Cowboy soup is a crockpot meal that contains ground beef, salsa, diced tomatoes, onions, and a few spices. The hands-on cooking time is minimal and the taste is fantastic! Read on for some common questions and directions on how to make cowboy soup!
What is cowboy soup made of?
1 lb of cooked and seasoned ground beef, 2 cups of salsa, 2 cups of diced tomatoes, 1 diced onion, 1 cup of uncooked rice, and 1 tablespoon each of garlic powder and taco seasoning. Oh, and 5 cups of water!
Can I add or take out the ingredients of cowboy soup?
Absolutely! You can add canned corn, carrots, or even potatoes. Potatoes though might take longer to cook in the soup.
You can remove the salsa and replace it with a matching quantity of beans or more diced tomatoes. You can add extra tomatoes, peppers, or salsa too. If you don’t adjust the 5 cups of water that the recipe calls for, this will become more of a stew than a soup.
What should I put on top of cowboy soup?
We top our cowboy soup with sour cream and cheese. If you’re out of sour cream, you can substitute Greek Yogurt. I don’t mind the difference but Bennett is not a fan, so I would test this out in small quantities until you’re sure of your preference!
I also think fresh chives or cilantro would taste and look amazing in a bowl of this soup.
What side dishes go well with this soup?
I served this soup with a loaf of homemade sourdough bread. I think that it would be delicious with a side of cornbread too or tortilla chips.
If I make this soup in the summer, I will make basil iced tea to go with it.
Do you have to make cowboy soup in a crock pot?
You don’t have to make cowboy soup in a crockpot, but I recommend it. It’s a set-it-and-forget-it type of meal. Plus, the time in the slow cooker allows the flavors to meld and develop.
If you want to make it on the stove, the ingredients and steps are the same, but you would have to watch it and stir frequently to prevent the ingredients from burning. The soup itself will be ready as soon as the rice is cooked through.
How do I make cowboy soup?
The first thing that you should do to make cowboy soup is cook 1lb of ground beef. While I prefer ground beef in this recipe, you could use ground venison or chicken as well.
When you cook the ground meat, make sure that you season it with salt. If you don’t know how much salt to season one pound of ground beef with, the recommendation is ½ to 1 tsp of flaky sea salt. You can add salt later, but start to experiment until you know how much salt your family prefers.
If you want to understand the importance of salt in your food, read Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.
Now that your meat is cooked, everything else is so quick to assemble! In your crock pot, add 1 pound of ground beef, 1 diced onion, 2 cups of salsa, 2 cups of diced tomatoes, and 1 cup of uncooked rice.
Your onion needs to be finely diced or it will not cook through in time. I like the bite of a slightly undercooked onion so I left mine slightly larger. If you want the onion thoroughly cooked through, add the onion to the saute pan while you cook the ground meat. If you don’t want to use raw onion at all, you can substitute one diced onion for ½ cup of dried minced onion
Frugal Living Tip: Save the ends and skins of your onions in your freezer so that you can use them to make homemade veggie or chicken broth.
Next, add 1 tablespoon of taco seasoning and 1 tablespoon of garlic powder. Check out our homemade taco seasoning recipe!
Finally, add 5 cups of water to the crock pot. Place the crock pot on low heat and let the soup cook for about 4 ½ to 5 hours.
Before serving, taste and add salt and pepper as needed to taste.
Top individual servings with sour cream and cheese. You can also add chopped chives or cilantro. Serve with bread, tortilla chips, or cornbread, and enjoy!
Have you had cowboy soup before? What would you add or serve it with? Let us know in the comments below!
Cowboy Soup- A Crock-Pot Dinner
Equipment
- Crock Pot
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef cooked and seasoned
- 2 cups salsa
- 2 cups diced tomatoes
- 1 onion diced finely (or ½ cup dried minced onion)
- 1 cup of uncooked rice
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 5 cups water
Instructions
- In a crock pot, combine 1 lb of ground beef that has been cooked and seasoned, 2 cups of salsa, 1 diced onion, and 1 cup of uncooked rice.
- Note: Your onion needs to be finely diced or it will not be cooked through by the time the soup is done. If you want to use larger pieces of onions that you want cooked through, cook them in the saute pan with your ground meat. Alternatively, omit the raw, diced onion and add ½ cup dried, minced onion instead.
- Next, add 1 tablespoon of garlic powder and 1 tablespoon of taco seasoning.
- Add 5 cups of water and stir.
- Set the crockpot on low for 4 ½ to 5 hours, until the rice is cooked through.
- Prior to serving, taste and add salt and pepper as needed to taste.
- Once done, serve hot and topped with sour cream and cheese. Can be served with bread, tortilla chips, or cornbread.
Save it for later!
