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Switching up taco night with these baked Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos. Ground chicken seasoned with a smoky chipotle chili spice mix and tossed with cream cheese. Roll up the delicious mix into tortillas, then oven-bake until warm and crispy. These taquitos are crunchy on the outside, spicy and cheesy inside. Serve with a creamy cilantro jalapeño ranch. These come together in well under an hour and are so delicious. A great weeknight dinner.

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

When I get tired of the usual tacos, I make taquitos! The funny thing about this taquito recipe? It’s actually based on and inspired by a recipe I made back in 2012, the very first fall season of HBH.

We’ve been switching things around on the website, especially with the way you are able to search for recipes. Hopefully, we’re making things easier for you all, I certainly love the new search engine. It’s what lead me to these taquitos from so long ago.

I was searching the word chipotle and then these baked taquitos appeared and I immediately remembered them!

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

My brothers used to go to the local 7-Eleven after snowboarding and pick up their taquitos. They wouldn’t go often, but when they did, they would rave about those taquitos.

I told them that taquitos from 7-Eleven probably weren’t that good for them and I’d make them better at home. That taquito recipe turned into one of the very first recipes to live on HBH!

Almost ten years later, I reworked the recipe a bit and honestly made them a whole lot better. Gosh, these are so good, and really fun too!

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

The details

Pick up some ground chicken, turkey, or even ground beef. Just be sure to use what your family loves most! Brown the meat with an onion, add seasonings, and mix in cream cheese. The cream cheese is the secret. It makes the insides of these taquitos creamy instead of dry.

Trust me, it may sound odd, but it’s really not. Go with it.

Since I hate frying, which is traditional when making taquitos, I much prefer to oven-bake these. It’s healthier, easier, and we like the flavor so much more. You actually taste the food, not the fried oil.

Here’s the key, you need to rub each tortilla with olive oil before rolling up the meat. This is the trick to getting the taquitos crispy all around. Once the tortillas are oiled, roll up the meat and cheese inside, then oven-bake. In a few minutes, you’ll have crispy taquitos.

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

The creamy jalapeño ranch

Yes, making a homemade ranch is an extra step (but so simple). I always find the end result to be worth the extra effort.

For this ranch, mix sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, with buttermilk, cilantro, dill, onion, garlic, and of course, the jalapeños. Instead of fresh jalapeños, I like to use pickled. They’ll add a subtle, tangy kick.

I love to serve this with rice on the side and chunky avocado salsa.

That’s pretty much it for this one. Simple as can be, but every crispy, crunch, cheesy taquito is so delicious. I love a simple fall meal that’s fun to eat while celebrating your favorite team – or just enjoying with the family.

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

Looking for other Mexican night recipes – try these!

Crispy Jalapeño Cream Cheese Buffalo Chicken Taquitos

Spicy Buffalo White Chicken Chili

One Skillet Saucy Chicken Tortilla Enchilada Rice Bake

Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Avocado Jalapeño Crema

Jalapeño Pineapple Shrimp Tacos with Cilantro Garlic Sauce

Lastly, if you make these Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos, 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!

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 567 kcal

Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Ingredients

Cilantro Jalapeño Ranch

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F.
    2. In a large skillet, combine the olive oil, chicken, and onion. Cook, breaking up the meat as it cooks, until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the chili powder, paprika, garlic powder, oregano, and salt. Add the beer. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce has thickened around the chicken, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream cheese.
    3. Warm the tortillas for 30 seconds to 1 minute in the microwave, until pliable. On a baking sheet, rub the tortillas with olive oil. Spoon 2 tablespoons of the chicken down the middle of the tortilla. Top with shredded cheese. Roll up and place seam-side down on the baking sheet. Bake for 5-8 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp.
    4. Meanwhile, make the ranch. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until creamy. Season with salt.
    5. Serve the taquitos topped with ranch and any other desired toppings.
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Crispy Chipotle Chicken Cream Cheese Taquitos | halfbakedharvest.com

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    These are really good. They were a hit with my family: my 87 year old picky husband and my 32 year old picky son. I used the 4″ Mission yellow corn tortilla and I had trouble getting them soft enough to roll. I would say that two tablespoons of filling is too much, because the tortillas split and wouldn’t stay rolled up. But I liked the ratio of filling to tortilla.

    I followed the instructions about warming them up, but I had to run them under the water before coating both sides with oil and they did a little better, but still unrolled. Afterwards, I followed your link to the kind of tortillas you suggested and the extra soft, white corn ones probably will work better. I’m learning to cook as my cook husband is in hospice now.

    1. Hey Mary,
      Happy Sunday!!🎃 I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed!

  2. 1 star
    This recipe looks incredible but these turned out terrible for me. The corn tortillas started cracking before I even put them in the oven. They completely cracked apart in the oven and then the texture was like eating leather. I used white corn tortillas and followed the instructions meticulously. The sauce was watery—maybe because I used yogurt instead of sour cream.

    1. Hi Andrea,
      Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, so sorry to hear you had some issues! Corn tortillas can certainly be finicky! Did you warm them and then coat in oil? This really helps to prevent the splitting. If so, it could have simply just been that brand of tortillas that didn’t work well for you. I find the best luck with Whole Foods 365. Please let me know if I can help in any other way! xT

  3. 5 stars
    Hands down my most favorite recipe I’ve made to date. I imagine I’ll be making this weekly. Thank you!!

    1. Hey Nicole,
      Happy Sunday!!🎃 I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your feedback, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed!

  4. 1 star
    Ugh. It’s just not my week for HBH recipes. I followed this recipe to the T and it did not turn out at all. I used yellow corn tortillas. I warmed them I put olive oil on them, but they never got crispy in the oven. They were super chewy. I ended up having to throw away almost all of them as they just were not not good. I’m super bummed because I really love most of your recipes.

    1. Hi Pamela,
      So sorry to hear you did not enjoy this recipe. Did they just need to bake a little longer? Let me know how I can help! xT

  5. Delicious. The key to rolling corn tortillas is to get them hot. Not burn you hot. Just very warm. They have been doing it for hundreds of years down south. Be sure and brush on the olive oil before you try and roll them. Not a drenching. Just a nice coat.

    1. Hey Sterling,
      Fantastic!! So glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for trying it out! Have a great weekend! xx

  6. 5 stars
    Holy wow, these were absolutely off-the-charts amazing! I made them for the family and they were devoured – every last one. I should have made more!

    I used small white corn tortillas (20) and four larger flour tortillas that needed to be used up. Warmed all of them in the micro for a minute (the whole stack) and brushed both sides with oil before rolling. The key to them not breaking was to roll slowly and carefully, and not overstuff. I only broke one early on, and that was my fault for being too aggressive with my rolling technique, haha! I ate that one. 😀

    They crisped up pretty well, not as much as deep frying, but still delicious, and way easier and less messy. I didn’t notice a huge difference in the crisping of the flour vs. corn wraps. Both worked well.

    The cilantro and jalapeno ranch was a huge hit. Will absolutely make again…and again…

    1. Hey Aline,
      Awesome!! So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback and what worked well for you! Hope you’re off to a great Friday! xTieghan

  7. 1 star
    I am not sure what steps you are leaving out of this recipe but my god, these things blew out like a babies diaper. I put exactly the amount of filling you said to, they rolled without any issue and then exploded in the oven. I tried to eat the aftermath but they were chewy (I even cooked them for an extra 5 minutes). I think you need to perfect this a little more, or give us the missing steps so we can avoid blown out baby diaper tacos for dinner.

    1. Hi Ryan,
      Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback! There are no instructions missing:) I’ve tested this recipe quite a number of times. What kind of tortillas did you use? Did you coat them in oil? Have you tried a toothpick to hold them together? Let me know how I can help!! Happy Friday!! 👻

      1. Thanks for the reply! I used corn tortillas that I warmed in the microwave and then coated in oil. If you have any recommendations on brands tortillas that would be helpful. Maybe the ones I bought weren’t pliable enough. I will say the filling was great and I’d probably try to make them again. I’ll give the toothpicks a shot. I’ve enjoyed many of your recipes and will try again.

  8. Super flavorful! We used white corn tortillas, so they didn’t crisp up much. We’ll try yellow corn tortillas next time. We can also totally see using the filling in tacos or burritos! Or even in a rice bowl (living in Japan I learned ANYTHING can go on rice). Good stuff!

    1. Hey Kristie,
      Happy Friday!👻 Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a try and sharing your review! I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xT

  9. 1 star
    These did not turn out. The white corn tortillas just tore and wouldnt roll up very well at all. (I did warm them first.) They did not crisp up in the oven at all. Just chewy and nasty. Might try with flour tortillas. Super disappointing.😪

    1. Hi Cindy,
      Thanks for trying this recipe, so sorry to hear you had some issues. Next time, I would use yellow corn tortillas and be sure to coat them in oil. Flour tortillas will not crisp up like corn tortillas. I hope this helps! xx

  10. 5 stars
    I made this last night although I personally have never had taquitos. I followed the recipe to a tee and was rewarded with a delicious dinner. I did not make the jalapeño dressing. I served it with a light coleslaw ( vinegar based) and the Jalapeño Cheese pull apart rolls. I got 2 thumbs up from the guys so will go in the meal rotation from now on!

    1. Hey Catherine,
      Thanks so much for making this recipe! I love to hear that they were enjoyed! Hope you’re having a great week! xT

  11. I made these and they were delicious. The sauce is quite flavorful. Can use it for
    other dishes. Had no problem with filling the corn tortillas. Will use this dish for next potluck.

    1. Hey Beverly,
      Happy Wednesday!👻 I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and appreciate you giving it a try and sharing your feedback! xx

    2. Hi!

      I’m gluten-free, what would be a good substitute for beer? Would a gluten-free beer work or is something else better?

      1. Hey Laurie,
        Sure, you could totally use a gluten free beer, sparkling cider, or even chicken broth. Let me know if you have any other questions, I hope this recipe turns out amazing for you! xTieghan

  12. Super excited to make these tonight! I’m gathering ingredients and looking at the directions but I don’t see the chipotle chili powder in the directions but I’m assuming I would add it with the other spices but thought I would ask first. Also, my kids can’t really handle the spice so I’m wondering how much I can cut down on the chili powder and chipotle chili powder without affecting the flavor too much?

    1. Hey Kristen,
      Yes, the chipotle chili powder is added in step 2. I would reduce both the chipotle chili powder and paprika to 1 teaspoon. I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan

  13. 3 stars
    Tastes alright, not a while lot there. It was pretty frustrating trying to roll corn tortillas so I swapped for flour half way through. I think I used the wrong type of beer for this recipe, so that’s on me.
    Overall when I make it again I’ll use a lighter beer and maybe add more spice and jalapeño.

    1. Hi Danielle,
      Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback! So sorry to hear you didn’t love them. Let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xT

  14. I made these, and my corn tortillas just crumbled to pieces when I tried rolling them. So I had to switch to flour tortillas and they ended up being good but kinda just like a soft taco.

    1. Hi Nancy,
      Thanks for giving the recipe a try, sorry to hear you had some issues with the tortillas. Unfortunately, flour tortillas just don’t crisp up like corn tortillas. For the corn, you want to make sure to warm and coat in oil before rolling and be careful not to over stuff them. I hope this helps! xT