34 Taco Recipes To Turn Every Occasion Into A Party
Make it Taco Tuesday, every day.
Whether it’s Taco Tuesday, Cinco de Mayo, or just another weeknight, tacos show up on our kitchen table a LOT. What can we say? It's just FACTS that wrapping almost anything in a corn or flour tortilla can turn it into a killer meal. Bonus: They're usually super-simple, quick to make, and easy to customize, i.e., perfect for family-friendly dinners, parties, and more. Check out our favorite taco recipes for ideas, then start thinking about all the ways you can top them (our must-haves? Pickled red onions and guac).
We’ve got all the most popular standards here, including basic recipes for fish tacos, chicken tacos, and pork tacos. You could just use whatever leftovers you got and put them in a warmed tortilla (it’s one of our favorite crazy simple lunches), but if you want something to really wow your taste buds, you’ve got to add more flavor to your meat. Taco seasoning is an obvious pick (get store-bought or make your own), but we’re talking even wilder than that. Our beef birria quesatacos rely on three different types of chiles and spices (like sweet cinnamon—trust us, it works!) to get their flavor. Our tequila-lime chicken tacos go a little brighter by relying on a margarita for their flavor inspiration. Or try our Cajun shrimp tacos with mango-avocado salsa: The Louisiana Cajun spices will taste just familiar enough while also adding something new and exciting (and the mango salsa helps cut through all the heat).
Don’t worry, it’s not just meat on this list. We’ve also included a few of our favorite vegan and vegetarian options here too, like our air fryer cauliflower tacos, our chipotle lentil tacos, or our Buffalo cauliflower tacos. They’ve got SO much flavor, you'll be making them long beyond Meatless Monday. While we’re pretty happy to eat tacos for any meal, we’ve also included our specifically breakfast tacos (with eggs, ofc) and our death by chocolate taco, in case you were craving a crunchy dessert.
Speaking of desserts, check out all favorite Mexican-inspired desserts. And you can’t forget the drinks! Get inspired by our list of our favorite Mexican beers and tequila drinks for Cinco de Mayo too.
Carne Asada Tacos
This flavorful handheld food has it all—tender marinated skirt steak, an aromatic corn tortilla, and all of the classic street taco toppings. Served for lunch or dinner, these are delicious with a hearty side of refried beans and rice, or you can keep it light with corn salad.
Get the Carne Asada Tacos recipe.
Fried Fish Tacos
Any firm white fish like tilapia, catfish, cod, or flounder all work beautifully here, so save your $$$ and don't spring for an expensive one. The combination of flour, cornstarch, and cornmeal in the batter results in a crisp but sturdy crust no matter which fish you choose.
Get the Fried Fish Tacos recipe.
Grilled Chicken Street Tacos
Nothing beats a street taco—super-juicy, tender grilled meat in a quick grab-and-go format, typically made possible by doubling up two smaller corn tortillas. This makes them easier to eat on the side of the street, in the car, anywhere! They're no frills yet tend to be some of the most craveable tacos around.
Get the Grilled Chicken Street Tacos recipe.
Birria Quesatacos
Although birria can be served in countless ways, we love making quesatacos stained red with the fat of the birria and seared until almost crispy. This helps melt the queso oaxaca and create what is essentially a mini quesadilla. What's not to love?
Get the Birria Quesatacos recipe.
Mahi Mahi Tacos
Being a meaty, tender fish, mahi mahi stands up well to the grill and is even better when marinated. You could use a traditional citrus-oil mixture, or do like we did and go with a mayo-based marinade that adds some richness and a ton of flavor. Throw the fish on a tortilla with some spicy pineapple-jalapeño salsa, and you'll have an amazing summer taco night.
Get the Mahi Mahi Tacos recipe.
Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Extra crispy on the outside and cheesy on the inside, these tacos are so much fun to make and eat. Putting cheese directly in your skillet might sound wrong, but it works! Once off heat, the cheese starts to harden and crisps up, giving the texture of a crunchy taco shell, but extra delicious.
Get the Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos recipe.
Air Fryer Cauliflower Tacos
To get extra crispy "fried" cauliflower, you gotta use your air fryer. This recipe is basically the vegan version of our favorite fish tacos. The finishing touch? A quick and easy pickled slaw for a bite of freshness and a spicy mayo for a touch of heat.
Get the Air Fryer Cauliflower Tacos recipe.
Easy Chicken Tacos
We say the more toppings the merrier. We like our chicken tacos topped with red onion (pickled onions would be great too), avocado, cilantro, and cheese. Pico de gallo, salsa, sour cream, or some crushed corn chips would also be delicious, so have fun with it!
Get the Easy Chicken Tacos recipe.
Fish Tacos
The fish—we use cod, but any flaky variety, like tilapia, works—marinates in a mixture of lime juice, chili powder, and cumin that will become your standard. But the real gem of this recipe is the red cabbage slaw—don't skip it. It takes just a few minutes to toss together, and its brightness is the perfect condiment to the spiced cod.
Get the Perfect Fish Tacos recipe.
Spicy Potato Tacos
If you’ve ever bitten into a breakfast burrito and wished that it was just a tortilla stuffed with hash browns, these tacos are for you. We topped them with pickled onions, chipotle mayo, cotija cheese, and cilantro, but feel free to customize however you like.
Get the Spicy Potato Tacos recipe.
Tacos Al Pastor
Traditional tacos al pastor are made on a vertical rotisserie just like chicken shawarma. The method was used by Lebanese immigrants to Mexico and the tacos adapted to fit the culinary scene of Mexico with their spices and quickly became a popular street food. Serve these up with some queso and call it a fiesta.
Get the Tacos Al Pastor recipe.
Elote (Mexican Street Corn) Tacos
Breakfast Tacos
A good breakfast taco is a thing of beauty. Not only will these keep you full until lunch, they've also been known to cure a mean hangover. (Hair of the dog, à la a Michelada, anyone?) Pickled red onions aren't necessary, but they do add a nice crunch.
Get the Breakfast Tacos recipe.
Blackened Salmon Tacos
If you don't have Cajun spice, you can make your own! Just stir together some salt, pepper, cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and dried oregano before rubbing it on the salmon here.
Get the Blackened Salmon Tacos recipe.
Cheesy Ground Beef Tacos
Enjoy the perfect combination of cheesy and beefy goodness with these unreal tacos. We promise you'll be so obsessed with this zesty, flavorful filling, you'll want to eat it with a spoon. Use whatever ground beef you like best. We usually go with 80% lean/20% fat, but you do you.
Get the Cheesy Ground Beef Tacos recipe.
Slow-Cooker Beef Tacos
Throw a beef chuck roast—which has a strong beefy flavor and needs time to tenderize—an onion, and some spices in the slow-cooker before you head out for work, and come home to a Tex-Mex masterpiece.
Get the Slow-Cooker Beef Tacos recipe.
Vegan Chipotle Lentil Tacos
These vegan tacos are loaded with bright flavors and a variety of textures—just like any good taco should be! Serve them up with some frozen margaritas and homemade guacamole for the full Taco Tuesday experience.
Get the Vegan Chipotle Lentil Tacos recipe.
Tequila-Lime Chicken Tacos
Tequila-lime might sound like a margarita flavor profile, but we love using it in chicken marinades. While the chicken's marinating, prep the fixings: red cabbage, cotija, avocado... or really anything you want.
Get the Tequila-Lime Chicken Tacos recipe.
Shredded Chicken Tacos
This recipe is inspired by chicken tinga, a Mexican guisado (or stew) that is tender chicken, shredded and added to a tomato sauce spiked with chiles, onion, garlic and spices. This preparation is a little more weeknight-friendly by relying on the ever-versatile and delicious canned chipotle chiles in adobo.
Get the Shredded Chicken Tacos recipe.
Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Sriracha Slaw
There are no extraneous ingredients here—once you grab shrimp, you've probably got almost everything to make these already! We left the tails on the shrimp for grilling, but feel free to take them off.
Camille Lowder is the digital food producer at Delish, otherwise known as our resident queen of recipe galleries. Previously, she attended the Natural Gourmet Institute for culinary school and worked at/managed a number of New York restaurants. She loves anything vegan, foods masquerading as other foods (hello, cauliflower), and a well-used Oxford comma.
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