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These Crispy Beef Tacos are full of bold chipotle flavor, melty cheese, and hidden veggies. They are oven-baked, not fried, for a healthier option that still offers that amazing crunchy texture! Paired with a simple avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce, this is the perfect dinner recipe to add to your Taco Tuesday rotation.

3 crispy beef tacos with hidden veggies on parchment lined tray with a side of avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce

I’ve been seeing crispy oven-baked tacos all over social media for what feels like years now. They’ve always looked SO good, and yet it took me way too long to actually try them out. But, the day has finally come…and I honestly don’t know how I lived without crispy tacos for the first 25 years of my life.

However, the creation of this crispy beef taco recipe didn’t come without it’s challenges. I figured it was going to be easy…I mean, tacos aren’t rocket science. But when the tortillas started breaking on me, I knew I had to go back to the drawing board. After one small tweak the second time around, I was able to deliver on the crispiest, most delicious chipotle beef tacos ever.

Although these require a little extra effort than your average soft taco, I think it’s totally worth it. Especially, if you’re hosting a crowd, or just want to make your Taco Tuesday a little extra special. With crispy edges, a bold and spicy filling, melty cheese, and cauliflower rice that you can’t even taste...these tacos really do be going above and beyond. I’m so excited for you to try them!

Why You’ll Love these Crispy Beef Tacos with Hidden Veggies

These tacos are full of bold chipotle flavor and taste like they’re from a restaurant!
They’re a great, easy dinner option to feed a crowd.
These crispy beef tacos are the perfect balance of protein, hidden veggies and carbs.
They are naturally gluten free, and can easily be made dairy free.
It’s a fun and unique way to switch up your Taco Tuesday…the crispy texture is so satisfying!
They are oven-baked, not fried in oil, which makes them a healthier option.

crispy beef tacos with hidden veggies on parchment lined baking sheet after baking

What You Need to Make these Crispy Baked Tacos

For the Crispy Beef Tacos:

Avocado Oil: Just a bit to sauté the onion and cauliflower rice in.
Ground Beef: The base of these tacos is ground beef and I used grass-fed 85% lean. Feel free to swap in whatever ground meat you prefer (turkey, chicken, etc).
Cauliflower Rice: Mixing frozen cauliflower rice into the chipotle ground beef mixture is the easiest way to sneak in veggies and make these tacos more nourishing!
Yellow Onion: 1/2 large yellow onion, finely diced.
Garlic: Fresh garlic (3 cloves or just measure with your heart).
Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce: These come in a small can and are located in the international aisle of the grocery store. You’ll need 2 peppers (finely diced) and 1 tbsp of the sauce for this recipe.
Tomato Paste: 2 tbsp of tomato paste. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge to use in another recipe like my meatball shakshuka, creamy cajun chicken orzo or healthy bolognese.
Chili Powder, Cumin, Smoke Paprika, Kosher Salt & Black Pepper: These Mexican-inspired seasonings add so much flavor to the tacos!
Water: A small amount of water helps bring the chipotle ground beef sauce together, but we don’t want to add too much or else the tacos will get soggy.
Corn Tortillas: Corn tortillas are my personal favorite for their flavor, texture, and because they’re naturally gluten free. I used a local Massachusetts brand called Mi Tierra…highly recommend if you can find them!
Mexican-Blend Cheese: Layering some shredded cheese with the ground beef mixture helps these tacos stay closed while they’re baking in the oven. Feel free to sub a dairy-free cheese if needed.

ingredients for crispy beef tacos with hidden veggies

For the Avocado Cilantro Lime Dipping Sauce:

Avocado: This creates a luscious, creamy sauce full of healthy fats.
Plain Greek Yogurt: I always recommend using plain, full-fat greek yogurt for the best rich flavor.
Cilantro: 1/2 packed cup of fresh cilantro – it’s okay if you get some of the stems in there.
Garlic: 1 clove, peeled (no need to mince it…since it’s going in the food processor anyways!)
Lime: The perfect pairing with the cilantro and avocado. I used about 1/2 lime, but feel free to adjust to your preferred acidity levels.
Kosher Salt: Season to taste.
Water: Water helps thin this sauce out.

ingredients for avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce

How To Make these Crispy Tacos

Sauté the Chipotle Ground Beef Mixture:

First, preheat your oven to 425F and line both baking sheets with parchment paper. Then, bring a large pan to medium heat. Once hot, add avocado oil. Then, add cauliflower rice and onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, for about 3-4 minutes. Next, add in ground beef and break apart with your spatula. Continue to let it cook until browned (about 4 more minutes).

Then, add in garlic, tomato paste, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, seasonings and water. Stir to incorporate, and allow it to cook for another 1-2 minutes. Remove pan from the heat, and set aside.

Warm the Corn Tortillas:

Next, add corn tortillas to your baking sheets (6 on each). Lightly spray each side of the tortilla with cooking spray or brush with oil. Then, transfer to the pre-heated oven for 3 minutes. This will help the tortillas become pliable so you can fold them without any breakage – don’t skip this step!

Assemble Tacos with Cheese & Chipotle Ground Beef:

Once the tortillas are warm and pliable, add a thin layer of cheese to one half of each tortilla. Then, layer on the ground beef mixture – you may have a little bit extra, depending how heavily you fill them. Finally, add another thin layer of cheese on top. Fold the tortillas in half and use your hands to firmly press down on the tortilla so that it stays closed.

crispy beef tacos with hidden veggiescrispy beef tacos with hidden veggies on parchment lined baking sheet before baking

Oven Bake the Tacos until Crispy:

Transfer baking sheets back to the oven for 12 minutes, then gently flip the tacos and cook for another 12 minutes, or until crispy.

Prepare the Avocado Cilantro Lime Dipping Sauce:

While the tacos are baking, add all of the avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce ingredients to a small food processor and blend until smooth. Feel free to adjust the amount of water to get it to your desired consistency. Serve the crispy beef tacos with some avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce on the side. Enjoy!

I Don’t Like Corn Tortillas, Can I Use a Different Kind?

I personally have only tested these crispy beef tacos with corn tortillas, however it should work with regular flour tortillas and maybe even almond flour tortillas. Just make sure that you’re purchasing small taco-sized tortillas (NOT burrito-sized). And, don’t skip the warming step as this will help them be more pliable and less prone to breakage. Almond flour tortillas are typically more fragile so try them at your own risk!

How Do I Prevent My Tortillas from Breaking?

The first time I tested this recipe, the corn tortillas were breaking left and right…ugh! I was so bummed. But, I got some great feedback from my community on IG and their tips helped me out the second time around.

The key to preventing tortilla breakage is to first spray them with a bit of oil and then warm them up in the oven for about 3 minutes, before assembling. At this point, they should be warm and pliable! Be sure to work quickly so that the tortillas don’t cool down.

crispy beef tacos with hidden veggies on parchment lined tray with one of the tacos dipped in avocado cilantro lime sauce

Are There any Substitutes for Chipotles in Adobo?

These crispy baked tacos are full of bold, chipotle flavor which comes primarily from the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. This product is easy to find at almost every grocery store, located in the international section. However, if you don’t have any on hand, you can try omitting it and instead swapping in chipotle powder for the chili powder. This should provide a similar level of spice and flavor!

Can I Make these with Ground Chicken or Turkey?

Yes, of course! If you’re not a red-meat eater, you can certainly make these crispy beef tacos with ground chicken or turkey instead. I’d recommend using 93% lean instead of 99% lean so that they aren’t too dry.

What Should I Serve with these Crispy Beef Tacos?

Since these crispy beef tacos already have protein, sneaky veggies, and carbs in them, they are pretty much a full meal on their own! However, if you’d like to up your veggie intake even more, try serving these alongside a simple slaw…like the one from this blog post! These tacos would also be delicious dunked in some salsa 🙂

How Should I Store Leftover Crispy Beef Tacos?

These crispy tacos are best enjoyed fresh, but can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. When ready to re-heat, I would recommend using the air fryer or oven to make sure they stay crispy.

Find the full recipe below. As always, please let me know if you tried it by commenting below or tagging me on Instagram, @munchinwithmaddie_.

Looking for More Mexican-Inspired Recipes?

4.78 from 9 votes

Crispy Beef Tacos with Hidden Veggies

These Crispy Beef Tacos are full of bold chipotle flavor, melty cheese, and hidden veggies. They are oven-baked, not fried, for a healthier option that still offers that amazing crunchy texture! Paired with a simple avocado cilantro lime dipping sauce, this is the perfect dinner recipe to add to your Taco Tuesday rotation.

Servings tacos

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 35

Total Time 40

Equipment

cutting board
knife
large pan
spatula
2 baking sheets
parchment paper
Food Processor