https://amindfullmom.com/instant-pot-ground-beef/
Thank you Cheryl. I will be making this tonight! It’s Snowmageddon here in Ottawa, Canada, so Tacos are a great option.
How much would the cook time change for fresh (not frozen) ground beef?
Can the recipe be halved to use 1 pound of ground beef instead of 2?
I halved the recipe and used a 3 quart mini Lux. It turned out great! I did use a trivet to place the frozen meat on and also added the corn starch and 2 tbsp of tomato sauce at the end just before using the sauté setting.
Is there anything better than tacos? We were planning tacos tonight for dinner, so we’ll totally have to use your recipe!
Paige