5 Ingredient Cream Cheese Taco Dip Recipe

This delicious Cream Cheese Taco Dip recipe is an easy and simple way to feed your family or have it on hand for guests. Use it as a dip or make it an entire meal!

Easy Taco Dip Recipe

This Cream Cheese Taco Dip is not only a delicious dip for chips, but it can be thinned with an extra half cup of sauce and served over pasta to make an easy and delicious meal. When using it that way, I prefer to refrain from baking it and instead add it to a large saucepan with cooked macaroni and a half cup or so of pasta water, then top with the cheddar just before serving. A good dip is a great multitasker as well as a thrifty, quick way to feed unexpected guests.

This is a great taco dip recipe without sour cream, Velveeta, or even Greek yogurt, which we’ve seen other recipes call for. The recipe below is my version, made with cream cheese. It’s a great dip for chips and vegetables or even for game day and can easily be doubled, tripled, etc.

Ingredients in Cream Cheese Taco Dip Recipe

• Cream Cheese. This is essential to making a thick, creamy dip. It also gives the dip a little bit of a tang.
• Tomato Sauce. For an extra flavor boost, you could also use salsa in place of the tomato sauce. You just may want to puree it first to keep the dip as creamy as possible. On second thought, Homemade Taco Sauce would be great here, too!
• Taco Seasoning. You can use taco seasoning from the store, or you can use your own Homemade Taco Seasoning as well.
• Hot Sauce. This ingredient will be dependent upon your tastes. If you are making this dip for children, you might not want to add the hot sauce. You can use store-bought or Homemade Hot Sauce.
• Cheddar Cheese. The literal icing on the cake for this recipe! A great sharp cheddar will do well here, but a Colby jack would work well, too.

FAQ About Cream Cheese Taco Dip

How long can Taco Dip sit out?

Since it contains cream cheese, please don’t leave it out for more than 2 hours. Store any you aren’t consuming right away in the refrigerator.

What is Taco Dip made of?

Taco Dip contains some kind of cream cheese and taco seasoning base. Many variations of the recipe call for complete taco toppings (shredded cheese, shredded lettuce, ground beef, avocado, guacamole, refried beans, black olives, jalapenos, green onion, red onion, etc) but those would be considered more like a 7 Layer Taco Dip.

How do you thicken taco dip?

This recipe is naturally thick because of the cream cheese and requires no extra thickeners.

How long is Taco Dip good in the refrigerator?

Taco Dip will last for 1 week in the refrigerator.

What to Serve With Creamy Taco Dip

• Tortilla Chips. Of course, the best thing to serve with a dip like this is regular tortilla chips!
• Corn Chips. Also good with this recipe. We like Pipcorn Corn Dippers, which I can get from Vitacost or Thrive Market.
• Vegetables. Carrot sticks, celery sticks, and bell pepper slices are particularly good with this dip however other veggies will work as well. Here’s a list of Frugal Vegetables if you are trying to stay on a budget.
• Chicken. If you make your own fried chicken tenders or chicken nuggets. This is a fun recipe to dip them into!

Why Make Your Own Homemade Taco Dip?

A similar dip from Tostitoes costs $4.98 for a smaller amount. It contains a variety of ingredients I wouldn’t personally choose to feed my family, as well as MSG.

This homemade Cream Cheese Taco Dip costs about $3.26 to make (for a larger amount) with no questionable ingredients and a spiciness level that you can control. It also has the cheese baked on top instead of blended into the dip, which gives it an amazing extra depth of flavor!

Step By Step Instructions for How to Make Cream Cheese Taco Dip

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, whip the cream cheese until smooth. Add the tomato sauce, taco seasoning, and hot sauce and beat for two minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. (Of course, this can also be done by hand, but it is much easier with the mixer.)

Spread the mixture into a 9×5 loaf pan (or whichever dish you prefer) and spread the cheddar cheese evenly on top. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the cheddar is completely melted and bubbly.

Remove the dip from the oven and let cool until warm. Serve with desired dipping vessels.

Print this Simple Cream Cheese Taco Dip to add to your Recipe Binder below:

5 from 2 votes

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Cream Cheese Taco Dip Recipe

This creamy dip is so simple to make! Perfect for game day or just as a side dish.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Keyword Cream Cheese Taco Dip

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Servings 6 people

Calories 729 kcal

Creator Merissa

Ingredients

• 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon taco seasoning
• 1 teaspoon hot sauce
• 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, whip the cream cheese until smooth. Add the tomato sauce, taco seasoning, and hot sauce and beat for two minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. (Of course, this can also be done by hand but it is so much easier with the mixer.)

3. Spread the mixture into a 9×5 loaf pan (or whichever dish you prefer) and spread the cheddar cheese evenly on top of the cream cheese mixture.

4. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheddar is completely melted and bubbly.
5. Remove the dip from the oven and let cool until warm. Serve with desired dipping vessels, such as pita chips, sliced vegetables, or crostini.

Nutrition Facts

Cream Cheese Taco Dip Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 729 Calories from Fat 369

% Daily Value*

Fat 41g63%

Saturated Fat 23g144%

Polyunsaturated Fat 2g

Monounsaturated Fat 9g

Cholesterol 140mg47%

Sodium 2923mg127%

Potassium 1082mg31%

Carbohydrates 27g9%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 17g19%

Protein 63g126%

Vitamin A 1792IU36%

Vitamin C 9mg11%

Calcium 1612mg161%

Iron 2mg11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Even More Homemade Dip Recipes

• 7 Layer Taco Dip Recipe
• Cream Cheese Spinach Dip Recipe
• Homemade Queso Dip
• Jalapeno Popper Dip Recipe
• Yogurt Fruit Dip Recipe – A Quick and Easy Fruit Dip
• Homemade Dill Dip Recipe
• Cheesecake Chocolate Chip Dip Recipe

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Have you ever made Cream Cheese Taco Dip? What is your favorite food item to “dip”?

Merissa Alink

Merissa has been blogging about and living the simple and frugal life on Little House Living since 2009 and has internationally published 2 books on the topic. You can read about Merissa’s journey from penniless to freedom on the About Page. You can send her a message any time from the Contact Page.

This Cream Cheese Taco Dip was originally published on Little House Living in March 2013. It has been updated as of April 2024.