Ground Chicken Tacos
This ground chicken taco recipe is a great alternative to the ever-popular beef taco. It's just as delicious and easy to make. These Ground chicken tacos are made with fresh ingredients that are simple to prepare yet create an amazing Taco experience!
Ingredients
Taco Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 2 teaspoons chilli powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Chicken Tacos
- 1 tablespoon oil neutral oil like avocado
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 bell pepper small, diced
- 1 red onions diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1/3 cup cilantro minced, divided
- 1/2 cup Homemade salsa or store bought
- 1-2 tabelspoons water
Taco Assembly
- 8 Taco shells
- 8 soft flour tortillas
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 2 avocadoes diced
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes diced
- 3 scallions diced
- 1/3 cup cilantro minced
- 1 lime cut into wedges
- 1/2 cup homemade salsa
- 1/4 cup jalapeños slices
Instructions
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Start by mixing the Taco seasoning together in a bowl.
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Now start cooking the chicken filling for the ground chicken tacos. Start by adding the oil in a heavy duty skillet over medium high heat.
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Then add in the onions and bell peppers and cook for 5 minutes until softened.
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Now add in the chicken, taco seasoning, garlic and half the cilantro. Cook while mixing over medium high heat until the chicken has cooked through. This takes 8-10 minutes.
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At that point add in the salsa and water, and lower the heat to medium. Let the chicken absorb some liquid from the water and salsa.
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The chicken is ready after 5 minutes when you add the salsa, so turn off the heat and add in the remianing cilantro.
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For assembling the tacos shells: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a baking sheet, spread the soft tortillas in a singla layer and sprinkle a layer of cheese of each one.
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Place the tray in the oven for 6-8 minutes until the cheese has melted completely. Remove from the oven and place a hard shell tortilla over the melted cheese then press the sides of the soft tortilla around it.
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Now start assembling your tacos: Place a genrous amount of the ground chicken mixture in each taco shell.
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Top with your favorite taco toppings listed above. Finish with a lime wedge, more cilantro and enjoy
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
Expert Tips and FAQ's
- Use homemade or store bought Taco Seasoning, I love homemade and I use it in this Lamb Tacos.
- Cook the onions and peppers for a few minutes before adding in the ground chicken, this allows the flavors to become richer and deeper.
- Ground turkey is a great substitute for ground chicken if you'd like to make it even lighter.
- Once the ground chicken is cooked and ready, I love adding Homemade Salsa or store bought and cook that for 5 minutes with a tablespoon of water. This helps deglaze the pan and also add extra moisture to your ground chicken!
- The chicken mixture can be cooked a week in advance and stored in the fridge or frozen for 3 months.
- Use your favorite taco shell--we used a combo of soft and hard with a layer of cheese in the middle for a sturdy cheesy taco shell.
- The toppings and salsa you can use here are endless!
Can I use beef taco seasoning for chicken?
Yes, you absolutely can. You can use whatever taco seasoning you like or have on hand. It will change the flavor ever so slightly, but it doesn't affect the end result.
Can I use ground beef in this recipe?
Again, while this recipe uses ground chicken, you can actually use what ever ground meat you want too.
Is ground chicken or ground turkey better for this recipe?
Both ground chicken and turkey work really with this recipe. But if you want a slightly leaner meal then you should use ground turkey ( though the difference is only slight).
How long should you cook ground chicken?
To cook your ground chicken fully through, you should cook it for 5-7 minutes on medium high heat until it crumbles and the crumbles separate and harden.
Taco Variations
There are a number of ways you can vary up this recipe by making it into either a ground chicken taco bowl or a ground chicken taco salad.
Ground chicken taco bowl
To make ground chicken taco salad, follow the same instructions to cook the ground chicken, but instead of serving with taco shells, you serve it in a bowl with freshly cooked rice, fresh salad ingredients, sour cream and black beans if you want to add those. Similar to the Sushi Bowl and Falafel Bowl , which are HIT recipes to make!
This is a great option for those who want to avoid tortillas or taco shells.
Ground Chicken taco salad
To make ground chicken taco salad, you again need to follow the same method for cooking the ground chicken or turkey, but this time add it to fresh salad ingredients including fresh shredded lettuce, avocado, tomatoes, sliced red onion, and any other salad ingredients you like. Use exactly the same recipe as this Taco Salad and same dressing.
Chicken Crunchwrap Supreme
Lighter than the original one, this ground chicken mixture could be used to me the Taco bell favorite Crunchwrap Supreme with all the fixings including our viral Nacho Cheese Sauce Recipe! SO TASTY!!