Stacked Beef Tacos

Why didn't I think of this before? Such a fun way to present tacos. Plus, on "taco night" in my house, when dinner's ready, I spend the first few minutes building tacos for the boys. Then, I barely have time to get mine ready before they're ready for seconds. This solves that problem!

What I love most is that I can fill all the taco shells with beef, rice and cheese, and put the entire batch in the oven. While the hot oven blends the flavors and melts the cheese, it also adds crunch to the taco shells. Think of how many you can line up in a row...

Stacked Beef Tacos

Note: I chose to put the rice in the tacos with the beef (that's the way we like to eat them). If you want, you can serve the rice on the side and just fill the tacos with the beef mixture. 

1/2 cup long grain white rice

1 cup chicken broth or water

3/4 teaspoon onion powder, divided 

3/4 teaspoon garlic powder, divided 

1 tablespoon butter or olive oil

Salt and black pepper

1 pound lean ground beef

1/3 cup water

2 tablespoons ketchup

1 tablespoon chili powder, regular, ancho or chipotle

1 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

8 taco shells

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Optional additions:

Hot sauce

Shredded lettuce

Salsa

Sour Cream

Guacamole

Cilantro

In a small saucepan, combine the rice, broth, 1/4 teaspoon of the onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon of the garlic powder, and butter. Set the pan over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Meanwhile, brown the beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up the meat as it cooks. Add the chili powder, oregano, cumin, remaining onion powder, and remaining garlic powder and stir to coat the beef. Add the water and ketchup and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 5 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed. Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Arrange the taco shells in a shallow baking dish (use a pan that is small enough to stack the shells next to each other, so they stand up). Fill the tacos with the beef and rice and then top with the cheese. 

Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until the cheese melts and the shells are crisp. 

Serves 4