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Chicken Tacos

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By Jenn Segal
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These chicken tacos are a healthier spin on traditional beef tacos — and they’re just as good, if not better.

Plate of chicken tacos.

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

Taco ingredients including hard taco shells, tomato sauce, and garlic.

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.

Vegetables in a food processor.

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.

Food processor of finely chopped vegetables.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the vegetables.

Chopped vegetables in a skillet.

Cook over medium heat for 10-15 minutes, until soft.

Skillet of cooked, chopped vegetables.

Add ground chicken and spices use a wooden spoon to break chicken into small pieces.

Ground chicken and spices in a skillet with vegetables.

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.

Tomato sauce in a skillet with ground chicken.

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.

Cilantro in a skillet with ground chicken.

Meanwhile, heat the shells in the oven. To serve, spoon the chicken inside the shells and top with shredded lettuce and cheese.

Chicken tacos on a plate with salad.

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Chicken Tacos

By Jenn Segal

These chicken tacos are a healthier spin on traditional beef tacos — and they’re just as good, if not better.

Servings: 12 tacos
Total Time: 30 Minutes

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

  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
  2. 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.
  3. 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.
  4. 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.
  5. 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

Powered by Edamam

  • Serving size: 2 tacos
  • Calories: 460
  • Fat: 27g
  • Saturated fat: 6g
  • Carbohydrates: 26g
  • Sugar: 5g
  • Fiber: 4g
  • Protein: 30g
  • Sodium: 1086mg
  • Cholesterol: 130mg
Nutritional Data Disclaimer

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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Comments

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  • I’ll be honest. I have never cooked before with ground chicken and was a little skeptical how these would taste compared to beef tacos. I have to say, I loved them!! This will definitely be going into the rotation. Much better flavor than the seasoning packet that I am used to.

  • Made this last night and turned out fantastic. Fantastic flavor. Everyone agreed it was a keeper. Thanks….Trying the Easy Thai Curry tonight.

  • This recipe is AMAZING!!!! I like it even better than the traditional beef tacos. I’ve made it with both hard and soft shells …. Delicious! I top mine with some added raw chopped onion, diced pickled jalapeños and low fat sour cream. I recommend this recipe 100%!!!!

  • This looks so delicious! I am going to try this recipe tonight! I think I will try it with soft tortilla instead of hard shell to see how that works.

    • — Susan Broughton
    • Reply

  • I made these tonight, and they were a huge hit. I have been working through your recipes, and I have been enjoying all that I have tried.

    You are HANDS DOWN the best at making the recipes easy to follow… I am very grateful I came across this site and will spread the word to my friends. You need to write a cookbook!

    • Thanks so much for the nice words Renee– glad to hear you’re enjoying the recipes!

  • Ahhhh, SO good! We made this tonight with leftover roast chicken instead of ground chicken, and homemade marinara instead of tomato sauce, and it was very yummy! Thanks for yet another keeper.

  • Just had to leave a review finally. I make this at least once a week (Taco Tuesdays!) My husband, 6-year old son, and I love this recipe! I won’t ever make tacos any other way. I love how easy it is too and of course so much better than the packet seasoning. I love the ancho chile powder because it adds a rich smoky flavor and doesn’t have too much heat for my son. My husband adds sriracha mayo and I add plain ol’ sriracha sauce and it becomes spicy for us. Thanks for this recipe! 5 STARS!

  • have you ever tried these with soft taco shells?

    • Hi Cathy, I haven’t but it would probably work; you might just need to cook the liquid down a bit more so they don’t get soggy.

    • This is to reply to Cathy regarding trying these with soft taco shells. We have had them with hard taco shells, and soft flour tortillas as well as soft corn tortilla and it’s come out great with each of them.
      With the hard taco shells I just heat them in the microwave for about 20-25 seconds. Soft flour I wrap them in a wet paper towel and microwave them up to a minute depending how many there are. And for the corn tortillas I just heat them in a pan over a fire. No oil needed, just turn them over until they crisp up a bit. Hope this helps.

  • Is there an alternate to the Ancho chile powder? Having trouble finding it 🙁

    • Hi Farah, Try chipotle chili powder if you like heat — otherwise just use regular chili powder. Or you can always order it online 🙂

  • OMG this was so good! My 6 & 3 year old loved it, and apparently they were the best tacos EVER?! Not especially spicy but more delicate and aromatic in flavour. I used turkey mince instead of chicken as I was on a limited calorie day and switched out actual taco shells for lettuce bowls for just me. Big hit, this will be a regular occurrence in our house ?

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