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Home » Mexican Ground Beef Skillet (GF, Paleo, Whole30)

Mexican Ground Beef Skillet (GF, Paleo, Whole30)

July 22, 2019 by Taryn Solie 12 Comments Last Modified: July 2, 2020

This Mexican Ground Beef Skillet is an easy and healthy dinner recipe for busy families. It’s super versatile and can be eaten on its own, with veggies, or used in tacos. It’s also gluten free, paleo, and Whole30 compliant.

top down view of mexican ground beef in a skillet

Need an easy recipe that you can make into multiple meals? This Mexican Ground Beef Skillet is definitely for you! It’s got simple flavors that aren’t overly spicy, so it’s great for a family meal, plus it’s made from simple ingredients you probably already have.

When creating this recipe, I really wanted to make something that had universal flavors that everyone could enjoy and that would make for easy leftovers. This really fits the bill – you can eat it over vegetables or rice (or cauliflower rice), turn it into taco meat, use it on top of nachos, make burrito bowls, or even enchiladas! So many options. 

What Makes This Mexican Ground Beef Recipe So Great

  • It’s fast and easy! You need less than 10 ingredients and it cooks up in under 30 minutes!
  • This ground beef recipe is super versatile – eat it on it’s own, with some roasted veggies or cauliflower rice, or include it in other dishes like tacos or burrito bowls.
  • It’s gluten free, paleo, and Whole30-compliant so it makes for a healthy dinner!

wooden spoon in a skillet of mexican beef

When making this paleo ground beef recipe, here are some cooking tips to keep in mind, as well as some fun recipe variations!

Cooking Tips

  • Be sure to stir the diced onion and bell pepper when cooking so it doesn’t burn! Otherwise it will give the dish a charred flavor.
  • When cooking the ground beef, stir it well to ensure all of it is browned! Sometimes uncooked pieces can be hard to spot.
  • Depending on what beef you use, you may or may not need to drain the fat. I use a lean ground beef so don’t have that as an instruction, but if you use a fattier ground beef you should drain off excess fat.
  • Don’t strain the diced tomatoes before you pour them in the skillet.  The extra juice will help cook everything and blend the flavors.

Recipe Variations

  • Try using diced tomatoes with chiles to give a kick of heat to this dish!
  • Replace the ground beef with ground turkey for a lower-fat version!
  • For an earthier flavor use green bell pepper; for a slightly sweeter flavor use a red bell pepper

sliced avocado on top of mexican ground beef with a wooden spoon

Now onto the recipe!

How to Make Mexican Ground Beef Skillet

Remove the skin and ends of the onion then dice it using a large cutting board and large sharp knife. Remove the stem and seeds of the bell pepper and dice it as well.

Pour oil in a skillet or large non stick pan over medium heat and add in the diced onion and bell pepper. Add in 1 tsp of the kosher salt and stir to combine. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are tender, then remove from skillet and set aside.

diced onion and yellow bell pepper in a skillet

How to Cook Ground Beef on the Stove

Took cook the ground beef, place it in the pan over medium heat and break it up with a wooden spoon. Once it’s mostly browned (3-5 minutes), season it with the remaining kosher salt, ground cumin, garlic powder, & chili powder and cook until the meat is fully browned.

spice mix being put into ground beef

Should You Season Ground Beef Before Browning?

For this recipe, you should brown the meat a bit first, then season it with the spice blend (pictured below) and finish cooking it the rest of the way.

top down shot of spice blend

After the meat is browned, pour the cooked vegetables back in with the ground beef. Open the can of diced tomatoes and also pour them in (without draining). Stir everything together until well combined.

diced tomatoes being poured into cooked ground beef

Next cover the skillet with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat. 

a lid being put on a skillet with mexican ground beef

Once done, garnish with avocado and/or green onion and serve over cauliflower rice (or regular rice if not paleo).

mexican ground beef in a skillet

See how simple this ground beef recipe is? It’s perfect for a weeknight meal and makes even better leftovers. Be sure to pin it below to save it for your next busy week!

Pin This Mexican Ground Beef Skillet for Later!

pinterest for mexican ground beef skillet

IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR MORE EASY BEEF RECIPES, CHECK THESE OUT!

  • Easy Nacho Salad
  • Weeknight Paleo Ground Beef Stroganoff
  • Instant Pot Beef Chili
  • Paleo Ground Beef and Broccoli

If you try this Mexican Ground Beef Skillet recipe (or any other recipe) then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how it went in the comments below!

YOU CAN ALSO FOLLOW ME ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM AND PINTEREST TO SEE MORE GOOD TO EAT, GLUTEN FREE FOOD.

Recipe for Mexican Ground Beef Skillet

top down view of mexican ground beef in a skillet
Print

Mexican Ground Beef Skillet (GF, Paleo, Whole30)

This Mexican Ground Beef Skillet is an easy and healthy dinner recipe for busy families. It’s super versatile and can be eaten on its own, with veggies, or used in tacos. It’s also gluten free, paleo, and Whole30 compliant.
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword #groundbeef, dinner
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 227kcal
Author Taryn Solie

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp oil canola or avocado
  • ½ yellow onion
  • 1 bell pepper
  • 2.5 tsp kosher salt divided
  • 1.33 lbs ground beef
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp chili powder
  • 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
  • green onion for garnish
  • avocado for garnish

Instructions

  • Remove the skin and ends of the onion then dice it using a large cutting board and large sharp knife. Remove the stem and seeds of the bell pepper and dice it as well.
  • Pour oil in a skillet or large non stick pan over medium heat and add in the diced onion and bell pepper. Add in 1 tsp of the kosher salt and stir to combine. Cook for about 5 minutes, until the vegetables are tender, then remove from skillet and set aside.
  • Place the ground beef in the pan over medium heat and break it up with a wooden spoon. Once it's mostly browned (3-5 minutes), add in the remaining kosher salt, ground cumin, garlic powder, & chili powder and cook until the meat is fully browned.
  • Open the can of diced tomatoes and pour them in (without draining). Put the cooked vegetables in the pan as well, then cover with a lid and simmer for 10 minutes over low heat.
  • Once done, garnish with avocado and/or green onion and serve over cauliflower rice (or regular rice if not paleo)

Notes

*Depending on what beef you use, you may or may not need to drain the fat. I use a lean ground beef so don't have that as an instruction, but if you use a fattier ground beef you should drain off excess fat.

Nutrition

Calories: 227kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 858mg | Potassium: 362mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 630IU | Vitamin C: 24.3mg | Calcium: 36mg | Iron: 2.4mg

Filed Under: Beef, Main Dish, Recipes, Whole30

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lane' says

    August 2, 2019 at 2:06 pm

    5 stars
    This was SO tasty and super, super fast and easy to make! I made mine with ground turkey and Muir Glen organic fire roasted with medium green chilies diced tomatoes along with cauliflower rice and I loved it! Definitely adding it to my “to make again” list since it had just the right amount of kick, full of flavor and was quick!

    Reply
    • Taryn Solie says

      August 4, 2019 at 10:12 am

      Yay – I’m so glad you liked it!

      Reply
  2. Eric says

    June 25, 2020 at 2:16 pm

    5 stars
    You didn’t drain the beef fat? I started to, then gave half back to it for simmering. I was out of chili powder (I know, blasphemy) so I sub’d Paul Prudhomme’s Blackened Redfish Magic. I know that’s quite a twist, but WOW, it was DeeeeLish! Kids loved it even…

    Reply
    • Taryn Solie says

      July 2, 2020 at 10:00 am

      I don’t usually drain the fat, but I also typically get very lean ground beef so don’t really need to! I’ll go back and add a note about that. Glad your kids liked it – that’s a real win! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Ann says

    August 13, 2020 at 4:57 pm

    5 stars
    Made this a few times now. Everyone in my family loves it!

    Reply
    • Taryn Solie says

      August 17, 2020 at 12:06 pm

      So glad it’s a hit!

      Reply
  4. Karen says

    August 18, 2020 at 2:27 am

    5 stars
    This meal is delicious and soooo easy! My husband and I both loved it! Thank you for the recipe for a quick meal that doesn’t taste quick. I added it to my favorites list!

    I made a couple of changes:
    — I forgot to make rice first, so I toasted a few corn tortillas over the burner flame on the gas stove, then cut them into strips and mixed in with the meal.
    — I only had a 10-oz. can of Rotel, so I added some hot salsa (Kylitos) to make up for the rest of the tomato/liquid. (I measured the hot sauce by pouring it in the empty Rotel can about halfway full so I didn’t have to dirty another dish.) Using the salsa had the added benefit of spicing up the dish.

    I love that this meal doesn’t require cheese to be delicious and is so low in calories. However, I would say that the recipe provides 4 servings, not 8.

    Reply
    • Taryn Solie says

      August 20, 2020 at 9:15 am

      Thanks for the feedback Karen! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe.

      Reply
  5. Brittany says

    September 15, 2020 at 5:43 am

    Im going to try to make this tonight. I dont have the peppers or avacado though. If i replace with nushrooms do you think it will still come out good?

    Reply
    • Taryn Solie says

      September 16, 2020 at 9:44 am

      While I haven’t tried it, I do think replace the peppers would mushrooms would be tasty! If you don’t have the avocado for topping, that’s fine 🙂

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. 30 Gluten Free Dairy Free Recipes for your Weeknight Dinners says:
    February 22, 2020 at 7:02 am

    […] 29. Paleo Mexican Ground Beef Skillet […]

    Reply
  2. 19 Healthy Recipes With Ground Beef You'll Love | TheModeMag says:
    September 21, 2020 at 12:06 am

    […] Get the full recipe: https://www.hotpankitchen.com/paleo-mexican-ground-beef-skillet/ […]

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Hi, I’m Taryn!

My name is Taryn, and I'm the writer, food photographer, & recipe developer behind Hot Pan Kitchen.
I am all about amazing gluten free food for families. I test my recipes over and over again and have taste testers who are gluten free and those who aren’t, because I want to make sure my recipes taste good for EVERYONE. Read more...

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