There’s no party like a taco party. And I say that because every taco night feels like a party, especially with the best taco recipes. Warm tortillas, freakin’ delicious proteins, your favorite toppings — it doesn’t get much better than that.
That’s probably why I’ve made many, many taco recipes over the years. So, I’ve rounded up my favorite taco recipes so you can find your go-to Taco Tuesday dinner.
Why You’ll Love These Taco Recipes
First, I’ll start with what I love about tacos. It’s because you can go all-out a special occasion, make an easy recipe for family dinner or just throw together your favorite homemade tacos for any meal. Breakfast tacos or burritos, anyone? There’s really something for everyone!
And that something for everyone extends to how much you can vary tacos. You can go with corn tortillas and flour tortillas, or even crispy shells. You can cook up steak tacos, tacos al pastor, chicken tinga tacos, a smashburger take on classic ground beef tacos, fish tacos, shrimp tacos and so much more.
Then, don’t even get me started on the ways you can create your own taco seasoning mix or put out a variety of toppings — the possibilities are endless.
Tips for Making the Best Tacos
With all this variation, you want to make sure you’re set up for success. Here are my suggestions to make sure you deliver the best taco night.
- Tortillas: First, you’ve got to decide if you’re going with soft shells or hard taco shells. I’m a soft corn tortilla guy myself, given the texture, flavor and ability to prepare them according to your personal preference. Whether you’re using corn tortillas or flour tortillas, make sure you heat them up in a dry skillet first so they don’t break on you. Dumping the contents of your perfect taco all over your plate before you even take a bit is the worst!
- Proteins: When you’re picking your protein, double-check the cooking time. Ingredients like pork shoulder or chicken thighs will take longer than steak (though check your marinating times!), ground beef, ground chicken or fish taco recipes. So, make sure you’re allowing the right amount of time to cook your delicious taco filling.
- Toppings: Here’s where your imagination can run wild. Refried beans, sour cream, pico de gallo, cotija cheese, diced red onion, fresh cilantro, avocado — the list goes on. Don’t forget the lime wedges and your favorite FYR hot sauce!
- Seasonings: For homemade taco seasoning, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder and ground cumin are great to have on hand, plus chiles to kick up the heat a notch.
A Note on Chiles
There are tons of different types of chiles out there. To make sure you’ve got the right spice level so you hit family favorite status, you can always check the spice level of chiles on the Scoville scale. The Scoville scale, named for Wilbur Scoville, measures the heat level in hot peppers. Good old Wilbur’s scale ranges from 0 to 16 million Scoville Heat Units (SHU). Zero is no heat, 16 million is burn your mouth maximum heat. Pick your chiles accordingly!
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My Favorite Taco Recipes
Without further ado, let’s dive into these taco recipes. Buckle up, because we’re about to find your new favorite taco recipe!
Beef Taco Recipes
Cowboy Butter Steak Tacos
Grilled Steak Elote Tacos
Steak Tacos with Corn Salsa
Crispy Cheese Tortilla Beef Tacos
Quesabirria Tacos
Cheesy Gordita Crunch
Dirty Skirt Steak Tacos
Grilled Steak Vampiro Tacos
Carne Asada Breakfast Tacos
Smoked Carnitas Tacos
Cheeseburger Tacos
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Steak and Egg Tacos
Steak Bite Tacos
Marry Me Steak Tacos
Chili Oil Tacos
Pork Taco Recipes
Tacos Al Pastor
Hatch Chile Mezcal Pork Tacos
Fried Pork Belly Tacos
Chorizo Smash Tacos
Chorizo Tacos
Spanish Garlic Tacos
Seafood and Fish Taco Recipes
Crispy Steak and Shrimp Tacos
Grilled Shrimp Tacos
Surf and Turf Smashburger Tacos
Salmon Al Pastor Tacos
Lamb Taco Recipes
American Lamb Tacos Al Pastor
Barbacoa Lamb Tacos
What to Serve with the Best Taco Recipes
The possibilities for taco side dishes are almost as endless as the tacos themselves. Given that, chips and salsa, Mexican rice or cilantro-lime rice, a simple slaw with lots of green onions and lime juice are all great options. Finally, add in a classic margarita and your taco party is complete.
Leftovers and Reheating
Keep your filling in an airtight container in the fridge for three days. Some proteins, like pork shoulder or brisket, taste even better the day after you make them. When you’re reheating, you want to make sure the meat doesn’t dry out. The best way to do this is to reheat in a large skillet over medium heat with a little bit of liquid.
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FAQs
For the longer-cooking proteins like pork shoulder, chicken thighs or brisket, definitely! But I’d stick to stovetop for quicker-cooking ones like steak, ground beef, fish or shrimp.
For chiles, you can remove the ribs and seeds to take the heat down a notch (or keep ’em in if that’s what you’re into). That’s because the ribs and seeds are where most of the spice lives. You can also reduce or increase the amount of chiles or spicy pantry ingredients like chili powder.
I’m sure people could spend hours debating this one. Basically, all you need to know is that corn tortillas are firmer and have an earthier flavor. Then, flour tortillas are softer and sweeter. My opinion: you can’t really go wrong.
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