Crock-Pot Taco Soup

PaulaCS's Note:

This taco soup is a home run at our house! It makes a ton and you can freeze leftovers for future use. Use a large Crock pot.

• Total Time: 8 hrs 15 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 8 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 (15 ounce) cans kidney beans
• 2 (15 ounce) cans pinto beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans
• 1 (14 ½ ounce) can diced tomatoes
• 1 (14 ½ ounce) can tomatoes and green chilies
• 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
• ¾ cup water
• 7 teaspoons taco seasoning (1 packet see recipe for substitute)
• 1 lb cooked lean ground beef (optional)

Directions:

1. brown meat if you are going to use it.
2. drain fat and add meat to crock pot.
3. sprinkle seasoning packet on top of meat.
4. drain and rinse the beans and add the ENTIRE contents of the tomatoes, water, & sauce.
5. cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5. The longer you cook soup, the better, so if time, opt for cooking on low.
6. serve with a handful of shredded cheese and a dollop of sour cream (optional).
7. I like to serve ours with biscuits because of a corn allergy in our house. You could serve w/ tortilla chips.
8. Another option is to omit the water and 1 can of beans and use 2 large cans of corn w/ juice instead.
9. If you like your soup spicy use the hotter Ro*tel type tomatoes and chilies.
10. If you don't want to buy taco seasoning packets use this recipe for your taco seasoning:.
11. http://www.food.com/recipe/taco-seasoning-1171.