Oven-Baked Tacos with Ground Beef and Refried Beans

Ground beef with 85% lean, 15% fat is moist and suitable for this baked taco recipe. The fat content is high enough to provide flavor for a skillet sauce. Prepare the beef by cooking it with chopped onion and taco seasoning mix, then add water. Serve the beef in taco shells with crisp edges for dinner.

Shell halves are baked twice at 400 degrees. I arrange shells in a 9x13-inch pan with the flat part of the shell facing down when filling the shells, and cover the bottom of the shells with beans before adding meat. The cheese topping is melted and bubbly, and the edges of the shells are brown when the dish is done.

I use shredded cheese from a block in this recipe. Shredded cheese melts better than prepackaged shredded cheese, which may include starch. Load the taco shells and ground beef mixture generously with cheese. Let the taco shells sit for about a minute before adding lettuce or salsa.

Everyone eats these foods in their own way. Provide hot tacos and other toppings so that diners can use their hands to add sour cream, Greek yogurt, guacamole, sliced avocado, salsa, and pico de gallo to hot tacos without touching the baked shells.