Contest Winning Taco Casserole Recipes

Steps:

• Set oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook beef, onion, bell pepper, chili flakes and garlic until beef is no longer pink; drain then season with seasoning salt and black pepper (or cayenne pepper).
• Stir in water, taco sauce, green chiles, half of the olives and taco seasoning mix (you can use 2 packages of seasoning mix if desired for this).
• Cook over low heat for about 6-8 minutes.
• Layer HALF of broken shells on bottom of greased 13x9 baking pan; cover with HALF of meat sauce, then sprinkle with 2 cups (or to taste) cheddar cheese.
• Repeat with remaining broken taco shells, meat sauce and then top with remaining cheese (to prevent the cheese from getting hard, you can sprinkle on the last 10 minutes before the end of baking time and return to oven until melted).
• Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbly, and cheese is melted.
• After baking, sprinkle with remaining olives, tomatoes and green onions.
• **NOTE** I sometimes drizzle bottled salsa sauce (mild or spicy) on top of the ground beef and then on top before baking.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add cheese, salsa, tomatoes and taco seasoning. Drain pasta; stir into beef mixture., Transfer to a greased 11x7-in. baking dish. Cover and bake 20 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with tortilla chips. Bake until heated through, about 10 minutes longer.

Steps:

• Brown ground beef and drain.
• Add taco seasoning and cook according to package directions, adding proper amount of water.
• Put corn chips on bottom of 8x8" dish.
• Cook refried beans on stove until hot.
• Add 1 cup cheese and 1 cup salsa. Stir until combined.
• Pour beans over corn chips in dish.
• Add beef to top of beans.
• Sprinkle remaining cheese over top.
• Sprinkle green onions and black olives over cheese.
• Bake in a 375 degree oven until the cheese is sufficiently melted.
• Take out of oven and sprinkle chopped tomatoes on top. Wait 1-2 minutes and then serve.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
• Cook ground beef and onions in a skillet over medium heat until beef is browned, 7 to 10 minutes; drain grease. Stir in water and taco seasoning; cook, stirring often, until thickened, about 2 minutes. Add refried beans, salsa, olives, and green chiles. Cook and stir over low heat until ingredients are warmed through, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Place half of the taco shells in the bottom of the baking dish. Pour in half of the ground beef mixture; sprinkle with half of the Cheddar cheese. Repeat with remaining taco shells, ground beef mixture, and Cheddar cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted and bubbly, 20 to 25 minutes.