Ground Beef Taco Meat (grain-free, GAPS-legal, paleo/primal)

Taco meat is such an easy-to-prepare and versatile dish.  This recipe, spiced with garlic and cumin, is sure to please your tastebuds. It is a wonderful, kid-friendly food that can be used in so many ways.  Although this recipe is best with fresh onion and garlic, I've also included substitutions for a busy night when dinner needs to get on the table fast.

Ground Beef Taco Meat

• 1 pound ground beef, preferably from pastured cows
• 1 medium white onion, chopped 
• 3 fresh cloves of garlic, minced
• 1-2 Tb beef tallow or refined coconut oil
• Celtic sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1&1/2 tsp dried cumin
• 2 Tb tomato paste (optional, leave it out for tacos, but it can be nice sometimes for taco salad) (buy it in a glass jar to avoid BPA)
• Garnish with shredded cheddar cheese, salsa, sour cream, avocado
• On a busy night, you can substitute 1 Tb onion powder for the onion, 1/2 tsp garlic powder for the fresh garlic, and omit the tallow

1. Melt tallow (or coconut oil) in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat.  Add the chopped onion and a little sprinkle of salt.  Saute for 10-15 minutes, until the onion is translucent and soft. 
2. Crumble the ground beef into the skillet. Add the dried spices, salt, and pepper.  Also add the optional tomato paste. Stir to combine.
3. Cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the beef is nearly done.  Add the fresh garlic and cook for another minute or two, stirring as needed to make sure the garlic gets lightly cooked.
4. Turn off heat and serve!  This meat is great with grain-free tortillas, corn tortillas, over a bed of lettuce for a taco salad with all the garnishes, or even just in a bowl topped with some cheese and sour cream. Yum!

This post is part of Fat Tuesday and Monday Mania!