Easy Taco Pasta Skillet with Brown Rice Pasta

My easy taco pasta skillet recipe is made in one large pot, uses fresh and pantry staple ingredients, including delicious brown rice pasta, and is ready in about 30 minutes. This post contains affiliate links. Please see my disclosures.

My teenage son, and tween daughter, are growing. And this means they’re eating a lot.

One of their favorite things to eat is leftovers – I often find them eating leftovers for breakfast and lunch the next day. I honestly cannot make enough food these days. All leftovers are in their bellies before my husband or I even get a chance at them!

This is why my taco pasta skillet recipe is perfect. It feeds a crowd and always leaves us with plenty of leftovers to enjoy for several days.

What You Need

Before making this recipe, make sure you have a large non-stick skillet pan. I bought mine at Costco for $20 and use it constantly. It can hold up to 5 quarts of food.

If your pot is too small, it will bubble over or all the ingredients won’t fit. Remember, I said this recipe feeds a crowd, so it requires a bit pot!

This recipe requires a lot of ingredients, but you’ll see, all the ingredients are common and accessible ingredients. Here’s what you need:

• 1 tbsp avocado oil
• 1.5 lbs ground turkey or ground beef
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp Kosher salt
• 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes with juices
• 15 ounce can of corn, drained and rinsed
• 15 ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 3/4 cup salsa
• 16 ounce Tinkyada brown rice noodles
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1-2 tbsp fresh cilantro optional, for garnish
• 1 avocado sliced

The pasta brand you choose is very important. I have found that some gluten-free noodle brands have better texture than others.

One brown rice noodle brand that I almost exclusively use is called Tinkyada.

The Tinkyada brand has the worst website I’ve ever seen, no social media presence, and the company does almost no marketing that I’m aware of. But you can find these perfectly textured noodles at many grocery stores across the U.S., from Walmart to Kroger, Safeway and Sprouts. You can also get them on Amazon.

You can use any of the pasta shapes you desire, but I think this recipe works best with the elbow, shells or penne.

And because this recipe feeds a large family with plenty of leftovers, you’ll be using an entire 16-ounce bag of Tinkyada pasta.

If you use another brown rice pasta brand, measure out 16 ounces, and watch the cook time carefully. You may need to add more liquid (or maybe use less liquid) to get the perfect texture.

How to Make Taco Pasta Skillet

Everything is going to cook in one pan, and you won’t have to remove anything from the pan during the cooking process.

Start by heating the avocado oil over medium-high heat in a large 5-quart non-stick pan. Add ground turkey and onion and cook until meat is no longer pink, about 8 minutes. Add garlic, red pepper, chili powder, cumin and salt and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

Add the diced tomatoes, corn, black beans and salsa and mix well.

Next, add brown rice noodles and chicken broth. Continue to mix until all the ingredients are well combine. Bring the mixture to a boil before turning down the heat to a rolling boil (low). Cover and cook until the noodles are cooked al dente, about 10-15 minutes.

You’ll want to watch the cooking process and adjust the amount of liquid, as needed. If the noodles are not cooked enough, add more chicken broth and keep mixture at a rolling boil. There should be some liquid left in the pan when all is said and done. The extra liquid will thicken from the starch in the noodles and give the final dish a wonderful saucy texture.

You can also add more salt and pepper to taste, as well as top everything with fresh cilantro and slices of avocado (optional).

Store leftovers in a sealed container in your fridge for up to four days. I often portion out the leftovers into these glass storage containers so everyone has a lunch ready for the next day.

Lots of Leftovers

As I mentioned before, this recipe makes a huge pot of food, perfect for feeding a crowd, meal planning, or planned leftovers.

You can portion it out into 8 glass containers and simply heat it for 1-2 minutes in your microwave before serving. I also pack it in my children’s lunch thermos and they take it to school the next day. My kids hate sandwiches and love warm leftovers for lunch.

Substitutions and Additions

This recipe is quite forgiving, so feel free to add or omit ingredients as desired.

Meat: I like to use ground turkey, but you could also use ground beef. Make sure the meat is cooked through before adding all the other ingredients.

Pasta: See notes above about why I use Tinkyada brown rice pasta. I cannot guarantee the taste or texture if you use other gluten-free pasta brands.

Salsa: Use any salsa you like. I use the medium-spiced Kirkland brand salsa.

Broth: You can use chicken or vegetable broth. If you don’t have broth, you can use water. I recommend adding a bit more salt and pepper to your mixture if you’re using water in lieu of broth.

Spices: If you like it spicy, add more chili powder and/or a pinch of red pepper flakes. Also use a medium to hot salsa.

More Recipes Like This

You might also enjoy the following recipes:

• Hearty Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada Soup
• Slow Cooker Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti Squash
• Asian Meatball Bowls