This hearty Texas-style queso dip is easy and delicious; perfect for football-watching parties! This dip is made with real cheese! However, we grew up on the Velveeta cheese and Rotel version of queso, which was a highlight to many gatherings over the years. Since then, we have adapted this recipe a bit using a variety of real cheeses (not Velveeta), and adding ground beef, onions, and spices. There are many ways to do this queso dip and we highly recommend adjusting to your tastes, as it is really hard to go wrong!
Queso Dip Ingredients
For this recipe, you will need cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, milk or cream, a can of Rotel tomatoes, ground beef, yellow onion, cumin, chili powder, garlic salt, and a bit of olive oil.
Making the Queso Dip
First, chop 1/4 a yellow onion and sauté it in a saucepan with 1 T olive oil. While the onion cooks, shred the cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese (or cut it into small 1/2-inch cubes). Once the onion is sautéed, add in 1/2 lb ground beef and brown it. Once the beef is cooked about halfway through, add the spices (cumin, chili powder, garlic salt). Continue to cook the meat all the way through.
Next, remove the meat and onions from the heat and drain the grease by putting it in a paper towel-lined bowl or plate. I often wipe out the rest of the grease from the pan with a paper towel as well. Then return the saucepan to the stove and turn the burner to low. Add the cream cheese and begin to melt it. Once it is about halfway melted, begin adding shredded cheese a bit at a time, alternating with 1/4 cup of milk or cream at a time. Stir constantly.
Once all of the cheese is melted and these ingredients are combined, add in the can of Rotel with the juices and stir to combine. Finally, add the browned meat and onions back into the pot. Stir to combine and warm through.
Texas Style Queso Dip Variations and Suggestions
- You can add more milk for a thinner consistency if desired.
- If you like a creamier consistency, add more cream cheese.
- You can also use this Beef Taco Seasoning recipe for extra flavorful meat.
- Use the hot version of Rotel for more spice. The regular Rotel will make the dip very mild.
- If you are making this dip for a larger gathering, double the recipe and make it in a crockpot! If you have a crockpot with the sauté feature (like this Cuisinart one on Amazon), you can do everything needed for this recipe in one kitchen appliance.
- We suggest serving Texas Style Queso Dip with a Best Margarita!
Texas Style Queso Dip
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
This hearty Texas style queso dip is easy and delicious…. perfect for football watching parties!
Ingredients
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 4 oz sharp cheddar (freshly shredded or cut into 1/2 inch blocks)
- 4 oz Monterey Jack cheese (freshly shredded or cut into 1/2 inch blocks)
- 3/4 cup milk or cream (can be slightly more or less)
- 10 oz can of Rotel tomatoes (original or hot)
- 1/2 lb ground beef
- 1/4 diced yellow onion
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 1 T olive oil
Instructions
- First, chop 1/4 yellow onion and sauté it in a saucepan with 1 T olive oil.
- While onion is sautéing, shred the Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese or cut it into small cubes.
- Once the onion is sautéed, add in 1/2 lb ground beef and brown it.
- Once the beef is cooked about halfway through, add the spices (cumin, chili powder, garlic salt). Continue to cook the meat all the way through.
- Next, remove the meat and onions from the heat and drain the grease by putting it in a paper towel lined bowl or plate. I often wipe out the rest of the grease from the pan with a paper towel as well. Then return the saucepan to the stove and turn the burner to low.
- Add the cream cheese and begin to melt it.
- Once it is about halfway melted, begin adding shredded cheese a bit at a time, alternating with 1/4 cup of milk or cream at a time. Stir constantly.
- Once all of the cheese is melted and these ingredients are combined, add in the can of Rotel with the juices and stir to combine.
- Finally, add the meat and onions back into the pot. Stir to combine and warm through.
Notes
- You can add more milk for a thinner consistency, if desired.
- If you like a creamier consistency, add more cream cheese.
- Pre-shredded cheese contains additives that prevent it from melting smoothly, so that is why it is recommended that you freshly shred or cut the cheese into small pieces versus buying and using packaged pre-shredded cheese).
- Use the hot version of Rotel for more spice. The regular Rotel will make the dip very mild.
- If you are making this dip for a larger gathering, double the recipe and make in a crockpot! If you have a crockpot with the sauté feature (like this Cuisinart one on Amazon), you can make the entire recipe in that!
- We suggest serving Texas Style Queso Dip with a Best Margarita!
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 15 min
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Tex-Mex
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 cup
- Calories: 285
- Sugar: 3.6 g
- Sodium: 477.3 mg
- Fat: 20.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 5.2 g
- Protein: 19.8 g
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