These 3 Ingredient Healthy Beef tacos taste like the indulgent ones you can get at your favorite Mexican restaurant but without the guilt! They are so simple to throw together in your crockpot or instant pot on a busy day. No slicing, chopping, or browning required! Just toss the ingredients together in the slow cooker and 6 hours later you have delicious juicy tacos ready for your dinner.
They have a sweet and spicy flavor and are very kid friendly if you use a mild salsa. If you’ve ever had those sweet delish pulled pork tacos from Mexican food restaurants, these have a similar flavor except without the coke that all the other copycat recipes use! I use a lower amount of Coconut Sugar. Coconut Sugar is a lower glycemic sugar, unrefined, paleo friendly and easier on your blood sugar.
3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos ingredients
- Beef roast: chuck or sirloin tip. (I use our grass-fed beef that we bought as half a cow.)
- 32 ounce jar of salsa- to your desired spice level
- Coconut Sugar- substituting regular refined brown sugar will work as well
3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos tips
- Change the spice level by using a hotter salsa
- These can be cooked for a shorter amount of time- about 4 hrs.- but the meat will have to be cut and will not pull apart as easily.
- You can cook them longer, 8-10 hours on low, as well. The beef just gets juicier and more tender the longer it cooks.
- I make these in my slow cooker, but it would be just as easy to use an insta pot- just look up adjustments for cook time based off the size of your roast.
- Swap the beef for pork, chicken or even shrimp! Just adjust your cooking time accordingly.
- Add more sugar if you like things even sweeter!
- Mix things up by adding some taco seasoning, garlic powder or whatever you desire on top of the roast before the sauce mix, but it is plenty flavorful enough without.
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3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos topping ideas
I love to serve these tacos with fewer toppings so the flavor of the meat can really stand out! They do great with just a little pico, cilantro, sour cream and cheese. Of course you can go crazy and add onions, tomatoes, jalapeños, whatever you’re craving! I like to serve these with fried corn tortillas. I think that light crispiness compliments the meat really well! Small street taco tortillas are really fun for kiddos, too! Of course you can use regular flour tortillas or even a grain free option if you like.
3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos ideas for sides
Some great complimentary sides for these tacos are homemade black beans you can make quickly in the instant pot – here is a great recipe. I also love to do an easy Mexican rice by just adding grated cheddar cheese and some salsa to our favorite sticky rice ( a 2 ingredient dish again! hehe!). Refried beans are my kids’ favorite side. I make my own, by cooking up some pinto beans in my instant pot, straining them and then frying them up in my cast iron skillet with some butter and blending them with an imulsion blender.
This meat is also delicious in a salad or taco bowl! I will heat some up the next day with a bunch of veggies and some Mexican ranch dressing for a delicious lunch! A few corn tortilla chips on the side and I am a happy girl!
How to make 3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos
Make sure your meat is thawed and place it in your crockpot fat side up, if it is a fattier cut.
Mix the sugar and salsa together in a bowl and pour it over your meat.
Turn your slow cooker on to HIGH for 6 hrs. Yes, 6. 4 works, but it won’t be as tender and easy to shred.
When the timer turns off, open the slow cooker up and pull any chunks of fat out. Then shred up the meat with forks or tongs. Let the meat simmer 10 more minutes and absorb more of the sauce while you get the rest of your ingredients together.
Serve with a slotted spoon! Enjoy!
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3 Ingredient Healthy Beef Tacos
These juicy tacos are so quick and simple to throw together! They're an easy, healthy, dinner option that everyone will love! With a flavorful, spicy and sweet flavor. You can up the heat with the salsa you choose or leave them kid-friendly with their mild sweet flavor!
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. chuck or sirloin roast (you can also use pork)
- 3 cups of mild-hot salsa
- 1/2 cup of coconut sugar (you can substitute regular brown sugar)
Instructions
- Place thawed roast in your slow cooker with fat side up.
- Mix salsa and sugar togeher.
- Poor salsa mixture over the roast in the slow cooker.
- Cover with the lid and cook on high for 6 hrs.
- When the time is done, open the cooker and pull the top layer of fat off if needed (more on a chuck or fattier cut) shred up the meat with 2 forks or tongs and stir a bit.
- Leave meat to soak in sauce for 10 minutes or so, and then serve with a slotted spoon and enjoy!
Notes
This recipe can easily be adapted to cook in an intstapot! Just cook accoring to your manuel's recipe instructions for a roast.
I use this sauce with almost any taco I make- even when sauteeing shrimp for shrimp fajitas! Try it in any mexican dish you're serving up.
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