This easy Mexican Spaghetti is a delicious one-pot meal of noodles cooked in a tomato sauce with beef, poblano peppers, and shredded cheese. It's a fun way to put a spin on traditional spaghetti by adding Mexican flavors.
Want more savory pasta dishes? Try One Pot Casarecce Pasta and One Pot Creamy Tomato Pasta next!
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This one-pot taco spaghetti recipe is a meal that the whole family will love. It's perfect for busy weeknights, especially when you want to put a fun spin on taco Tuesday!
It's like taco and spaghetti night rolled into one!
This Mexican Spaghetti recipe is a flavorful, spicy way to jazz up this classic meal. It's easy, cheesy, and so much fun to eat!
What is Mexican Spaghetti?
My version of Mexican Spaghetti is inspired by the classic Mexican dish known as espagueti rojo (red spaghetti). Espagueti rojo contains a tomato based Mexican spaghetti sauce, Mexican crema, and cream cheese. While my recipe doesn't include crema or cream cheese, it still has the spicy flavor and added creaminess from the cheese.
Ingredient Notes
Gather all of the ingredients below and let's make taco pasta!
- Ground beef: Use lean ground beef so it's not as greasy.
- Poblano Pepper: This is a fairly mild pepper. Chop it before adding it to the sauce for the best flavor.
- Seasonings: A delicious blend of garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper. If you're short of any of these, you can simply use a packet of taco seasoning. You can also use my chicken taco seasoning blend for this recipe too!
- Aromatics: Chopped yellow onion and diced garlic cloves are a must!
- Tomatoes: I used tomato paste, fire-roasted tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Rotel tomatoes work well here too if you have any on hand.
- Corn: Use frozen corn so it doesn't get mushy during the cooking process. The sweetness of the corn really balances the heat of this dish.
- Beef broth: Cooking the spaghetti in beef broth instead of water adds a boost of flavor.
- Spaghetti Noodles: Cook it until it's just al dente. No one wants soggy spaghetti!
- Mexican Cheese Blend: I love this blend of cheeses, it adds such delicious flavor. If you can't find a blend, cheddar cheese works well with this recipe too!
Garnish with your favorite taco toppings such as Fresh Cilantro, a dollop of sour cream, avocado, jalapeno, queso fresco, and grated cotija.
Variations
- Mexican Green Spaghetti: The "green" version of this dish is known as Espagueti Verde and contains a creamy green poblano sauce instead of tomato sauce.
- Gluten-Free: If you have dietary restrictions then you could use gluten-free spaghetti or replace it with zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash.
- Vegetarian: Make this a meatless meal by leaving out the ground beef.
- Make Mexican Spaghetti Casserole: turn this easy taco spaghetti into a casserole! After you're done cooking the pasta, add everything to a casserole dish, top with cheese, and broil in the oven for 2-4 minutes, until the cheese is just melted. This will give the dish a nice cheesy top.
- Add a kick of spice! Try adding jalapenos or green chiles to this dish to turn up the heat. Red pepper flakes are a good addition too. If you want to add different flavors, a bell pepper or two add a nice bit of flavor without adding too much heat. Add a green pepper or red peppers along with the poblano.
- Another protein: Replace ground beef with ground turkey, shredded chicken, or even ham.
Tips and Substitutions
- Keep in mind, you'll need a large pan for this recipe. I recommend a 12 inch skillet that's at least 3 inches deep. You can also use a large pot if that's what you have on hand.
- All kinds of cheeses work well with this pasta recipe. Monterey jack, cotija, cheddar etc. Feel free to experiment.
- I recommend using thin noodles for this recipe. Spaghetti, angel hair, and even linguine are all good options.
How to Make Mexican Spaghetti
Cook Ground Beef
Warm a large skillet on the stove over medium-high heat and add a splash of olive oil. Add a pound of ground beef and seasonings, onions, poblano pepper, salt, and black pepper. Cook until the beef is cooked thoroughly, about 10 minutes. (no need to drain any excess grease, the grease adds flavor!)
Prepare the Spaghetti Sauce
Add corn, garlic, and tomato paste. Mix together, then add fire roasted tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Cook together for about 5 minutes and then add beef broth. Bring to a boil and add spaghetti (break in half if needed).
Cook the Pasta
Reduce heat to low and cover with a lid. Simmer for 25 minutes, until pasta is al dente. Season with salt and pepper and mix in cheese and lime juice. Top with cilantro, cotija, jalapeno, and avocado (optional).
Recipe FAQs
Although most Mexican restaurants in the states won't include pasta on their menu, pasta can definitely be found in Mexico. One popular pasta in Mexican cuisine is fideo. It's a thin pasta that is similar to vermicelli.
This is a full meal on its own but some cheesy garlic bread would be perfect as a side.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge and consume within 4 days.
More Mexican Recipes!
- Birria Quesadillas
- Baked Chicken Tacos
- Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Slow Cooker Chicken Enchiladas
- Cheese Quesadilla
- Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas
- Chipotle Shredded Beef Tacos
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Mexican Spaghetti
Equipment
- 12-inch Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground beef
- 1 Onion , chopped
- 1 Poblano Pepper , chopped
- 1 tbsp Chili Powder
- 2 tsps Smoked Paprika
- 2 tsp Cumin
- 2 tsps Garlic Powder
- 1 tsp Dried Oregano
- Salt and pepper
- 5 Garlic cloves , diced
- 6 oz Tomato paste
- 28 oz Can of fire roasted tomatoes
- 8 oz Can of tomato sauce
- 2 cup Corn , frozen
- 3 cups Beef broth
- 16 oz Spaghetti
- 2 cups Mexican Cheese Blend
- Cilantro , for garnish (optional)
- Avocado , for garnish (optional)
- Jalapeno , for garnish (optional)
- Grated Cotija , for garnish (optional)
Directions
- Warm a large skillet on the stove over medium heat. Add ground beef and seasonings, onions, poblano pepper, salt, and pepper. Cook until beef cooked thoroughly, about 10 minutes.
- Add corn, garlic, and tomato paste. Mix together, then add fire roasted tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Cook together for about 5 minutes and then add beef broth. Bring to a boil and add spaghetti (break in half if needed).
- Reduce heat to low and cover with a lid. Simmer for 25 minutes, until pasta is al dente. Season with salt and pepper and mix in cheese and top with cilantro, cotija, jalapeno, and avocado (optional).
Notes
- Keep in mind, you'll need a large pan for this recipe. I recommend a 12 inch skillet that's at least 3 inches deep. You can also use a large pot if that's what you have on hand.
- All kinds of cheeses work well with this pasta recipe. Monterey jack, cotija, cheddar etc. Feel free to experiment.
- I recommend using thin noodles for this recipe. Spaghetti, angel hair, and even linguine are all good options.
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