Chicken Tacos
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These chicken tacos are a healthier spin on traditional beef tacos — and they’re just as good, if not better.
When my kids were younger, I came up with some weeknight traditions to make dinnertime fun and special for my family (kudos to past me; I’m much less ambitious now!). Taco Tuesdays was a huge hit. Every Tuesday, they’d come home from school all excited because, “yay, it’s taco night!” We whipped up everything from shrimp tacos to Baja fish tacos, yet these simple chicken tacos were consistently their top fave. Now, even as young adults, their love for them hasn’t waned. These are a lighter take on traditional hard-shell beef tacos, and they easily hold their own in the taste department.
What you’ll need to make Chicken Tacos
Step-by-Step Instructions
To make them, begin by chopping the vegetables. You can do this in a food processor if you like; just be sure not to purée them.
Normally, I don’t believe in hiding vegetables but in this case, I dice them very small so my kids don’t notice them (or at least they can’t pick them out).
I figure what they don’t know won’t hurt them, and one night where I’m not nagging them to eat their vegetables is good for all of us.
Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the vegetables.
Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, until soft.
Add ground chicken and spices use a wooden spoon to break chicken into small pieces.
Turn the heat to high and use a wooden spoon to break the chicken into small clumps; cook until the chicken is partially cooked, about 5 minutes.
Add the tomato sauce, then turn the heat down to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally and breaking chicken into smaller clumps, for 10-15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle with fresh chopped cilantro, then taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
Meanwhile, heat the shells in the oven. To serve, spoon the chicken inside the shells and top with shredded lettuce and cheese.
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- Beef Tacos
Chicken Tacos
These chicken tacos are a healthier spin on traditional beef tacos — and they’re just as good, if not better.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped
- 2 bell peppers (any color), finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 pounds ground chicken (not extra-lean all breast meat)
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons ancho chili powder
- 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1¾ teaspoons salt
- 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce (1 cup)
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro (see note)
- 12 hard taco shells
- 2 cups shredded lettuce or red cabbage, optional for topping
- 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend, optional for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Heat the olive oil in large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions, bell peppers, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and just starting to brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Add the chicken, paprika, ancho chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne (if using), and salt. Increase the heat to high; use a wooden spoon to stir and break the chicken into small clumps. Cook until the chicken is partially cooked, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato sauce, then reduce the heat to low. Simmer, stirring occasionally and breaking chicken into smaller clumps, until chicken is cooked through, 12 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle with fresh chopped cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.
- Meanwhile, remove the taco shells from the package and lay sideways on baking sheet. Pull the stack apart, overlapping the edges slightly. Bake for 6-7 minutes, or until crisp. Spoon the chicken into the shells and serve with toppings.
- Note: To save time, you can chop the bell peppers and onions in a food processor; just be sure not to purée them. You can also use 1 teaspoon ground coriander in place of the fresh cilantro; add it along with the other spices.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 2 tacos
- Calories: 460
- Fat: 27g
- Saturated fat: 6g
- Carbohydrates: 26g
- Sugar: 5g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 30g
- Sodium: 1086mg
- Cholesterol: 130mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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This is a regular in our recipe rotation – quick, easy, and tasty! I don’t have any changes – it’s perfect as-is.
Love this recipe! Great flavor. I usually make it with ground turkey.
I will never use a taco seasoning mix again! This is so much healthier and tastes fantastic. As usual, Jen’s little tips make the meal better…..definitely take the few extra minutes to warm the taco shells!
These are the best chicken tacos! They come together so easily for a weeknight dinner and are kid approved. Our kids love the leftovers in quesadillas.
Another great recipe from Jenn. This is one of the recipes my hubs relies on heavily when he’s responsible for dinner and he hasn’t messed it up yet! It’s a testament to the ease and clarity of Jenn’s recipes and the efforts she makes to perfect them! Thanks as always!
I’m obsessed with this recipe. I didn’t have ground chicken so I used ground turkey. I tripled the recipe and froze half. So, so good!!!! I also added one jalapeño for a little heat. Even better the next day.
I didn’t use bell peppers but this was still great. I made this on the weekend and froze it so we had two very quick/easy mid-week meals. With the stand & stuff style corn tortillas, we crisped them in the oven first. Then added taco meat and shredded cheese and back into the oven to melt the cheese before putting on the other toppings. It was SO good but we also enjoyed leftovers on flour tortillas. This recipe is a keeper.
My husband could only get ground turkey and not ground chicken at the store. Do you have any suggestions for using turkey in place of the chicken? I don’t want to lose any flavor. I love your recipes (my family does too!), both on your web site and in your cookbook. I must make one of your recipes at least 2-3 times a week. I am looking forward to your new cookbook. Thanks so much for sharing your talents Jenn. ~Cathy
Hi Cathy, so glad you like the recipes! 🙂 It’s fine to use ground turkey here without sacrificing flavor. Hope you enjoy!
This was delish!! However, next time I will cut back on the cayenne pepper-I love spicy foods, but this was a little too much spice. I also served with black beans and shredded cabbage, rather than iceberg-was a great crunch on the tacos. Will def. make again!
Winner winner chicken dinner!! It’s a perfect recipe! I’d give this 10 stars if I could, because the whole family loved it including the pickiest of eaters. I hardly strayed from the recipe except I omitted the cayenne. The roasted tomato salsa goes perfectly with these tacos. I’ve been a long time follower of Jenn and Once Upon A Chef, but for some reason finally tried this one. Thank you Jenn!!! ❤️