Ground Beef Tostadas

Zesty Beef Tostadas are a fun twist on tacos! Crispy, crunchy tortilla shells are topped with ground beef and refried beans.

Add your favorite tasty toppings for an easy addition to your meal rotation.

What is a Tostada?

A tostada is basically an open-faced taco, sharing many of the same ingredients as a typical ground beef taco.

The tortilla is prepared flat and can be either baked or pan-fried. Once crisp it’s covered in layers of beans, meat, and toppings.

Endless Toppings!

Tostadas are little discs of taco goodness! The toppings can be piled as high and deep as you like!

We love this recipe because it’s a regular DIY entrée and there’s room for tons of creativity!

Make a festive DIY Tostada bar and let your kids (or your guests) choose their own toppings!

Ingredients and Variations

TORTILLAS Corn tortillas make the base for tostadas. I most often purchase tostada shells at the grocery (they’re sold near the taco shells) but I’ve included details to bake your own below.

MEAT & BEANS Refried beans and meat hold all of the other ingredients together! Homemade refried beans are great but canned work too. We use homemade taco seasoning on the meat.

Toppings

This is the fun part. Try any of the following or get creative and come up with new favorites:

• • Fresh & Crisp: shredded lettuce, diced bell peppers, diced tomatoes, pico de gallo
  • Spicy: pickled jalapenos, hot sauce, sliced peppers, salsa
  • Flavorful: black olives, cheese, lime juice
  • Creamy: sour cream, guacamole, avocado

How to Make Ground Beef Tostadas

1. Cook tortilla shells in the oven until crisp (or heat them if using store-bought)
2. Prepare meat with taco seasoning (per recipe below).
3. Heat the refried beans, and prepare the other toppings.
4. Assemble tostadas with a spoonful of refried beans and then the cooked ground beef.

Garnish with toppings and enjoy!

Leftovers

• The best way to store leftover tostada shells is to keep them in a zippered bag at room temperature. Store them with a sheet of paper towel between the tostadas to absorb any moisture.
• To reheat tostada shells, lay them on a sheet pan and place them under the broiler for about 3 minutes, or just pop them in a toaster oven. Even a regular toaster will work if the tostadas are small enough to fit!
• Other toppings can be kept in airtight containers and kept in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Mexican-Inspired Favorites

• Creamy Chicken Enchiladas – easy & cheesy
• Easy Fish Tacos – with homemade fish taco sauce
• Carne Asada Recipe – with a citrus garlic marinade
• Chicken Burrito Bowl – loaded with fresh ingredients
• Taco Stuffed Pepper Casserole – perfect weeknight dinner
• Copycat Crunchwrap Supreme – better than take-out

Did you make these Beef Tostadas? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below! 

5 from 17 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
Or to leave a comment, click here!

Ground Beef Tostadas

Fresh and full of flavorful ingredients, these Beef Tostadas are sure to be a fun twist on taco night!

Save Saved Pin

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 8 tostadas

Author Holly Nilsson

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 8 tostada shells or corn tortillas, see notes
• ▢ 1 pound lean ground beef
• ▢ ⅓ cup water
• ▢ 1 ounce taco seasoning 1 packet
• ▢ 1 ½ cups canned refried beans
• ▢ toppings as desired see notes

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Brown ground beef in a large pan. Drain fat. Add water and taco seasoning. Simmer 5 minutes or until thickened.
• Meanwhile, heat the refried beans in the microwave or on medium-low heat in a saucepan on the stovetop. Prepare the topping ingredients and set aside.
• Place tostada shells in the oven and bake 5 minutes or until warmed and fragrant.
• Remove from the oven and gently spoon heated refried beans onto tostada shells. Top with a spoonful of ground beef, and toppings as desired. Serve immediately.

Notes

To cook corn tortillas, preheat oven to 375°F. Brush each side of the tortilla with olive oil and generously salt. Bake 4 minutes, flip over and bake an additional 5-7 minutes or until browned and crisp.

Tortillas can also be fried in a shallow pan in a little oil until crisp.

Optional Toppings:  We love shredded iceberg lettuce, diced tomatoes, shredded cheese, olives, jalapenos, cilantro, diced red onions, sour cream.

5 from 17 votes

Nutrition Information

Calories: 375 | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 694mg | Potassium: 327mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 675IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 247mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

Course Appetizer, Beef, Dinner, Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Party Food, Snack

Cuisine American, Mexican

© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.