Baked Chicken Tacos
You can make baked chicken tacos in just 10 minutes with only 5 ingredients for a quick and easy weeknight dinner. Add your favorite taco toppings and salsas for a fresh kid-friendly dinner everyone loves.
Every busy parent needs a quick 10-minute dinner that can be thrown together with leftovers from the fridge.
This 5-ingredient baked chicken taco recipe uses a rotisserie chicken, a bag of tortillas, and a baking pan to make a delicious family style taco platter in a pinch.
Keep a variety of your favorite salsas and a container of sour cream on hand and you can have a last-minute taco fiesta even on the busiest night!
Why This is the Best Recipe
The #1 Most Requested Dinner at our house whenever I ask my kids is "TACOS!" They could eat them every night if I let them. I'm always looking for fresh ways to mix things up and I think this is the best baked chicken tacos recipe because:
- Corn Tortillas: My kids almost always prefer flour tortillas but I love the texture and flavor that the corn tortillas add to this dish. They are crispy and yet chewy and absolutely perfect.
- Sheet Pan Dinner: Bake these tacos on sheet pans in the oven all at once and serve them family style on a big platter at the table.
- Just 5 Ingredients: Grab a rotisserie chicken at the store and you're practically half way to dinner.
- Easy to Customize: You can mix and match countless taco toppings and salsa to make this a fresh new dinner every time.
Ingredients
You can make baked chicken tacos with just 5 easy ingredients:
- 6-inch Corn Tortillas: I used soft white corn tortillas from the tortilla aisle.
- Cooked Chicken: A rotisserie chicken works the fastest. Our grocery store even offers to sell the pulled meat by itself.
- Taco Seasoning: Any brand you love.
- Monterey Jack Cheese: I think this gives the best flavor, but you could use a Mexican cheese or cheddar if you prefer.
- Vegetable Oil
But to make this simple weeknight dinner even more delicious, I strongly encourage you to also add at least a few of these taco toppings and flavor enhancers:
- Fresh Lime: Squeeze this right onto the chicken before baking, it will help boost the flavor of the chicken filling.
- Salsa and/or Chopped Fresh Tomatoes
- Sour Cream
- Chopped Green Onions
- Shredded Lettuce
- Fresh Cilantro
- Taco Sauce: We love Valentina hot sauce.
Prep the Chicken Filling
First, shred your cooked chicken meat if it isn't already chopped into small pieces.
Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the top and use a fork to combine it.
Fluff the chicken gently, cooked chicken is quite delicate and you don't want it to break apart completely.
If you have a fresh lime, squeeze the juice directly over the chicken and fluff it up again. The lime juice will add lots of flavor to the filling.
Assemble the Taco Shells
Line two large rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil.
Brush the vegetable oil evenly over the foil and then spread the tortillas out, 6 per pan, in an even layer.
Sprinkle the shredded cheese over the top of the tortillas.
Then distribute the prepped chicken filling evenly over the shells.
Baking Instructions
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Bake the chicken tacos for 8 - 10 minutes or until the edges of the tortillas are just turning golden brown and the cheese has melted.
Assemble the Chicken Tacos
Use a spatula to fold the tacos over into half-moon shapes while they are still warm on the baking pan.
As soon as the tortillas begin to cool, they will become more crispy and may break when you try to fold them.
Just fold and gently press them into shape with the back of the spatula like this:
Recommended Taco Toppings
To ensure your chicken tacos are not dry, you'll want to add several fresh, juicy toppings.
Our family's favorite mix includes:
- Diced Cherry Tomatoes
- A Dollop of Sour Cream
- Pre-Shredded Lettuce
- Chopped Green Onions
- A Drizzle of Taco Sauce
Serving Suggestions
If you have a little more time on your hands, these crispy baked tacos are absolutely delicious when served with a simple homemade salsa or my easy prep Mexican slaw.
My restaurant style homemade salsa or grilled guacamole is great for topping the tacos but is also delicious served with a big bowl of tortilla chips.
For a tropical twist, this fresh pineapple salsa with red onions pairs so well with the chicken and taco seasoning.
A chunky corn salsa adds more vegetables to the dinner and a touch of sweetness to the taco.
And for something really different, make a batch of my sweet and spicy peach salsa. It's one of my favorites!
Variations
This baked taco method is fantastic with rotisserie chicken for a quick dinner shortcut but there are other great taco fillings you could also use:
Crockpot Chicken Tacos: Make my easy crockpot chicken taco filling first, then turn it into these baked tacos. The filling can be frozen and then thawed to make the prep go more quickly.
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos: Make my Instant Pot Mexican shredded chicken with green poblano peppers. You could freeze it for use later and thaw it for easy prep with this recipe.
Side Dishes for Tacos
When feeding our family of 4, this recipe makes 3 small tacos per person.
To help stretch the recipe for 2 tacos per person for 6 people, fill out your dinner menu with these easy side dishes.
My homemade Mexican corn rice makes a nice big batch and would taste great tucked into the tacos themselves, too.
You can prep this Mexican street corn casserole in just 5 minutes.
Roasted peppers and pineapple would complement the chicken filling really well as a simple side. You could bake it at the same temperature as the tacos themselves.
Serve my fresh strawberry mango salsa with cinnamon pita chips as a simple side or after dinner treat.
More Mexican Recipes
If you love celebrating Taco Tuesday like we do, you won't want to miss these other Mexican food favorites:
📖 Recipe
Baked Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
For the Baked Chicken Tacos
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil divided
- 12 6-inch corn tortillas
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 2 cups shredded cooked chicken a rotisserie chicken works great for this
- 1 lime juiced
- 2 tbsp taco seasoning
For the Taco Toppings
- Your Favorite Salsa and/or Pico de Gallo
- Sour Cream
- Shredded Lettuce
- Taco Sauce
- Fresh Cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Line two large baking sheets with aluminum foil. Brush half of the vegetable oil over each pan. Arrange the corn tortillas in a single layer, 6 to each pan.
- Top the tortillas with the shredded cheese.
- In a small bowl, toss together the chicken, the lime juice, and the taco seasonings. Divide the chicken evenly among the taco shells.
- Bake the chicken tacos for 8 - 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are beginning to brown.
- Use a spatula to quickly fold the tacos into shape while they are still hot. Once they cool, the shell may crack when you try to fold it.
- Serve with assorted taco toppings.
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