Crispy toasted tortilla shells are wrapped around all your favorite fixin’s in this easy oven tacos recipe. There’s so much room for customization here, great for feeding a crowd!
Why this recipe works
Now, you probably don’t think of oven tacos when you’re prepping taco ingredients, but hear me out. Crispy tortillas stuffed with cheesy ground beef that doesn’t require assembly every couple of minutes after you’ve finished the one on your plate. Yeah, that’s enough to sell me. Oven baked tacos are excellent for parties or when you have multiple mouths to feed. Assemble, bake, and serve. Easy peasy.
I’ll be honest, I wish I had known about this method of making tacos when my kids were younger. They loved tacos. In fact, they loved them so much that they would have had them for dinner every night. Having them all in one pan would have made taco night so much easier!
Ingredients you will need
Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.
Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions
BEEF – If you used lean ground beef, you shouldn’t need to drain it. However, if you used anything under 90%, you’ll likely have rendered fat in the pan, which you’ll want to discard. Ground turkey or chicken can be used instead of ground beef if preferred.
TORTILLAS – You can use soft corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. I’ve noticed that corn tortillas tend to get crispier in the oven if that’s your fancy, though they aren’t as sturdy as flour tortillas.
CHEESE – While we used cheddar cheese, any variety of shredded cheese works just fine. Use your favorite!
SEASONINGS – I’m partial to homemade taco seasoning, as you can control the intensity and flavors that go into it. However, prepackaged taco seasoning works just as well!
How to Make Oven Tacos
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- Brown ground beef in the skillet with the taco seasoning.
- Spray 13×9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Wrap the stack of tortillas in paper towels and place in microwave on high for 10 seconds to soften them up.
- Place tortillas into the baking dish, folding them in half, standing them up so they are open at the top.
- Add cooked meat to each tortilla and top with shredded cheese.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted.
- Optionally, if you want the tortillas browned a little, you can turn it up to broil for a minute or so.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.
- Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips
Yes, of course. Flour, corn, or hard shell tacos all work well here. Hard shell tacos are even easier to fill while sitting in the pan because of their sturdiness!
Absolutely. Refried beans, black beans, or pinto beans can be added to the filling.
It’s best to create a barrier between the ingredients with moisture to prevent your tacos from being soggy. You can simply add your shredded cheese (or refried beans if using) first, then top with your ground meat. Be sure to drain your ground beef well, which can also contribute to soggy tortillas.
You can prep, cool, and store all your ingredients separately in advance. I like to chop up all my toppings ahead of time and store them in the fridge so I can pull them out when the tacos are ready. Cook, cool, and store the taco meat in the fridge up to a day in advance. Then assemble everything as normal when you’re ready. Otherwise, these tacos are truly best when made fresh, as the tortillas tend to get soggy the longer they sit.
Serving Suggestions
I love serving oven tacos with Mexican rice on the side, but really, the tacos are filling enough all on their own!
For toppings, try shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes, salsa fresca, guacamole, jalapenos, salsa verde, diced onion, or sour cream.
More Taco Recipes
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Oven Tacos
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Pin It Rate ItIngredients
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 Tablespoon taco seasoning mix
- 8-10 flour tortillas 5-inch
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
Things You’ll Need
Before You Begin
- If you used lean ground beef, you shouldn’t need to drain it. However, if you used anything under 90%, you’ll likely have rendered fat in the pan, which you’ll want to discard. Ground turkey or chicken can be used instead of ground beef if preferred.
- You can use soft corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas. I’ve noticed that corn tortillas tend to get crispier in the oven if that’s your fancy, though they aren’t as sturdy as flour tortillas.
- I’m partial to homemade taco seasoning, as you can control the intensity and flavors that go into it. However, prepackaged taco seasoning works just as well!
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F.
- Heat olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.1 Tablespoon olive oil
- Brown ground beef in the skillet with the taco seasoning.1 pound lean ground beef, 1 Tablespoon taco seasoning mix
- Spray 13×9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- Wrap the stack of tortillas in paper towels and place in microwave on high for __ seconds to soften them up.8-10 flour tortillas
- Place tortillas into the baking dish, folding them in half, standing them up so they are open at the top.
- Add cooked meat to each tortilla and top with shredded cheese.1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Bake in preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted.
- Optionally, if you want the tortillas browned a little, you can turn it up to broil for a minute or so.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving.
- Add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Expert Tips & FAQs
- You can prep, cool, and store all your ingredients separately ahead of time if desired. Cook, cool, and store the taco meat in the fridge up to a day in advance. Then assemble everything as normal when you’re ready. Otherwise, these tacos are truly best when made fresh, as the tortillas tend to get soggy the longer they sit.
Nutrition
The recipes on this blog are tested with a conventional gas oven and gas stovetop. It’s important to note that some ovens, especially as they age, can cook and bake inconsistently. Using an inexpensive oven thermometer can assure you that your oven is truly heating to the proper temperature. If you use a toaster oven or countertop oven, please keep in mind that they may not distribute heat the same as a conventional full sized oven and you may need to adjust your cooking/baking times. In the case of recipes made with a pressure cooker, air fryer, slow cooker, or other appliance, a link to the appliances we use is listed within each respective recipe. For baking recipes where measurements are given by weight, please note that results may not be the same if cups are used instead, and we can’t guarantee success with that method.
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