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Easy ground beef tostadas are what I make when I want tacos but need a little extra crunch. They are super easy to make and come together in about 20 minutes. It’s full of flavorful and customizable; pile on the lettuce, cilantro lime sauce, cheese, whatever toppings you like. Perfect for switching it up on taco Tuesday.
Try my other Mexican inspired recipes like elote dip, steak tacos, and fajita marinade.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for tostadas
- Ground Beef – Cooks quickly and gives the tostadas a hearty, savory base.
- Taco Seasoning – Adds fast flavor with spices already balanced for you.
- Corn Tortillas – Crisp up into the crunchy tostada shell. You could also buy store brought tostadas to make this even simpler.
- Refried Beans – Act like the glue and keep the toppings from sliding everywhere. Plus they are great for added fiber and protein.
- Shredded Lettuce – Adds freshness and crunch.
- Queso Fresco or Shredded Cheese – Cheese and tostadas go hand in hand. Use Mexican queso fresco for really authentic tostadas.
- Mexican Crema or Sour Cream – Adds a cool, tangy finish. Mexican crema really goes on smooth!
- Diced Onions – Gives each bite sharpness and texture.
- Diced Tomatoes – Add juiciness and freshness.
- Cilantro Lime Sauce – Optional, but it adds a bright, creamy finish. My cilantro lime sauce recipe is amazing!
- Hot Sauce – Optional, but always welcome if you like heat.
FAQs for this recipe
Corn tortillas work best for that classic tostada crunch. Flour tortillas can crisp, but they’ll taste and feel different. It’s also best to deep fry flour tortillas, they won’t crisp the same in the oven or air fryer.
Lettuce, tomatoes, onions, queso fresco, crema, hot sauce, avocado, salsa, and cilantro lime sauce all work well. It really is up to you, grilled corn is a favorite too!
Absolutely. Fish, shredded chicken, or shrimp all work if you want to switch it up.
Easy Ground Beef Tostadas
Ingredients
- ½ lb ground beef
- ½ pack taco seasoning
- 4 corn tortillas
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup refried beans
Toppings
- Shredded lettuce
- 1/4 cup Queso fresco, or Shredded cheese
- Mexican crema , or sour cream
- Diced onions
- Diced tomatoes
- cilantro lime sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven or air fryer to 400 degrees. This is for making the tostada.
- In a skillet over medium high heat brown the ground beef and drain any excess fat if you'd like.
- Then follow the directions on the back of the taco seasoning packet. I used half of the seasoning packet & 1/4 cup of water in this recipe because we are only using ½ lb of ground beef. Once the ground beef is done, set aside and cover to keep warm.
- Brush both sides of the corn tortillas with olive oil or spray with cooking spray. If baking, place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes, flipping halfway through. If air frying, air fry for 4 minutes. I usually do this while the ground beef is cooking but doing it step by step works too.
- In the meantime, place the refried beans in either a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute. Or you can warm up the refried bean in a small pot on the stove over medium heat until warm. I used a pouch of refried beans that was microwave safe.
- Now it’s time to assemble the tostadas. Spread the refried beans on the tostadas, then top with some ground beef, next add the shredded lettuce, cheese, onions, tomatoes and crema. If using top with some cilantro lime sauce or hot sauce. Eat and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
