Crushed tortilla chips, salsa & taco seasoning gives a classic recipe a new flavorful twist with this easy slow cooked recipe for Crock-Pot Taco Meatloaf! Everyone in the family will love this meatloaf topped with a sweetened taco sauce glaze!
Slow Cooker Taco Meatloaf
Meatloaf is one of those comfort food recipes that I like to make for dinner probably at least once a month. And I love making my meatloaf in the slow cooker for several reasons…
- No need to turn on the oven and heat up the house.
- I can make up the meatloaf, toss it in the slow cooker and let it cook away while I am running errands or otherwise too busy to babysit dinner.
- The meatloaf comes out nice and moist and I have yet to have a meatloaf dry out and overcook in the Crock-Pot.
- Meatloaf can also be made into a slow cooker freezer meal…just mix up the meat mixture and put it into a freezer zipper bag and freeze it. Thaw it completely in the refrigerator the day before and then cook it like the recipe says.
I also love to play with different flavor profiles and so I thought I would try my hand at a taco flavored meatloaf.
This recipe took several tries to get it right. The first time I attempted to make a taco meatloaf the meatloaf was way too moist and the end product had a mushy texture that was not at all appetizing.
The flavor was good but no one wants to eat mushy meatloaf except for my dogs….they enjoyed it.
To avoid mushy meatloaf I adjusted my original recipe by adding more crushed tortilla chips (which act as a binder much like bread crumbs would in a traditional meatloaf) and then I drained the salsa a little bit so that I could get all the salsa flavor but a little less liquid.
Those two adjustments did the trick BUT the additional use of more tortilla chips make the second meatloaf entirely too salty for my palate.
SO…round three I used no-salt added tortilla chips AND I made my own taco seasoning and omitted the salt. This version came out just right. Not too salty, lots of flavor, and just the right texture.
And the family loved it. They really loved the different flavors in this meatloaf. And thought it was a fun twist. I let the kids have the extra tortilla chips and they kind of broke up their meatloaf on the plate and used the chips to scoop up and eat the meatloaf.
My kids are weird. LOL
>> Check out even more Crock-Pot Meatloaf recipes!
I hope you enjoy this fun twist on meatloaf as much as we did!
Special Diets
Crock-Pot Taco Meatloaf Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 cups Salt Free Tortilla Chips (crushed (measured when crushed) – (look for gluten free options if using store bought))
- 1 cup Cheddar Cheese (shredded)
- 1 cup Salsa
- 2 large Eggs (lightly beaten)
- ¼ cup Canned Sliced Black Olives (drained)
- 1 packet Low Sodium Taco Seasoning Mix (OR use recipe for homemade taco seasoning mix and omit the salt (look for gluten free options if using store bought))
- 2 pounds Lean Ground Beef
- ½ cup Ketchup ( (look for gluten free options if using store bought))
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- 2 tablespoons Taco Sauce ( (look for gluten free options if using store bought))
Instructions
- Cut four 20 inch X 3 inch strips of heavy-duty foil; crisscross so they resemble spokes of a wheel. Place strips on the bottom and up the sides of a 5 to 6 quart slow cooker. OR use a Crock-Pot cooking rack. Coat strips or cooking rack with non-stock cooking spray.
- In a large bowl mix together then tortilla chips, cheddar cheese, salsa, eggs, olives, taco seasoning and ground beef.
- Shape meat mixture into a loaf and place in slow cooker on top of the foil strips or cooking rack.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 160° and there is no pink inside the meatloaf.
- Combine the ketchup, brown sugar and taco sauce and pour over meatloaf during the last half hour of cooking.
- Turn slow cooker off and let stand for 10 minutes and then use the foil handles to carefully lift the meatloaf out of the slow cooker.
Nutrition
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