You won’t find many recipes on my blog that are easier than these baked chicken tacos. You can get as creative as you’d like with the filling choices, and they only take a few minutes to assemble. That means you can make a giant batch of crispy, cheesy tacos and refrigerate or freeze for later.
And if there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s that having crispy tacos at the ready is one of the biggest life upgrades out there.
How to Make Baked Chicken Tacos
You’ll need a wire rack and baking sheet or two baking sheets, extra thin corn tortillas, shredded cheese, and your choice of cooked chicken for filling. I’ll give you a few recipes and ideas for chicken below.
The actual process for making the baked chicken tacos is super easy. Simply microwave the corn tortillas to make them pliable, fill one half with toppings, fold and cover with the second baking sheet, and bake. That’s it!
The microwaving step or heating the tortillas in one way or another is a vital step. Good luck folding a room temperature corn tortilla without cracking or breaking. If you’re making a big batch of baked tacos, you can microwave in batches as you work and keep wrapped in a paper towel.
In case you’re wondering, placing the second baking sheet on top ensures the tacos stay closed during baking and helps seal the edges with the melted cheese. This prevents the filling from falling out during storage and reheating.
How to Make Air Fryer Tacos
You could air fry these chicken tacos, but you’ll still want to put something on top of them for the same reasons above. In my air fryer quesadillas recipe, for example, I used the wire rack that came with my air fryer. For time and temperature, 400ºF for 8-10 minutes should do the trick.
My air fryer quesadillas also call for a corn and flour hybrid tortilla, which is an awesome substitute if you have a few extra carbs to spare. You get the awesome corn tortilla flavor with the strength and pliability of a flour tortilla. If you can’t find them in store, you can make your own.
As a final tip for air fryer tacos, avoid layering the tacos inside the air fryer. Cook them in separate batches for best results.
Baked Chicken Tacos Filling
As you can see in the photos, I used some of my Fajita Chicken and Peppers recipe for the taco filling, but you could get creative with these ingredients. Here’s a handful of recipe ideas (just cook and shred or chop) I think would work great:
- Mexican Shredded Chicken Thighs
- Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken
- Crispy Chicken Carnitas
- Oven Roasted Chicken Al Pastor
- Chipotle Lime Grilled Chicken Breast
- Mexican Smoked Chicken Breast
- Chipotle BBQ Chicken Tacos
- Smoked Pulled Chicken
You could even use something like rotisserie chicken or even ground beef like in my beef and cheese oven baked tacos.
How to Reheat the Baked Chicken Tacos
These tacos are best reheated in an oven or air fryer. I’d reheat them using the same temperature you cooked them at for 2-4 minutes. They won’t take long to get crispy and warm throughout.
You can microwave, but the shells might get a little chewy instead of crispy.
Final Recipe Notes
The only warning I’ll give is to avoid overfilling and/or over baking your tacos. Put too much inside and the tacos may ooze out during baking. And the extra thin tortillas can be unforgiving in the oven and go from golden brown to dark brown in a heartbeat.
And that’s about it. Be sure to let me know what you think about these baked chicken tacos!
Baked Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
- 6 Extra Thin Corn Tortillas, I used Mission
- 6 oz Cooked Chicken Breast, chopped or shredded (or your choice of filling)
- 1/2 C 56g Shredded Cheddar , or your choice of cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Wrap the tortillas in a slightly damp paper towel and microwave for 45-60 seconds, flipping halfway through. (This will make the tortillas easier to fold.)
- Add the chicken and peppers (or your choice of filling) to one half of each tortilla. Top with cheese before folding over. Gently press down to seal each taco. (If you notice any tearing in the tortillas, you need to microwave the tortillas for another 15-30 seconds.)
- Place a baking sheet or flat surface with a bit of weight on top of the tacos to press them down. This prevents the tacos from opening during baking and helps the cheese fully seal the tacos so they stick together after baking.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes or until the tortillas are golden brown. Be careful not to burn. (If you’re having trouble getting them crisp, remove the second baking sheet towards the end of cooking since the tacos will be sealed by then. And using a baking sheet instead of a wire rack on the bottom will take a bit longer.)
Notes
- Each baked chicken taco has 3 Smart Points.
- Nutrition facts may vary based on your filling selection. These nutrition facts are with plain, cooked chicken breast.
- To reheat prepped tacos, bake or air fry at the same temperature you cooked the tacos for 2-4 minutes or until warm throughout and crispy again.
Any more tips for making them crispy? I tried removing the tray a few minutes before taking them out of the oven and they were still soggy/soft. I’m not sure if my chicken was too juicy or if I didn’t cook long enough – or both. The tortillas also didn’t tear when I microwaved and made the tacos, but they tore while cooking. The taste was amazing, but I’d love to girlie out how to get that cripiness!
It could be the filling (either too much moisture or too much), but you can usually just extend the bake time until they’re crispy. If you have an air fryer, you can always pop them in for a few minutes as you’re reheating for crispy tacos every time.
These tacos were perfect for my travel meal prep! I took these along to visit some family a couple states away, and my family is southern through and through, I knew I’d need to bring some healthy and macro friendly snacks to stay semi on track! These were perfect! I also made some for my boyfriend to take on a work trip where he’s in the middle of the woods for hours, he said they were even good cold! I reheated them both using the oven and microwave, both were good but you will lose the crispyness via microwave.
Absolutely loved these, I try to find new but simple things to make that are healthier than our usual meals and these were top notch! I mixed a bit of salsa into my meat before scooping it onto the tortillas and 😍 i can’t wait to try more recipes especially comfort type foods!
These tacos are AMAZINGGGGG! I’m not much of a cook so it’s ways easier to support my husband making these 🤣 We did have to adjust the microwave times for our tortillas so they didn’t break. The tacos are a hit for the whole family too, including my picky son.
They keep well and can be brought for lunch if your family doesn’t devour them first.
I really like these! I find the portioning a bit difficult (because I try to make as many as I can) but that’s my only issue. I always reheat them in my airfrier and they are so delicious
This recipe is soooo simple and I can’t believe I didn’t know about it before now! Great idea for meal prepping! My husband loves them and I plan on making these every week as one of my staples! Thank you Mason! 🙂
So easy and yummy to make. Great for meal prepping
These were a success and right up my alley! It takes a few minutes to put together but the reward is huge as you get so many servings. They freeze beautifully and are so easy to reheat. If I remember I throw the foil pack in the fridge the night before but I have also put them foil wrapped and frozen straight in the oven. These lend themselves to all kinds of modifications so I can’t wait to try different versions. Thanks!
I make these weekly as a grab and go lunch option. I really like mixing up and playing with the cheese selections, and tend to favor a mozz/mexican cheese blend. If you have a toaster oven at work, pop two in there while you prep your salad and you’ve got a healthy lunch in minutes. I usually make a side of pico each week as part of my meal prep and bring it along, topping the tacos with sour cream and homemade pico.
My pico is super simple: 3 plum tomatoes, one red onion, one large jalapeno, splash lime, salt, and a tiny bit of ground coriander.
My go-to when I need easy food to bring to work! You can easily spice it up (or down if that’s your thing), add diced up veggies, change the protein for what works for you… plus it’s tacos!! Who says no to tacos?!