Taco Soup in a Jar
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Taco soup in a jar makes a gorgeous gift and a wonderful spicy meal. I love unique gift ideas for those I love like gifts in a jar!
Mason jar gifts are such a great idea and they can be saved to use later or enjoyed right after giving. This is a wonderful addition to these other soup recipe ideas as well. And here are a lot of other homemade edible Christmas gift ideas.
We are using regular beans in our taco soup, so we separate them in a baggie. If you have quick-cook beans, you can use them as well. I’ve heard of them, but I don’t know where to buy them. Then you can have a one-jar dump cooking process.
Mason jar soup recipe
I used black beans because they are our favorite, but you can use pinto beans as well, they just take a little longer to cook, so allow for more cooking time. Actually, you can use any bean you like!
There’s just something about taco soup that is so comforting, especially when it’s cold. And having it all ready to go as a meal in a jar is even better!
Whether you use this as part of your food storage, for a Christmas gift, or just want to keep some on your shelf for busy night dinner emergencies, these meals in a jar can be a lifesaver!
If you want to make your taco soup shelf-stable for long-term storage, you can use a vacuum sealer or use oxygen packs. I’m just making them for Christmas gifts next month, so going simply with the jar as-is will work fine for that. The mason jar will keep the spices and ingredients moisture-free and stable for a month or two just fine.
Once cooked and enjoyed for dinner, you can save the leftovers in the mason jar again. It’s so versatile to use mason jars. We use this taco soup recipe at the daycare and for our family all the time! It’s made with our homemade taco seasoning mix and our homemade ranch seasoning mix.
We have used canned vegetables to make these super fun taco soup kits for Christmas for the daycare families. They could easily dump it in a crockpot or pan together for a family activity that includes dinner when they’re done. Ready in just a few minutes.
There are great resources for dehydrated foods such as Harmony House or Patriot Supply. You can also get some of them on Amazon. I got our dried chilies on Amazon.
Mason jar taco soup
I love that this mason jar idea is so cute and festive looking. It’s more eco-friendly as well in the packaging because you can reuse a mason jar a million times. I love having them.
Taco Soup in a Jar
Ingredients
- 1/2 c dehydrated corn
- 1/4 c dehydrated tomatoes
- 2 tbsp dehdrated green chilies
- 2 tbsp ranch seasoning mix (or one store bought package)
- 4 tbsp taco seasoning mix (or one store bought package)
- 2 c dried beans of your choice
Instructions
- Place taco seasoning and beans in a zip top sandwich bag.
- Squeeze out all the air and seal bag. Set aside.
- Layer other ingredients into a quart size mason jar.
- Press the bean bag down into the jar and screw on the top.
What should I serve with taco soup?
Taco soup garnishes can include hot peppers, shredded cheese, sour cream, black olives, tortilla chips, or whatever you like. I love to serve it with cornbread for us, or on tortilla chips for the kids. Either way, it’s amazing. You could also pair it with a yummy southwest side salad.
Can I freeze taco soup?
Taco soup freezes beautifully and you can even freeze it in mason jars as long as you leave plenty of headspace. This means, leave at least an inch at the top of the jar empty for expansion as the soup freezes.
To reheat the soup, set it in the fridge the night before you want to use it and let it start thawing. Then you can microwave it in your mason jar, or pour it into a saucepan and heat it on the stove.
Is vegetable soup healthy?
Vegetable soup is so healthy and comforting. The nutrients in these veggies are preserved in the drying process with the exception of a little bit of vitamin C. Other nutrients stay in the food as long as the dehydration is done properly. The veggies also retain fiber as well.
Eating vegetable soup helps you meet your health goals of eating 2-3 cups of vegetables per day, but the yummy broth and spices make it seem effortless because it’s so good. Consuming plenty of vegetables may help you lower your risk for cancer, high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, and type-2 diabetes due to their high nutrient content.
Foods that are low in calories per gram, help fill you up without a lot of calories, making it easier for you to maintain a healthy weight or lose weight because you can eat a greater volume of food. Herbs and spices like those in this soup are really healthy for you as well.
I know you’re going to love this taco soup in a jar and you’ll want to make them for gifts as well as your own pantry!
Then all your friends need to do is dump the beans and taco mix into the crock pot with 8 cups of water and cook on high for around 8 hours. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook for another 2-4 hours until everything is soft.
PRINTABLE TACO SOUP IN A JAR TAGS
Enjoy these free printable Christmas tags to tie onto your jars.
Soup in a Jar Recipes
For more ideas for soup in a jar, check these out:
Love this! My only question is, how much water should we tell the recipient to add? I’d love to do this as gifts this year.
We do 8 cups. Thanks for asking, I’ll go and update the post!