Crispy Chicken Tacos are anything but average! Seasoned rotisserie chicken is stuffed into tortillas before being cooked in the air fryer, giving you a crispy and zesty snack everyone will love.
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Crispy air fryer chicken tacos
There is so much to love about a classic taco. Whether you’re making Salmon Fish Tacos or tacos with homemade chicken carnitas, Taco Tuesday or Cinco de Mayo just wouldn’t be the same without a platter of meaty, smoky tacos.
Crispy Chicken Tacos are the perfect taco for the creative home chef. Unlike traditional tacos, these are stuffed with a creamy taco-seasoned chicken filling before being folded and cooked in the air fryer until crisp. Pull them apart, load on more toppings, and dunk the crunchy chicken tacos into all kinds of sauces and dips! It’s a truly unforgettable snack.
This may even be the easiest taco recipe ever! The chicken filling is easy to put together in a skillet using storebought rotisserie chicken, a simple taco seasoning blend, sour cream, salsa, and cheese. Once you give these easy air fryer tacos a try, you’ll never go back to the ordinary thing.
Ingredient notes
- Rotisserie chicken – Shredded rotisserie chicken keeps this recipe simple and easy! If you want to go all out, replace the storebought chicken with Instant Pot chicken carnitas, pulled pork, or ground beef.
- Taco seasoning – Make your own taco seasoning blend with a few pantry-staple spices or buy a packet of a pre-mixed blend instead. The spices may be simple but provide the chicken with layers of delectable smoky flavors.
- Salsa and sour cream – These give the shredded chicken filling a creamy texture with tons of flavor.
- Mexican cheese and cilantro – The finishing touch in the filling! Either use a pre-packaged blend of shredded Mexican cheeses or shred Monterey Jack, Queso, Cheddar, or Asadero yourself (fresh is always best).
- Corn tortillas – Flour tortillas work just as well.
How to make crispy chicken tacos in the air fryer
- Heat and season the chicken: Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and taco seasoning, and toss the two together. Next, add the salsa and sour cream after a few minutes and toss to combine.
- Add the cheese and cilantro: Take the chicken mixture off the heat and stir in the cheese and cilantro. Transfer it to a bowl.
- Assemble the tacos: Stuff a few tablespoons of chicken filling into the warm tortillas, being careful not to overstuff them. Fold the tortillas over and transfer the tacos to an air fryer basket.
- Air fry the chicken tacos: Cook the tacos in the air fryer, flipping them halfway through the cook time. You’ll know they’re done when the tortillas are crispy and golden brown.
- Serve and enjoy: Let the tacos cool for a few minutes, then serve with plenty of toppings and dipping sauces. Enjoy!
Can you make these without an air fryer?
If you don’t own an air fryer, the tacos can be assembled as normal and pan fried in an oiled skillet over medium heat until crispy.
Taco topping ideas
Want your platter of fried tacos to pop? Then don’t forget the toppings! You can layer any of these zesty toppings over top or on the side of the tacos:
- Corn
- Cotija cheese
- Diced or pickled jalapenos
- Salsa verde
- Black beans
- Pickled radishes
- Hot sauce
- Lime juice
- Pinto beans
- Guacamole
- Pickled red onions
- Red salsa
- Creamy avocado slaw
- Cilantro lime crema
Serving suggestions
The best thing about crispy handheld tacos is that you can dip them so easily! Serve them with plenty of dipping sauces on the side, like cilantro lime crema, salsa, guacamole, chipotle sauce, or sour cream.
Storing
Store: Keep the fried tacos in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Reheat: Air fryer tacos are best reheated in the air fryer! Heat at 300ºF for about 5 minutes or until the tacos are warm.
Looking for more zesty taco recipes?
- Healthy Taco Bowls
- Keto Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Chili Lime Shrimp Tacos
- Smoked Salmon Street Tacos
- Beer Battered Fish Tacos
If you give these Crispy Chicken Tacos a try, let me know what you think! Leave a comment and don’t forget to take a picture, tag it with #lenaskitchenblog on Instagram. I love seeing what you come up with!
Crispy Chicken Tacos (Air Fryer)
Ingredients
- 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 2 ½ cups rotisserie chicken, shredded
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 cup salsa
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 2 cups Mexican cheese
- ¼ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
- 24 corn tortillas, 4" street taco shells
Instructions
- Heat a medium pan in medium heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, add shredded chicken and taco seasoning. Mix well to combine for 2 minutes.
- Add salsa and sour cream. Cook for an additional 2 minutes.
- Remove from heat, add cheese and cilantro. Mix well to combine. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
- In a clean pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil and on low heat, heat up a few tortillasfor 30 seconds, flip and heat for another 30 seconds. Repeat until all are heated up.
- In batches, while the tortillas are still warm, stuff (don’t over stuff) with chicken mixture and fold over.
- Add the tortillas in the air fryer and cook on 400F for 6-8 minutes, flipping halfway or until crispy. Repeat until all tacos are cooked. Keep the crispy tacos on a rack until ready to serve.
- Enjoy with a side of guacamole, jalapenos, pickled onions, extra salsa, hot sauce and or cilantro-lime crema.
gan ngỗng pháp
Thank you for sharing a good article about good food and overall your blog is great full of good content. thanks a lot.
Kaila
WOW! This was delicious. My partner and I completely devoured this meal and will definitely make again. 🙂 So easy, affordable, and filled with flavor.
Marina
These were so delicious! Made them with chicken per recipe and also had leftover ground beef once and did them with beef, they also turned out amazing! My go-to quick meal!