The Spicy Canned Soup That Belongs At Your Next Taco Tuesday

If you're resourceful, you may have already realized that the soup aisle can become a bit of a secret sauce destination for low-effort dinners. You can turn soup into flavor-packed pasta sauces, layer them into casseroles, and, in this case, use Campbell's Spicy Nacho Cheese Soup to add extra texture to taco filling. 

Campbell's Spicy Nacho Cheese Soup is condensed and made with cheddar cheese, red peppers, jalapeños, tomato puree, and cayenne pepper sauce, so it has many of the essential building blocks for a queso-style cheese sauce already in the can. That means you don't have to make an entire sauce from scratch. The soup also contains cornstarch, which keeps it thick and helps bind fillings together. 

Add the soup directly to browned ground beef, or any veggie alternative, alongside classic taco seasonings and with just enough milk or water to loosen it to coat the beef with a decadent cheesy layer. Beyond tacos, thin it with a little milk and use it as enchilada sauce, stir a spoonful into seasoned chicken before rolling it into burritos, or spread it into a quesadilla to bulk out the cheesy filling. Campbell's already suggests adding some milk to a can and heating it up to use for nachos, which could make your game day nachos prep that much easier.

Since Campbell's Spicy Nacho Cheese Soup is condensed, it's important to add liquid, and gradually, so it thins out and turns into something you can drizzle and drip. Water can loosen it, although it may make the final flavor a little bland. Stock or broth works better to thin it out whilst also adding another savory layer, or milk adds to the creaminess. Stir the liquid in over medium heat; if you go too far, add a little more soup to thicken it back out.

Because the soup is quite thick and cheese-heavy, you might find it a little one-note compared to Mexican restaurant-style queso. It's always a good idea to liven it up with some acidic and fresh additions. These could include a squeeze of lime juice, a spoonful of tomato salsa or pico de gallo, or a few chopped pickled jalapeños.

Really, this trick is all about convenience. You get to skip the whole roux-making process and grating all the cheese, so any slight flavor trade-off could be worthwhile for a busier home. It isn't so much about replacing queso as much as it's about finding a useful shortcut to add a little cheesy, creamy sauce to your weeknight tacos.