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Oven Baked Tacos are a quick and easy dinner. Tacos in a crisp shell that don’t fall apart when you bite into it.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
This week’s quick and easy dinner is a quick one! One of my go to meals when the kids were young was tacos. I also remember it being one of my mom’s go to meals too. It doesn’t get much easier than browning up some meat, adding in a packet of seasoning and wrapping it in a tortilla!
I am a crispy taco shell girl. You know, the kind you bake in the oven first. The only problem though is the entire shell cracks and falls apart after your first bite. I usually ended up making a little taco salad out of it and eating it with a fork.
Today’s recipe for oven baked tacos gives you the same quick and easy dinner without the mess. I’ve got an amazing technique for baking the taco shells so that they don’t fall apart when you eat your taco! The meat, shell and cheese are all baked together.
Ingredients Needed
- Ground beef. I usually use an 80/20 blend. You can also use ground turkey or ground chicken.
- Dried onion
- Taco seasoning mix
- Tomato sauce
- Green chilies, canned
- Cheddar cheese
- Monterey jack cheese
- Crispy taco shells
- Favorite taco condiments.
Tips from Leigh Anne
- Place two pieces of rolled up foil in the bottom of the pan to allow for drainage and keep the tacos from sitting in any grease or liquid that may run off from the tacos. If your meat isn’t well drained, you may get some liquid draining out of the shells and if the taco shells are sitting flat on the pan they can get soggy.
How to Make Oven Baked Tacos
- Brown meat with minced onion until meat is cooked through. Drain off any liquid/fat.
- Add in taco seasoning. chilies and tomato sauce and simmer until liquid is absorbed.
- Place taco shells into baking dish with rolled up foil on the bottom to keep shells from touching the bottom of the pan.
- Fill shells with meat mixture and top with shredded cheese.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until cheese melts and the shells are heated through.
- Remove from oven and top with desired condiments.
- Add favorite taco toppings. At our house we love lettuce and tomatoes.
Favorite Taco Toppings:
- Shredded Cheese
- Shredded Lettuce
- Tomato
- Pico de Gallo
- Salsa
- Sour Cream
- Guacamole
- Mango Salsa
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges
Dress them up however you like and then enjoy! A quick and easy dinner!!
What to Serve With Oven Baked Tacos
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make these ahead of time?
These are really best served immediately after baking for a crunchy taco. You can make the meat mixture ahead of time and then just rewarm it and assemble right before you are ready to serve them.
What is the best way to store and reheat leftover oven baked tacos?
Wrap the individual tacos in foil and store in the refrigerator. Rewarm in a 350 degree F oven for about 5-10 minutes.
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Oven Baked Tacos
Ingredients
- 1.5 ground beef
- 2 tsp dried onion
- 1 pkg. . taco seasoning mix
- 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
- 1 4.5 oz. can mild green chilies
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 1 cup monterey jack cheese
- 12 crispy taco shells
- lettuce tomato and whatever condiments you like
Instructions
- Brown meat with minced onion until meat is cooked through. Drain off any liquid/fat.
- Add in taco seasoning. chilies and tomato sauce and simmer until liquid is absorbed.
- Place taco shells into baking dish with rolled up foil on the bottom to keep shells from touching the bottom of the pan.
- Fill shells with meat mixture and top with cheese.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until cheese melts and the shells are heated through.
- Remove from oven and top with desired condiments.
Tips & Notes:
- Place two pieces of rolled up foil in the bottom of the pan to allow for drainage and keep the tacos from sitting in any grease or liquid that may run off from the tacos. If your meat isn’t well drained, you may get some liquid draining out of the shells and if the taco shells are sitting flat on the pan they can get soggy.
Nutrition Facts:
k says
had this for dinner tonight. easy and good! even my husband who doesn’t like crunchy shells liked them. and my three little picky boys ate them as well. hooray! thanks for the baking tip!
Natalie says
I made these last night, too! My family and I loved them- especially the fact that the taco shells didn’t fall apart. Thanks!
Leigh Anne says
So glad everyone liked them. I love not having my taco shell crumble at first bite!
Chandra@The Plaid and Paisley Kitchen says
I wanted to let you know that I made these last night and I used the tin foil. Brilliant! These were so good and such a big hit with everyone. This is the only way I am going to make Tacos again! Thanks for sharing such a great recipe!
Leigh Anne says
Thanks – it has revolutionized my taco making too – no more crumbling shells!!
Darcy Nelligan says
I like the idea of putting the rolled up foil. I really like beans so I prefer adding some to my tacos. It tastes awesome.
Rachelle of Mommy? I'm Hungry! says
I make these, but the recipe I use has refried beans in it. We love them and the mixture is great for nachos too. 🙂
Leigh Anne says
I’ve seen the recipe with refried beans but I’m not a fan so I added in the green chilies instead. I bet it would be great on nachos!