Slow Cooker Walking Taco Bar, the Easiest Football Season Dinner
There is a very specific kind of chaos that shows up in Kansas City at the end of August. School just started, everybody is tired in a way that a nap does not fix, the calendar somehow filled itself up, and then football season strolls in and asks what is for dinner.
This is my answer, and it has never once let me down. A slow cooker full of seasoned taco meat, a stack of those little single serve chip bags, and a counter lined with toppings. People walk up, crush a bag, spoon in the meat, pile on whatever they want, and wander back to the couch. No plates. No table. Nobody asking me to reheat anything. I sit down with everyone else, which honestly is the whole point.
Heads up, a couple of the links below are affiliate links, which just means if you grab something I get a tiny commission at no extra cost to you. Only things I actually use made the cut.
Why you will love this walking taco bar
It feeds a crowd without turning me into a short order cook. The picky kid gets plain meat and cheese, my husband builds something with three kinds of pepper on it, and I do not have to negotiate with anyone.
It holds. The slow cooker keeps the meat hot on the WARM setting for hours, so late arrivals still get a good plate, or in this case a good bag. That matters when kickoff runs long or a game runs late.
Cleanup is almost nothing. The bag is the bowl. I have hosted this for twelve people and put exactly one pot and a handful of little topping bowls in the dishwasher. If you want to make it even easier, a box of slow cooker liners means you lift out the mess and toss it.
The ingredients
For the taco meat: 2 pounds ground beef (I use 85/15), 1 large yellow onion diced, 3 cloves garlic minced, 2 tablespoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, half a teaspoon black pepper, a quarter teaspoon cayenne if your people like heat, one 15 ounce can tomato sauce, one 10 ounce can diced tomatoes with green chiles, one 15 ounce can black beans rinsed and drained, and half a cup beef broth.
For the bar: 12 single serve bags of corn chips or tortilla chips, 2 cups shredded cheddar, 2 cups shredded lettuce, 1 cup diced tomatoes or pico de gallo, 1 cup sour cream, half a cup pickled jalapenos, half a cup sliced black olives, a quarter cup chopped cilantro, and 2 limes cut into wedges.
Two notes. Buy the variety pack of single serve chip bags instead of one giant bag, because the individual bags are what make this fun and they keep the chips crisp until the second someone opens one. And the smoked paprika is not optional in my house, it is the thing that makes people ask what you did differently.
How to make it
Brown the beef and the diced onion together in a big skillet over medium high heat, breaking the meat up as it goes, about 7 to 8 minutes. Drain off the fat, and actually drain it, because greasy meat in a chip bag is a sad situation.
Add the garlic and every one of the spices and stir it around for a full minute. It will smell so good you will consider eating it straight from the pan. Then scrape all of it into the slow cooker along with the tomato sauce, the diced tomatoes with green chiles, the black beans and the beef broth, and give it a stir.
Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours, or on HIGH for 2 hours if you got a late start. Stir, taste, add salt if it needs it, then flip it to WARM. It will hold beautifully for another 3 hours. I use a basic 6 quart programmable slow cooker and it fits this recipe with room to spare.
While that happens, set out the toppings. I line them up in small glass bowls with lids so I can prep them in the morning, snap the lids on, and pull the whole tray out of the fridge right before people show up.
To assemble, gently crush the chips inside the closed bag, cut or tear the bag open along the long side so it opens like a little boat, spoon the meat right in, and load it up. Hand everyone a fork and let them go.
Tips, swaps and make ahead
Make the meat a day early. Honestly it is better on day two. Cook it, cool it, refrigerate it, then reheat it in the slow cooker on LOW for about an hour and a half before you need it.
Swap the protein. Ground turkey works and stays juicy because of the tomato sauce. Two pounds of chicken breasts cooked in the same sauce and shredded is great too, just add an extra hour on LOW. For a meatless version, use two cans of black beans and one can of pinto beans and cut the broth down to a quarter cup.
Control the heat. My kids will eat this exactly as written, but if yours are heat sensitive, skip the cayenne and use plain diced tomatoes instead of the ones with green chiles, then set out hot sauce for the adults.
Feeding a bigger crowd? This doubles in a large slow cooker with no other changes, and I would plan on one and a half bags per adult, because people always come back for a second one.
Quick recipe details
Prep time is 15 minutes. Cook time is 4 hours on LOW or 2 hours on HIGH, and it holds on WARM for up to 3 hours after that. It makes about 12 walking tacos. Leftover meat keeps in the fridge for 4 days in an airtight container, or freeze it flat in a zip top bag for up to 3 months. Do not build the bags ahead of time, the chips go soft within about 20 minutes.
Slow Cooker Walking Taco Bar
Ingredients
Method
- Brown the beef and onion together in a large skillet over medium high heat, breaking it up as it cooks, about 7 to 8 minutes. Drain off the fat.
- Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper and cayenne. Cook and stir for 1 minute, just until everything smells amazing.
- Scrape the meat into the slow cooker. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes with green chiles, black beans and beef broth. Stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours or HIGH for 2 hours. Stir, taste, and add salt if it needs it. Switch to WARM and it will hold happily for up to 3 more hours.
- Set out the chip bags, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, jalapenos, olives, cilantro and lime wedges in bowls with spoons.
- To assemble, gently crush a bag of chips, cut or tear it open along the long side, spoon the taco meat right in, and let everyone pile on toppings. Eat with a fork, standing up, no plate required.
Notes
The takeaway
I love a beautiful hosted dinner as much as anyone, but there is a season for that and this is not it. Right now the win is food that is warm, easy, and does not keep me in the kitchen while everyone else is laughing in the other room. A slow cooker and a stack of chip bags does that better than almost anything else I make.
If you have a topping I am missing, tell me in the comments, my bar always has room for one more bowl.
So glad you are here.
xo, Pam
