30 Taco Tuesday Recipes for a Family Fiesta
Taco Tuesday recipes make meal planning each week a breeze! Plan ahead for a fun family dinner with a new twist on Taco Night with chicken tacos, fish tacos, shrimp tacos, quesadillas, enchiladas, chimichangas, and more!
My kids could eat tacos every night of the week if I let them, we are big Mexican food fans.
Though they might prefer ground beef tacos for Taco Night every Tuesday, I love to mix things up and try new taco fillings, soft or crispy tortilla shells, and fun homemade salsas to keep dinner interesting.
The wide variety also means my family is getting lots of fresh fruit and veggies and a variety of taco meat fillings over the course of the month.
If you're looking for the easiest family dinner to plan in your weekly meal planning session, be sure to pencil in a Taco Tuesday with these delicious family recipes.
The Best Taco Tuesday Recipes for Taco Night
Whether you're looking for beef tacos, chicken tacos, or fish tacos, I've got you covered.
Mix and match these easy taco fillings with my homemade salsas and recommended taco toppings for a delicious family dinner you'll all look forward to enjoying together.
Baked Chicken Tacos
In just 10 minutes and with just 5 ingredients, you can have this incredibly delicious platter of family style baked chicken tacos for Tuesday night.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: I recommend either my classic homemade salsa or this chunky corn salsa.
- Mexican Slaw
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Fresh Green Onions
Pork Tenderloin Tacos
Getting tired of chicken all the time? Mix things up and make these easy pork tenderloin tacos. You can even prep the filling in advance and freeze it.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: I recommend either my classic homemade salsa or this chunky corn salsa.
- Mexican Slaw
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Fresh Green Onions
Easy Taco Skillet
If your kids love classic ground beef tacos, this is a super fun way to serve them family-style right at the table!
Pile up a stack of tortillas and bring the taco skillet to the table and let everyone scoop the taco fillings as they go. This is a great way to keep your tacos hot for dinner.
My kids even love to eat the taco skillet with a big bowl of tortilla chips instead of regular tortillas.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: I recommend either my classic homemade salsa or this chunky corn salsa.
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Fresh Green Onions
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
This is our favorite shredded chicken taco filling and it only needs 3 ingredients to make!
Pile up this savory, tender chicken in flour tortillas and top with your favorite salsas.
The chicken taco meat tastes great on soft flour tortillas or crispy hard shell tortillas warm from the oven.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Shredded Cheese
- Your Favorite Salsa: I strongly recommend this classic homemade salsa.
- Mexican Slaw
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Diced Pico de Gallo
Crockpot Chicken Tacos
If you prefer a tomato-based shredded chicken for your taco filling, you can't go wrong with this delicious and easy Crockpot chicken taco meat recipe.
It has just a bit more heat than our Instant Pot chicken taco filling but it's not too spicy for kids.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: I strongly recommend this pineapple salsa for the perfect pairing.
- Mexican Slaw
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Fresh Green Onions
Cuban Mojo Chicken Tacos
If you want to cook your chicken taco fillings in the air fryer, you could season the chicken with your favorite taco seasoning blend or fajitas spices.
Then learn how to cook healthy chicken tenderloins in the air fryer here and simply slice them on the diagonal for a taco filling.
Alternatively, my easy Cuban mojo marinade, made with bright citrus and cilantro, would be a perfect way to flavor the chicken before air frying it.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Shredded Cheese
- Your Favorite Salsa: Depending on how you season the chicken, I'd recommend using my classic homemade salsa or my spicy peach salsa but the pineapple salsa would be perfect with the Cuban mojo marinade.
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Shredded Lettuce
- Chopped Tomatoes
Air Fryer Chicken Tacos or Quesadillas
Another fun way to make air fryer chicken tacos is to season them with an easy Caribbean jerk seasoning and cook them with chopped bell peppers and onions.
This spicy mix is perfect wrapped in a tortilla for an easy chicken taco but would be even tastier added to the fillings for homemade jerk chicken quesadillas.
You can easily learn how to make quesadillas family style for serving dinner all at once, no need to feel like a short order cook in your own kitchen!
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Shredded Cheese
- Your Favorite Salsa: I'd definitely recommend either my classic homemade salsa or the sweet pineapple salsa for the jerk chicken.
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Pico de Gallo
- Fresh Green Onions
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Crockpot Creamy Chicken Taco Rice Bowls
Not in the mood for a tortilla on taco night? Why not make homemade Mexican chicken rice bowls instead?
Start with my easy Crockpot creamy chicken mixture which has refined beans and veggies hiding in the filling.
Then cook your favorite white rice, my easy Instant Pot jasmine rice cooks in just 3 minutes.
Then top your rice bowls with your favorite taco toppings for a hearty and filling dinner the kids will love to customize on their own.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: For extra crunch, the chunky corn salsa would be an excellent choice.
- Mexican Hot Sauce: The creamy chicken filling is very mild, if you like your Mexican food spicy definitely add extra hot sauce to your serving.
- Pickled Jalapeños
- Fresh Green Onions
Mexican Pulled Pork Carnitas
Make my easy Mexican pulled pork and then turn it into carnitas tacos, rice bowls, nachos, or even a salad!
This large roast can be made ahead and frozen in small batches for a month of Tuesdays.
Grilled Fish Tacos
Fish tacos are a surprisingly easy recipe for Taco night, especially in the summertime when you can fire up the grill.
I love to make seasoned grilled tilapia fillets and then flake them with a fork into large chunks for wrapping inside a tortilla for an easy taco.
You can switch up the seasonings you use and add taco seasoning or fajita seasoning with a squeeze of lime juice which will add even more flavor to the fish.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: My easy mojito salsa is the perfect pairing for fish tacos but for extra crunch the chunky corn salsa would be delicious, too.
- Mexican Hot Sauce: Since fish is generally very mild, you may want to add extra hot sauce to your serving.
- Shredded Lettuce or Cabbage Slaw: Fish tacos need a little help in the texture department, adding cold, crispy veggies to your tortilla go a long way. My easy Mexican slaw would be perfect for fish tacos.
- Creamy Cilantro Dressing: For an extra touch, you could drizzle this cilantro lime ranch dressing over spicy fish to cool the heat down.
- Fresh Green Onions
Spicy Shrimp Tacos
If you're a fan of shrimp tacos, they are so easy to make at home using either your air fryer or a skillet.
Thaw a bag of frozen shrimp and then season it with your favorite taco seasoning.
You can cook frozen shrimp in an air fryer or you could season it with my special blend and make spicy shrimp in a skillet on your stovetop.
To finish your shrimp taco, it is important to add a few extra condiments to the tortilla:
Condiments to Add:
- Shredded Lettuce or Cabbage Slaw: Shrimp tacos need a little help in the texture department, adding cold, crispy veggies to your tortilla go a long way. My easy Mexican slaw would be perfect for shrimp tacos.
- Your Favorite Salsa: My easy mojito salsa is the perfect pairing for fish tacos but for extra crunch the chunky corn salsa would be delicious, too.
- Mexican Hot Sauce: Since shrimp are generally very mild, you may want to add extra hot sauce to your serving.
- Creamy Cilantro Dressing: For an extra touch, you could drizzle this cilantro lime ranch dressing over spicy shrimp to cool the heat down.
- Fresh Lime Wedges
- Sour Cream
- Fresh Green Onions or Cilantro
Breakfast Burritos for a Crowd
If you're having a full blown Taco Tuesday Fiesta, you could bake up a batch of my make-ahead breakfast burritos for a crowd.
Filled with eggs, sausage, crispy tater tots, and shredded cheese, this hearty burrito is a great grab-and-go breakfast for a Tuesday, too.
Not feeding a crowd right now? You can freeze the breakfast burritos in individual wrappers and just heat up one at a time as needed!
Condiments to Add:
- Mexican Hot Sauce: I love just a simple drizzle of Valentina hot sauce on my burritos, there's so much flavor wrapped up inside they don't need much more than that!
Air Fryer Chicken Chimichangas
As much as my kids love tacos, some nights we want something just a little different.
In those cases, crispy Air fryer chicken chimichangas are an excellent choice because I can prep them ahead and just bake them quickly before dinner.
I always serve them on a bed of shredded lettuce for an extra dose of veggies.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: For extra crunch, the chunky corn salsa would be an excellent choice.
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Pico de Gallo
- Fresh Green Onions
Crispy Chicken Taquitos
If your family loves the frozen chicken taquitos you find at the grocery store, you absolutely have to try making them homemade just once. I swear you will never go back!
My crispy baked turkey taquitos are so much more delicious than the frozen kind and are way more healthy, too.
You could swap the ground turkey for ground chicken or beef if you prefer. Roll up a batch and pop them on one big tray into the oven for an easy dinner the kids will gobble up.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Your Favorite Salsa: My classic homemade salsa is a good choice for kids but for extra crunch, the chunky corn salsa would also be an excellent choice.
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Cilantro Lime Ranch Dressing: For a fun twist, skip the sour cream and add a little bowl of this cilantro lime ranch dressing for the kids to dip their taquitos into.
- Fresh Green Onions
Chicken Taco Soup
During the chili months of winter, some nights just call for chicken taco soup.
Serve steaming bowls of this not-too-spicy stovetop soup and load it up with a few of your favorite taco toppings.
Condiments to Add:
- Sour Cream
- Mexican Hot Sauce: The taco soup is very mild, if you like your Mexican food spicy definitely add extra hot sauce to your serving.
- Shredded Cheese
- Fresh Green Onions
- Tortilla Chips for Dunking
Chicken Enchiladas
Want an easy casserole for taco night? This quick-prep chicken enchiladas recipe has been popular with my family ever since my kids were little.
I love to serve it alongside a batch of my Mexican rice for a cozy and filling meal at the end of a long day.
Condiments to Add:
Almost everything you need is right in the baking pan, but I do like to add:
- Sour Cream
- Mexican Hot Sauce
- Fresh Green Onions
Easy Homemade Salsas for Tacos
The fastest way to turn your Taco Tuesday dinner into a full blow fiesta is to add an easy homemade salsa to the menu.
Filled with fresh vegetables or fruit, there is so much more flavor (and no preservatives!) to these taco toppings.
Scoop one or two into serving bowls for the table alongside a bowl of tortilla chips for an easy way to get the kids to eat a little more fruit and veg with Taco Night.
Side Dishes for Tacos
Want to round out your Taco Tuesday menu? Choose one of the taco main dishes above and then plan to make my 5-minute Mexican street corn casserole with lime juice and cheese for a special surprise.
My easy Mexican corn rice is a hearty side dish that also works as an added ingredient to the tortilla for a very filling taco or burrito.
And roasted peppers and pineapple will pair with any of the taco recipes mentioned above and are a sweet way to get more veggies into the kids.
Turn my basic garden salad recipe into a taco salad by using salsa instead of dressing, tortilla strips instead of croutons, and adding fresh cilantro.
Mexican Appetizers for Taco Night
Want a fun munchy after school snack or appetizer for Taco Night? Surprise the kids with my easy taco bites in phyllo cups or a batch of my veggie-heavy spicy taco dip with chips.
Pour a margarita and tuck into a bowl of chicken enchilada dip for a delicious way to unwind at the end of the day.
Desserts for Taco Tuesday
A fiesta just isn't a fiesta without a sweet treat to end the meal!
Bring out fresh fruit like my mango strawberry salsa with cinnamon pita chips or a fruit platter with this easy piña colada fruit dip and you won't even feel guilty about giving the kids a treat.
Or, make a batch of my Mexican hot chocolate cookies, they have a delicious pinch of cayenne for a bit of heat but they are not too spicy for the kids. They keep really well in the freezer so you could just serve a few at the end of the meal and save the rest for your next Taco Tuesday!
My tres leches cake can be quite the project if you're baking it from scratch but if you follow the easy cake mix instructions you can have an easy dessert in time for dinner.
And these easy crescent roll cheesecake bars taste just like churros with that cinnamon sugar topping.
More Family Dinner Ideas
If you love my Taco Tuesday recipes, you'll love making your next family dinner special with these easy tips:
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