Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Baked Chicken Taquitos are baked crispy tortilla wraps with soft and creamy shredded chicken, spices, salsa, ranch dressing, cheese and corn filling. Drizzle some Sriracha mayonnaise on top to take these homemade taquitos to the next level!

We have a great collection of tasty sandwiches, low carb wraps, quesadillas and many more. You can find it here.

I am so in love with our family's Mexican-style dinner nights where we love to make all sorts of Mexican dishes like Taco Board, Vegetarian Enchiladas, Baked Chicken Tacos or Street Tacos.

Personally, I like to have a mix of meat and vegetarian/vegan options at all times. Have you tried my Vegan Meat Tacos yet? Or the most fulfilling Sweet Potato Tacos with Vegan Parmesan?

Table of Contents

• Why It's Yummy
• So, What Are Taquitos?
• Ingredients
• Taquitos Dinner
• Which kind of tortillas can i use for taquitos?
• Are Taquitos Healthy?
• Instructions
• 🥗Make It Healthier
• Chicken Tip
• Storing and Freezing Instructions
• Tips
• Serving Suggestions
• Variations
• Vegetarian Taquitos
• FAQs
• More Mexican-Inspired Recipes
• Easy Wraps
• Before You Head Out
• Recipe Card
• You'll Also Love
• Join TYBInsider
• Comments

📋 JULIA'S TIP The key to the best taquitos is to use fresh, high-quality ingredients and customize the recipe to your own taste preferences. Don't be afraid to experiment with new flavor combinations and fillings. 

So, What Are Taquitos?

Chicken taquitos are a convenient and delicious choice for a quick meal. Similar to flautas or tacos, they involve stuffing small tortillas with tasty meat or chicken fillings, then baking in oven or frying them.

You can also opt for an air fryer method to reduce calories with minimal oil while achieving excellent results.

Taquitos vs Flautas

Flautas are created by rolling a delicious filling within a larger tortilla, whereas taquitos consist of smaller tortillas. In terms of shape, flautas are elongated and slender, while taquitos are shorter and more rounded.

When it comes to the type of tortilla used, flautas offer the versatility of being made with either flour or corn tortillas, whereas taquitos are traditionally crafted using corn tortillas.

Fun fact: Crispy fried taquitos sold in Mexico are often called tacos dorados ("golden tacos") or flautas.

Taquitos Dinner

Mexican recipes are always the best, no matter the season or time of year. If you are looking to round out your meal, take a look at this compilation for inspiration on what to serve with taquitos for a satisfying dinner.

Which kind of tortillas can i use for taquitos?

For gluten-free options use gluten-free tortillas (but not sold everywhere). Also, another great choice is to use Corn tortillas. Any other tortillas of your choice will work too.

Corn tortillas (or any tortillas) are more flexible and easier to roll if heated first. There are two options that I recommend for this.

• First choice:

Wrap them in foil and bake in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes.

• Second choice:

Flash fry Tortillas: In a deeper skillet or saucepan, heat up some vegetable oil. Add enough oil so it will cover the tortilla entirely once you dip them in. 

When the oil is heated, take one tortilla at a time (using kitchen tongs) and dip in bubbly oil for 10 seconds. Don't ''fry'' them or cook, just dip and remove to a side plate lined with a kitchen towel/paper. The idea is to warm and soften tortillas to ease the rolling and prevent cracks/tearing. 

Are Taquitos Healthy?

Homemade version for sure! But will depend on the filling though.

If you are eating in a Mexican restaurant/ordering takeaway, then most probably it may be unhealthy (but delicious too!).

The thing with most places, you can't be sure about how the food was prepared, control the amount of packaged sauce, salt, and other bad-for-you ingredients used.

But with homemade taquitos you can have a way healthier version + eat MORE because making taquitos in the oven will have fewer calories too! (however, this will depend on the filling + sour cream and cheese amount obviously).

Taquitos calories tip - If you're on a diet, make sure to use either homemade corn tortillas or regular tortillas and go for low fat yogurt, sour cream or choose a milder cheese for your taquitos (if needed at all). 

Instructions

Prep. Preheat oven to 425 F.

Grease casserole (9 x 13) with oil.

Warm the tortillas in the microwave or oven for a few seconds to make them pliable and easier to roll. Wrap the tortillas with aluminum foil or keep in a warm oven when you make them chicken mixture.

In a medium bowl mix the filling ingredients: shredded chicken, spices, corn, cheese, salsa, and ranch dressing. Salt and pepper to taste.

Roll. Take one tortilla (warmed) and add 2 heaping tablespoon of the filling in the middle of the tortilla, roll it together, and set aside on a plate (seam side down).

Quick tip to secure the taquitos: use toothpicks or cooking twine to secure them so that they do not unravel during cooking.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until crispy exterior and golden brown color. Tortillas should be slightly crispy on the outside.

Chicken Tip

Best way to make shredded chicken fast:

Cook the chicken in a pot with water or bake it until it is fully cooked and tender. Check with a meat thermometer for doneness, it should register 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Overcooked chicken can become dry and tough, making it difficult to shred.

Let chicken cool and transfer to a large bowl. With an electric handheld mixer shred the chicken until small pieces. You can also use two forks but this will take longer time.

Storing and Freezing Instructions

To Store. Any leftover taquitos can be stored in an airtight container, preferrable glass and kept refrigerated for 2-3 days. 1-2 months in the freezer. Allow the tortillas to cool to room temperature first.

To Freeze. Frozen taquitos can be thawed slightly (optional and depending on your freezer settings) and then reheated in the oven for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Or you can also microwave them. 

To Make ahead. You can cook the chicken in advance 2-3 days and store it in the refrigerator until ready to make the recipe. The filling can be mixed in advance as well, 1-2 days.

Tips

• Ranch dressing - make your own ranch dressing or buy from the store. Don't have or don't want to use ranch dressing? Then mix sour cream or yogurt Italian herbs, garlic, and onion powder, and some salt and pepper to taste. 
• Cream cheese taquitos - swap the ranch dressing for cream cheese and add few dried herbs to the mix. Or simply use the same filling from Creamy Chicken Tacos.
• Corn tortillas (or any tortillas) are more flexible and easier to roll if heated first. Wrap them in foil and bake in a 350 degrees Fahrenheit oven for 10 minutes.
• Cheese - the more cheese the better! I always love my tortilla wraps, taquitos, tacos with lots of cheese and the best is to use two types of cheeses either varieties of Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese. You can also use grated mozzarella which melts fantastically!
• Add some color - try different combinations of tortillas like corn, wheat, naturally colored tortillas with spinach/sun-dried tomatoes/beetroot/carrots/poblano peppers/curry/turmeric.
• To keep your chicken and cheese taquitos tightly rolled while cooking, you can use toothpicks or cooking twine to secure them. Insert toothpicks through the center of the taquito, or tie cooking twine around the chicken taquito to hold it together. 
• Do not overfill the taquitos as this will cause the filling to come out and the taquitos to burst open during cooking. 
• Don't overcrowd the dish when making these. Add all your taquitos in a single layer so they can cook evenly.
• You can also make these taquitos in your air fryer. Preheat your air fryer to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190°C). Place the rolled taquitos in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Use cooking spray or brush the taquitos with little oil and air fry for 10-12 minutes or longer and until golden brown and crispy.

Variations

• Buffalo Chicken Taquitos - you can use my healthy buffalo chicken dip filling for these taquitos.
• Beef Taquitos - instead of chicken, use my taco meat for the filling instead. And instead of ranch dressing use a hot red sauce or quick enchilada sauce.
• Breakfast Taquitos - add breakfast sausage, Italian sausage and some scrambled eggs and veggies.
• Vegetarian Taquitos - see more details in the next paragraph.

Vegetarian Taquitos

Looking for vegetarian taquitos? I have a few options to choose from.

You can make a vegetarian version of these and swap chicken for black beans, pinto beans, and corn. I have a similar recipe on my blog with my Vegetarian Enchiladas. You can use the same filling for these too. 

• Kidney beans, black beans and lentils mix
• Add rice
• Sweet potatoes & kale or spinach (Also delicious combo, try my Vegan Sweet Potato, Chickpea and Kale Tacos)
• Vegan taco meat filling from my Vegan Meat Tacos recipe
• Cheese & onion/garlic 
• Mushrooms

FAQs

More Mexican-Inspired Recipes

• Easy Shrimp Fajitas (Prawn Fajita)
• Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Stuffed Peppers
• 5 Minute Pan-Seared Ahi Tuna Tacos With Mango Salsa
• White Chicken Enchiladas
• Fajita Pasta

Easy Wraps

Recipe Card

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