The ultimate tasty slow cooker taco dip! Loaded with fantastic taco-night flavors, and perfect for a party, this dip simmers away in your slow cooker, so you can enjoy the party and your guests!
Perfect for game day or a fun appetizer night, this slow cooker taco dip is positively loaded with great taco flavors. I use my homemade taco seasoning blend, but you can use a packet if you prefer. Make it for your next party and watch it disappear!
You guys. I just realized there is a HUGE empty spot here on The Chunky Chef. I don’t have nearly enough taco recipes!!! I love tacos… as in, I could literally eat them everyday and never get bored. So I should have tons of them here on the blog, and yet I don’t. Shame on me.
I think it’s honestly because tacos can be tricky to photograph, but still… mark my words, you will see a few more taco recipes here over the next 11 months!
Until then, you’ll have to make do with this incredibly tasty slow cooker taco DIP. Let me tell you, it’s as tasty as your favorite tacos. Plus, this recipe calls for just 10 minutes of prep! I normally chop my veggies as my meat is browning in the pan, so if you don’t like to multitask with prep, it may take you 15 minutes… but after that, it’s nearly completely hands-off!
HOW IS THIS DIFFERENT THAN OTHER TACO DIPS?
I know there are a LOT of taco dips out there in the universe. But here’s why this one is my favorite:
- It’s made in the slow cooker/crockpot
- Low prep time
- Uses homemade taco seasoning
- Is totally customizable!
I mentioned using homemade taco seasoning, which I encourage you to try, at least once. Everyone has their own tastes, but my homemade blend is one that my family has been enjoying for years! You can easily double or triple the recipe and store it in an airtight container with your other spices for other taco nights to come. However, if you already have a packet of taco seasoning, go ahead and use that.
TIPS AND TRICK FOR MAKING THIS SLOW COOKER TACO DIP:
- Use whatever ground meat you prefer. I use beef the most, but turkey is a fabulous (and healthier) substitute!
- If you know your slow cooker runs hot on the HIGH setting, go ahead and spray the inside of your slow cooker insert to keep the dip from sticking.
- For the toppings and garnishes, go for whatever you like on your tacos! I kept it simple here with tomatoes, olives and cilantro… but red onion, avocado, guacamole, corn… it’s all fair game.
- I find this dip to be convenient for a party, since it doesn’t take up precious oven space, but if you prefer, there’s an oven version down in the recipe card itself.
This game day season (or any time really), dust off your slow cooker and give this ultimate taco dip a try. It has everything you love about great beef tacos, in a fun dip form!
HELPFUL TOOLS TO MAKE THIS TACO DIP:
- 4 quart slow cooker – this is the slow cooker pictured here in the photos, and I LOVE it. It cooks like a champ, has an insert you can brown things in on the stovetop, and cleans up so easily. However, it’s not cheap, so if you’re looking for something more affordable, the one below is fantastic option!
- 3 quart slow cooker – this dip fits wonderfully in a 3 qt slow cooker as well, and this one is incredibly economical, yet works really well!
OTHER GREAT SLOW COOKER DIPS/APPETIZERS:
- Slow Cooker Spicy Creamy Corn Dip
- Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Wings
- Slow Cooker Cranberry BBQ Meatballs
- Bacon Cheeseburger Dip (there’s a slow cooker version)
WANT TO TRY THIS SLOW COOKER TACO DIP?
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Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef (I use 80/20)
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 poblano pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
- 1/2 cup reduced sodium beef broth
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 3 Tbsp homemade taco seasoning
- 2 (10oz each) cans diced tomatoes and green chiles, about half the liquid drained (I use the mild variety)
- 1-2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
GARNISHES:
- sliced black olives
- diced tomatoes
- minced fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over MED-HIGH heat and drizzle with a little bit of olive oil. Add ground beef and cook 3-4 minutes, crumbling as you cook, until mostly browned. Add in diced onion, poblano and jalapeño and cook about 2-3 minutes, until soft. Drain grease.
- To a 3-4 quart slow cooker, add cooked beef mixture, beef broth, cornstarch, taco seasoning, and diced tomatoes with green chiles. Stir to combine well.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours, or LOW for about 5 hours. Remove lid, add half the shredded cheese, give it a stir, top with remaining cheese. Cover and cook on LOW for 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted on top.
- Sprinkle with garnishes and serve with tortilla chips!
OVEN DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Complete step 1 above as directed, preferably using an oven-safe skillet. After draining, return beef mixture to skillet. Add beef broth, cornstarch, taco seasoning, diced tomatoes with green chiles, and half of the cheese, stirring to combine.
- Sprinkle with remaining cheese, cover loosely with foil, and bake for approximately 20-30 minutes, until bubbly and cheese is melted. Garnish and serve as directed above.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
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Sharra says
My daughter made this today for a school potluck. She said it was gone fast and everyone loved it including her teacher. People even asked for the recipe and she told me next potluck I have to bring it. Only change I made was I used canned green chiles instead of poblano since I already had it on hand.
Talulah says
We tried this on Christmas day exactly as written. It was delicious! Wouldn’t change a thing. We’ve tried several recipes from this website and have been pleased everytime.
Debbie Corner says
Can I make and freeze?
The Chunky Chef says
Yes, this should freeze well 🙂
Lisa Ruggles says
I took this to work for our “Thanksgiving” luncheon and Everyone LOVED it. Several wanted the recipe!! So I shared it!!
Karen Wood says
Many favorable compliments.
MJ says
The recipe calls for 1-2 cups of cheese. What is the total amount of cheese? Is 1 cup of cheese stirred into the dip at the end, and another cup melted on top. Looking forward to trying. Thank you.
The Chunky Chef says
You can use anywhere between 1 and 2 cups of cheese; it’s all up to you and how cheesy you want the dip to be. However many cups you want to use, use half of that IN the dip, and half of it ON TOP of the dip 🙂
Busy chicago mom says
It came out very watery. I made it as written and even drained the tomatoes a bit more than the recipe said and added a bit more cornstarch but it turned out to be more like soup. I ended up straining it into a metal colander and put it back Into the crockpot before adding the cheese. It was still a hit as The flavors were great and everyone ate it like a chili in bowls instead of like a dip. Next time I will fully drain the tomatoes and use much less beef broth
Yvette says
Where can I find your homemade taco seasoning recipe?
The Chunky Chef says
https://www.thechunkychef.com/homemade-taco-seasoning/
Kelly says
Overall this was a great dip.
I did, however, add 4oz of cream cheese, an additional 1/2 cup of beef broth (1 cup total), a can of rinsed black beans, and a whole can of nacho cheese.
This dip is pretty mild as far as heat level. Next time I would probably add 2 additional jalapenos. I will probably add some corn next time as well.
Darren says
Used the oven method because I ran out of time. Came out great. I think that making the Taco seasoning or using one that has most of the ingredients of the chunky chef’s recipe is the secret, along with the canned diced tomatoes with green chili peppers. Also, I used 2 jalapeños. Every thing was tasty and spiced without any heat to it.