Taco Casserole

My brother, Tyler, texts me all the time wondering when I'm going to post a recipe that he might like/be able to make for my dad and brothers. He's a pickier eater than me so it's a challenge.

Taco Casserole

What you need-
1 & 1/2 lbs. ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning
A small sprinkle of onion powder
A small sprinkle of cayenne pepper
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 can beans* (I like black beans in this, but I only had ranch style this time) either will do.
1 can whole kernel corn**
1 pkg. shredded cheese- I don't really measure, I just sprinkle on however much looks good.
1 bag tortilla chips- Same with these, I don't measure, I just crumble up as much as we want.
Garnishes-I use tomato, onion, lettuce, and sour cream.

* Make sure you drain the juice off of the beans! I usually use one can of ranch style beans, and one can of black beans. Heads up! If you decide to use the black beans, make sure you rinse them off because the solution they are packaged in is yucky!

** I do not put corn in mine...Chris wouldn't eat it if I did. So, I just use two cans of beans. If you do use corn, make sure you drain it.  Also, Mexican-style corn would be good in this recipe!

The hardest part is gathering the ingredients. Seriously. Easiest recipe ever!

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Next, grab the meat and throw it in a skillet. Break it up pretty good with the spoon.

Sprinkle in some of the onion powder and cayenne pepper. Not too much! Then brown the meat until you don't see anymore pink.

While the meat is browning, take a minute to drain the juice off of the beans.

Once the meat is brown, dump everything into the skillet with it. And by everything, I just mean the taco seasoning, tomato sauce and beans, also the corn if you decide to use it. Don't add any water! Don't listen to the taco seasoning packet!

Mix it all together...it'll look better in a few minutes I promise!

Bring the mixture up to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. Stir it every once in a while. Something in the taco seasoning packet that I probably can't pronounce will thicken it up. Once the five minutes of simmer time is up, spoon the mixture into a 2-quart baking dish.

It looks like chili at this point. I could eat it like this. But no, next, sprinkle some cheese over the top of it. However much you want!

Go crazy with the cheese like I did, or just do a little. Next, crunch up some of the tortilla chips and sprinkle those on top of the cheese. The chips don't have to be too small.

Now, you can stick it in the oven right here, or you can go crazy and add just a teeny bit more cheese on top, like I did!

Perfect. Now, stick it in the oven for about 10 minutes, just long enough for the cheese to melt.

While the cheese is melting I prepare tomatoes, onions, and lettuce for garnish. Oh, and sour cream! Yum.

Take it out of the oven and you're ready to dig in.

Told you, easiest thing ever.

Chris' plate.

My plate.

I usually serve mine with some type of Mexican-style rice, but I forgot to pick any up at the store. We like-

Enjoy!