Crispy Baked Chicken Tacos

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Diet: Low Fat

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 25

Total Time: 35

Servings: tacos

Calories: 251cal

Author: Ashley Fehr

Crispy Baked Chicken Tacos are stuffed with juicy seasoned chicken, loaded with cheese, and baked until the shells are perfectly crunchy. They’re quick to assemble, fun to top, and way less messy than frying!

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Ingredients

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)
¼ cup mango or pineapple juice
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons chili powder
1½ teaspoons cumin
¾ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon paprika
pinch black pepper
12 small flour tortillas
4 cups shredded cheese (cheddar or mozzarella)
non-aerosol oil spray
chopped lettuce, tomato, salsa (mango or pineapple preferred), avocado as desired for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425℉ and line a baking sheet or two with parchment (if baking all of the tacos, you'll need two baking sheets).
Add the chicken breasts, juice, garlic powder, chili powder, cumin, salt, onion powder, paprika and black pepper to a large skillet and bring to a simmer over high heat. (It will get juicier as the chicken cooks)
Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through (check that it reaches an internal temperature of 165℉), about 12-15 minutes (this can take up to 20 depending on how large your chicken breasts are).
Remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred. If it's quite juicy, place on a paper towel lined plate to drain some of the juices -- this is key for crispy tacos!
Place roughly ⅓ cup shredded cheese and shredded chicken in each tortilla and fold in half, placing on the prepared baking sheets. Spray with oil spray or brush lightly with cooking oil.
Bake for 8-12 minutes, flipping once, until desired crispness is reached.
Open and add additional taco fillings as desired before serving.

Video

Notes

Ingredients and Substitutions:

Chicken: no chicken? Try my Crispy Baked Tacos with ground beef instead. You can also use rotisserie chicken or leftover Shredded Chicken to save time if needed.

Seasoning: feel free to swap my homemade seasoning with store bought if you need a shortcut.

Corn tortillas: you can use corn tortillas, then they tend to crack when folded if they're not warmed up and can be more fragile.

Nutrition