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Crispy Chipotle BBQ Chicken Tacos with Creamy Charred Corn Salsa and a little bit of homemade avocado “crema” too. Shredded chicken in a spicy chipotle beer BBQ sauce stuffed into crispy tortillas with melted sharp cheddar cheese. These easy to make tacos are the best saucy summer tacos. Serve each taco with a creamy avocado crema and charred corn salsa. The perfect summertime twist on a classic taco that everyone will love!
So here’s the thing, vacation and time off is truly a wonderful thing, but the day after returning? It’s not usually my favorite. I know some people will say they feel all refreshed and ready to jump back into things. But when I got home from Alaska Saturday night, I was tired.
Granted it was really Sunday morning when I got home because we didn’t actually get in until about 1 am, which meant bedtime was more like 3 am. Point? Sunday was brutal and I spent the day catching up on things I’d missed and digging through my inbox.
But the one silver lining of returning home? Back to homemade meals! Look, it’s nice to not have to cook on vacation. But the truth is I really love cooking, and the first recipe I made was these tacos.
And they did not disappoint.
Honestly, they just sounded good. Summery, spicy, BBQ chicken and charred corn are two summer favorites. Usually I make them separately, and usually on the grill. But I was craving a crispy cheesy taco like the ones Dad used to make when we were growing up.
I combined two favorites into one and the outcome was delicious!
These tacos start off with the chicken. Instead of using overly sugary store-bought BBQ sauce, I decided to just do my own, but don’t worry, it’s easy!
Toss the chicken together with some smoky paprika, chipotle chili powder, garlic, cayenne, and salt. Cook everything together in a pot, then just add ketchup, honey, and a splash of you very favorite beer.
And that’s the chicken. Simply simmer it until you can easily shred it, then toss the shredded chicken with the sauce. It takes a few minutes for the chicken and sauce to cook up, but the homemade sauce is 100% worth it.
Spicy, sweet, smoky, and extra saucy!
While the chicken is cooking, make the creamy crema and charred corn salsa. You want to start with the crema since you’ll need it to complete the salsa. It’s simply avocado pureed with lime juice and sea salt. Basic, but also perfect.
For the salsa, I wanted to use charred corn, but I wanted it to be creamier, kind of like a Mexican corn salad. Instead of using mayo, I used the crema to make the salsa creamy.
You’ll have juicy sweet corn with creamy crema and it’s such a great combo! I tossed in fresh jalapeño, lots of cilantro, and some chives too!
Instead of using store-bought taco shells, I like to take corn tortillas and stuff them with the chicken and cheese. I throw them into the oven to bake until the tortillas are crispy.
Finish the tacos with the crema and spicy corn salsa. Everything is so delicious…from the saucy chicken, to the melted crispy cheese, to the crema and salsa. Definitely not your average taco!
These tacos remind me of summers as a kid in Cleveland. A mix of dad’s tacos and BBQ chicken…and I kind of love that.
Looking for other summer tacos? Here are a few of my go-to’s.
Taco Stuffed Avocados with Chipotle Sauce and Cilantro Lime Ranch
Sheet Pan Jalapeño Pineapple Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Garlic Sauce
Crispy Cauliflower Tinga Tacos with Honey Lime Avocado Crema
Crockpot Carne Asada Tacos with Cilantro Lime Garlic Sauce
Lastly, if you make these Crispy Chipotle BBQ Chicken Tacos, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
I have a love-hate relationship with corn tortillas – they just fall apart so easily. This recipe was so delicious…my mouth was watering waiting to eat it lol. But it was super messy and hard to eat because of the corn tortillas. But I didn’t mind all too much 😉
Hey Hannah,
I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a go! xTieghan
Made this lastnight for a few friends. It is absolutely delish!
I ended up adding some red onion and juice from half a lime into the salsa.
Will be making these again!
Hey Elizabeth,
Happy Friday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xTieghan
We LOVED this recipe! It’s going to be on rotation at our place! Doubled the recipe and we still had no leftovers… they were that amazing. Don’t skip out on the corn salsa and avo crema ? Thank you so much for sharing this delicious meal with us!!
Hey Maria,
I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a go! xTieghan
Loved these. So tasty, even my very picky 28 year old son went back for more. Just one question, my tacos did not get esp crispy, what did I do wrong? I did bake them at 425, used white corn tortillas and did add olive oil to them, maybe too much evoo or cheese? Even so, they were super yummy. Had chicken left over that we plan to use for nachos when the Browns take on the Chiefs in a couple weeks. Go Browns!!!
Totally agree about the tortillas. Mine kept breaking 🙁
Other than that totally delicious
Hey Lynda,
Wonderful! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thank you so much for giving the recipe a try!! Sorry these did not crisp up for you, maybe try yellow corn tortillas next time? also flipping halfway through helps. xTieghan
Tieghan, you are a flavor MASTER. This recipe was another home run. Thank you for sharing your delicious talent with the world so we can all benefit! ?
Hey Leanne,
Fantastic! I am delighted to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! Have the best week:) xTieghan
My whole family really loved this dish tonight! Even 18 month friendly (sans cayenne and half the chipotle seasoning, much to my despair!)!
We used flour tortillas and loved it. Also skipped making the corn salsa as I was running out of time, but still charred up some corn on the grill to add on top! Really tasty! I also used the creamy jalapeño verde recipe from the cauliflower tacos instead of the crema as that’s what I already had made on hand.
I’m wondering, Teighan, if there is any way to freeze these or prepare them for a freezer meal? I’m 7 months pregnant and am starting to plan for meal prep ideas and my first comment after trying these tonight was “how can we make these freezer ready?!” Loved them SO MUCH! Thanks for another amazing recipe!
Hey Megan,
Happy Friday! I am so glad this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! You could make the meat/sauce and freeze, but I wouldn’t recommend freezing them as tacos:) xTieghan
How long would it be to put it in the instant pot?
Hey Kate,
I would cook for 10 minutes on high pressure. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
This recipe was a hit with my family! My son said it’s his new favorite!
Hey Connie,
Fantastic, I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
I just made the chicken for the tacos. I didn’t have ketchup so I used a can of chipotle peppers and blended them up with fresh grape tomatoes. Worked well, tastes great!
Hey Kaye,
Fantastic, I am so glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xTieghan
Do you think flour tortillas would work ok? No one in my house likes when I use corn tortillas.
Hey Lara,
You can certainly use flour tortillas, they just won’t get as crispy. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
The fillings and salsas for this recipe are delicious. My family loved it. However, I think the corn tortillas should be fried a little- enough to look a little browned and to hold shape, then drained and cooled. Then when you fill and bake them they stay opened so that you can add the corn salsa and avacado cream inside the taco, rather than on top. The first time I made this I did what recipe suggested and brushed tortillas with oil, filled them with the chicken filling and cheese and baked in a 425 oven. The tortillas closed flat. Frying them first adds a step but MUCH better result.
Hey Sally,
Wonderful! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed and truly appreciate you giving it a try. Have the best week! xTieghan
I think the garlic powder is missing from the directions
Hey Ben,
Sorry for any confusion, you are going to add the garlic powder in step 1. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
We made this for guests, and everyone loved it. Such a delicious combination of sweet and heat. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Hey Angie,
Wonderful! I am thrilled to hear this recipe was enjoyed and truly appreciate you giving it a try. Have the best week! xTieghan
This was SO good! The meat is amazing and that salsa and crema was delicious! The only thing I couldn’t figure out was how to make the tortillas crispy. They turned out kind of hard and tough. Normally I fry my taco shells, but I loved the idea of cooking them in the oven. But it didn’t get that nice crisp that I like. Any thoughts on how to fix that? Thanks!!
Hey Charlotte,
Happy Sunday! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad that it was enjoyed!! I like to coat my tortillas in olive oil to help crisp them. ☀️xTieghan
Charlotte, I ended up turning the broiler on high at the end and it worked perfectly!
Up there with one of the best things I have ever eaten. Thanks so much for this recipe ?
Hey Nicole,
Awesome! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for making it! Have the best weekend:) xTieghan
Sorry. One full cup of ketchup ruins this flavor. I’m not sure why there’s so much ketchup. Is that a typo? It totally overwhelms the flavor and all I can taste is ketchup. I’m a huge fan and own two of the cookbooks, so I just “assumed” this recipe would be great based on the title. User error. I should have read the recipe thoroughly before deciding to make it and then I would have known something was amiss. But I’ve always enjoyed HBH recipes so I went for it. My whole family ate it, but no one enjoyed it and we threw out the leftovers. I’m really surprised to see so many positive reviews of ketchup chicken. I had to leave a review to let people know that if you don’t like drinking straight ketchup that this recipe might not be for you and you might not want to waste all that chicken. Side note: the charred corn salsa was BOMB. I’ll be making that part again. And this isn’t a knock on HBH. Everyone is allowed to have a recipe that doesn’t match the taste profiles of all the readers.
Hey Julie,
Sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, the 1 cup of ketchup is correct:) xTieghan