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These Baked Chicken Tacos are so easy–and SO good! Just mix up the chicken filling, stuff the taco shells, add cheese, and bake. Then it’s just a matter of adding toppings and eating them! Let’s make baked chicken tacos!
Table of Contents
- Recipe at a Glance
- Ingredients to Make Baked Chicken Tacos
- Popular Substitutions & Additions
- How to Make Baked Chicken Tacos
- More Taco Topping Suggestions
- Tips for Making The Best Baked Chicken Taco Recipe
- What to Serve With This Baked Chicken Taco Recipe
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Tacos Recipes:
- More Tex Mex Recipes
- Baked Chicken Tacos Recipe
Recipe at a Glance
Cuisine Inspiration: Mexican & American
Primary Cooking Method: Oven
Dietary Info: Gluten Free (with gluten-free taco shells)
Key Flavor: Savory and mildly spicy
Skill Level: Easy
- Fast, simple, and easy: With a short list of ingredients, a small amount of prep work, and 25 minutes total recipe time, baked chicken tacos are a winner all around!
- Perfect for leftovers: The next time you have leftover chicken, baked chicken tacos will take care of it! Or sometimes, if I know I’m having chicken for dinner one night, I’ll make extra to tuck away for these baked chicken tacos later on in the week. Easy!
- Make-ahead potential: The baked chicken taco meat can be mixed together beforehand and refrigerated a couple of days ahead of time, which makes prep even easier when it comes time to cook them!
- Family-friendly: Baked chicken tacos are one of those on-constant-repeat dinner recipes that everyone loves.
Ingredients to Make Baked Chicken Tacos
- Taco shells: Grab the hard taco shells found at the grocery store. If you can find the ones with flat bottoms, even better–they stand up really well in your baking dish without toppling over.
- Chicken: You’ll want cooked, shredded chicken. This is a great use for leftover chicken, or grab a cooked rotisserie chicken from the grocery store.
- Green chiles: You want one can of diced green chiles. Pay careful attention to the amount of liquid–you want a little liquid to dissolve the taco seasoning, but no more than 2 tablespoons total. If you find your can of green chiles has more liquid than that, drain off the excess.
- Lime juice: Use fresh lime juice which adds bright, vibrant flavor to your baked chicken taco meat.
- Taco seasoning: Use your favorite brand or make your own taco seasoning.
- Cheese: I like to use a Mexican cheese blend, but you can use shredded cheddar if that’s what you have.
Popular Substitutions & Additions
- Add beans: For more flavor and a boost of protein and fiber, add refried or black beans along with the chicken mixture. For a vegetarian baked taco, you can even omit the chicken entirely and just use beans.
- Beef it up: Use cooked ground beef in place of the chicken.
- Add tomatoes: Mix in a can of diced tomatoes for added texture and flavor. Just be sure to drain it first!
- Use salsa instead of green chiles: You can substitute the diced chiles with salsa or pico de gallo, but make sure there is no more than 2 tablespoons of liquid in the mixture.
- Swap the tortillas: Feel free to swap the crunchy taco shells for corn or flour tortillas. Warm them for a couple of minutes in the oven or microwave so they’re pliable, then assemble and bake as directed, until crispy.
- When it comes to toppings, the sky’s the limit: However you love to top tacos is the right way to top these baked chicken tacos! Add diced tomato, onion, shredded lettuce, avocado, jalapeños, sour cream, cilantro, pico de Gallo, guacamole, salsa … the possibilities are endless.
How to Make Baked Chicken Tacos
Just grab some crunchy taco shells and line them up in a baking dish. Then, you fill them with shredded chicken mixed with yummy taco seasoning and green chiles. Sprinkle cheese on the top, then slide them into the oven and bake until warm, melty, and crunchy taco perfection. After that, it’s just a matter of piling them high with any toppings you want!
Prepare the Shredded Chicken Filling
- In a medium bowl, mix the chicken, diced green chiles, lime, juice, and taco seasoning.
- Toss together until the chicken is evenly coated with the spices.
Stuff and Bake Chicken Tacos
- Arrange the taco shells in a baking dish and bake for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and fill the shells halfway with the chicken.
- Top with the shredded cheese.
- Bake until the shells start to brown and the cheese is melted.
More Taco Topping Suggestions
- Guacamole or diced avocados
- Jalapenos
- Corn
- Salsa verde
- Greek yogurt
- Spicy Black Bean Tomato Avocado Salsa
- Shredded cabbage (white and purple)
Tips for Making The Best Baked Chicken Taco Recipe
- Line up the shells down the middle, then fill in the sides: To squeeze the most tacos into your baking dish (while leaving a bit of space so they crisp up nicely), line up your taco shells in a row down the center, then fill in the sides with a few tacos shells going the other direction.
- Bake the shells for 5 minutes before adding the chicken. I learned this tip from The Cookie Rookie, and it really helps keep the taco shells crisp.
- Leave room for toppings. That’s the best part, right? So leave room for them by filling your shells only about halfway with the chicken and cheese.
What to Serve With This Baked Chicken Taco Recipe
Frequently Asked Questions
I recommend eating them immediately after cooking, because the taco shells will get softer after a couple hours. However, it is possible to store and reheat leftovers! Just store any leftovers in an airtight container and place them in the fridge. To warm them back up, either place them in a 350°F oven in a covered baking dish until warmed through, or warm them in the microwave.
They will last up to 2 days in the fridge, but the shells won’t be as crunchy.
I used chicken breast in this recipe, but you can use thighs if you prefer. For ease and convenience, you can buy packaged cooked, shredded chicken or a rotisserie chicken.
For my baked chicken tacos, I prefer to use hard shell as they add crunch and texture to each bite. If crunchy isn’t your thing, you can of course swap them for soft, taco-size tortillas.
You’re going to love these baked chicken tacos! They’re fast and simple to make, perfect for easy family dinners, parties, and just anytime you’re craving a perfectly seasoned, crunchy taco. Whether you have leftover chicken you need to use up or are looking for a fast and yummy weeknight dinner recipe to add to your menu for the week, this recipe for baked chicken tacos is the answer!
More Tacos Recipes:
More Tex Mex Recipes
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This baked chicken tacos recipe was originally published April 29, 2019 and has recently been updated with new photography, tips, and step-by-step collages to better help make the recipe.
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Baked Chicken Tacos
Video
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 10-12 taco shells
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken
- 1 (4.5 ounce) can diced green chiles
- 1 lime juiced
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- Sour cream for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange the taco shells in the pan and bake for 5 minutes.
- In a medium bowl, combine the chicken, diced green chiles, lime juice and taco seasoning until everything is well mixed.
- Spoon the chicken mixture evenly between the taco shells, filling them halfway full, then top with the shredded cheese.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until tacos start to brown and the cheese is melted.
- Serve immediately with chopped cilantro and your favorite taco toppings.
Notes
- Instead of shredded chicken, you can also use ground beef, ground turkey or even just prepared beans
- You can substitute the diced chiles with salsa or pico de gallo, but make sure there is not too much liquid in the mixture.
- If you don’t have taco seasoning, you can make your own by mixing together chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder and oregano. The first spices will have greater quantities and you can play around with the ratio as you like.
Nutrition
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
These were so good and so easy!! i’m so glad i found your page! i meal plan with your blog open! 😬😬😬
Thank you so much! I love that!