Our quick and easy Crispy Chicken Tacos are the perfect dinner option for your next Taco Tuesday or any night of the week! A super simple recipe that is made in under 30 minutes. Just make sure you add all the fresh taco toppings!
The Best Crispy Chicken Taco Recipe
There is nothing that our whole family loves more than an amazing taco night and these crispy baked chicken tacos always hit the spot! They are so versatile because you can switch up the filling options and the topping options. Everyone can really make them any way they want. Plus, the pieces of these simple chicken tacos can easily be made ahead of time for meal prep. Or a great way to use any chicken leftovers hanging out in the fridge!
Looking for more delicious taco recipes? You have to try our Steak Tacos, they are SO good!
What You Will Need
- extra virgin olive oil – brushing a little on the tortillas helps to give them the perfect crispness.
- garlic and sweet yellow onion – classic flavor starters that are always a must!
- shredded chicken – there are so many great ways to quickly cook up some boneless, skinless chicken breasts to easily shred or pick-up a rotisserie chicken at your local grocery store.
- taco seasoning – we always have some of our homemade taco seasoning on hand or you can grab a store-bought taco seasoning packet.
- refried beans – love spreading a thin layer of refried beans for the added flavor and protein.
- corn tortillas – option to use another tortilla but these are our favorite tortillas to use!
- colby jack cheese – that ooey gooey melty cheese is a must in any great taco recipe.
How To Make Crispy Chicken Tacos
The first steps to making this easy recipe is to heat up a large skillet to a medium-high heat, drizzle in the olive oil, & sauté the garlic and onion. Then add the shredded chicken and taco seasoning. Mix it all together to fully combine.
How To Make Shredded Chicken
There are so many different ways to easily turn boneless skinless chicken breasts into tender shredded chicken! We have a complete tutorial on 3 ways to cook and shred chicken – stovetop, slow cooker, or Instant Pot shredded chicken. This can easily be done on a Sunday to meal prep a lot of chicken to be used all week long!
Now wrap the stack of corn tortillas in a thin, clean kitchen towel or paper towels and place in the microwave to warm.
Next, place those warm tortillas on a parchment-lined baking sheet and lightly brush on some olive oil. On one side of the taco shells, spread some warmed refried beans, chicken filling, and sprinkling of cheese.
Gently fold tortillas over the filling ingredients and top with more shredded cheese. Bake all of the tacos at 450 degrees F for about 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. To make them extra crispy you could place them under the broiler for 1-2 minutes, but watch carefully.
Serve the crunchy chicken tacos immediately with all of your favorite toppings!
Best Way To Serve Crispy Chicken Tacos
These delicious crispy tacos are all about the toppings and we suggest piling on as many as you can, because they are all amazing. We highly suggest some shredded lettuce, salsa, fresh guacamole, sour cream, sliced jalapeños, cilantro lime sauce, cotija cheese, pico de gallo, fresh cilantro, and lime wedges for a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Recipe FAQ
- Filling options: we kept the chicken for these tacos pretty basic, but salsa verde chicken, salsa chicken, or even pork carnitas would also be amazing!
- Cheese: we love a classic colby jack cheese for these crunchy tacos, but you could also use Mexican shredded cheese, cheddar cheese, dairy-free cheese, etc.
Made this recipe and loved it?! We would love it if you would take a minute and leave a star rating and review – it is also helpful if you made any substitutions or changes to the recipe to share that as well. THANK YOU!
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Other Taco Recipes You Might Like
Crispy Chicken Tacos
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner/Entree
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Mexican-Inspired
Description
Crispy Chicken Tacos – a seriously delicious, baked chicken taco recipe that is crunchy and delicious! Perfect for a busy weeknight!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1/2 yellow onion, minced
- 1 pound of chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
- 1 batch taco seasoning (or 1 packet store-bought)
- 1 cup refried beans
- 8 corn tortillas
- 1 cup freshly grated colby jack cheese
- Toppings (choose your own): sour cream, salsa, guacamole, shredded lettuce, jalapeno
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Bring a large cast iron skillet to medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil. Swirl to coat the pan. Add garlic and move around pan until fragrant. Add onion and move around pan until softened. Add cooked, shredded chicken and taco seasoning. Stir to combine and continue to move chicken around until it’s warmed through. Remove from heat.
- Add refried beans to a small saucepan and warm over medium heat, stirring as-needed.
- Wrap tortillas in a thin, clean kitchen towel. Place in microwave and warm. Keep warm while you assemble tacos.
- Taking the warmed tortillas one by one, rub a bit of olive oil over each side and then lay down on the parchment. Spread some refried beans on half (a thin layer), top with some shredded chicken mixture, and then some shredded cheese. Fold the other side over gently and top with a little more cheese. (The oil and warmth of the tortillas will help them from cracking, but some cracking is still normal!). Repeat with remaining tortillas.
- Place in the oven, middle rack, to bake for approx. 10-15 minutes. Feel free to finish with 1-2 minutes under the broiler if you want – just watch very carefully.
- Serve with your favorite toppings.
Notes
- Serve Immediately – for best results you want to serve these right away. They don’t keep very well in the fridge and will get a bit soggy/lose their crispiness if stored.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 taco
- Calories: 304
- Sugar: 0.9 g
- Sodium: 305 mg
- Fat: 16.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Protein: 22.8 g
- Cholesterol: 72.3 mg
Aly says
Made these for dinner last night and they were so good! Came together very easily which is perfect for a weeknight (or any night really). They’ll definitely be on the rotation.
Erin says
Awesome to hear, Aly!!
Stephanie says
Very tasty and very easy to make. We will be making it again!
Erin says
Yay!! So glad you enjoyed them, Stephanie!
Kelly Buesgens says
These were delicious! My daughter who doesn’t like corn tortillas ate 3 of them. This is a nice gluten free meal that I can make and everyone enjoyed. Will be making these again.
Erin says
Awesome to hear, Kelly! So glad you guys enjoyed them!