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Weeknight style Cheesy Baked Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch…and all the toppings. Because loaded tacos are just better. Ground chicken seasoned with a smoky chipotle chili spice mix, stuffed into hard shell tacos, topped with cheese, and oven-baked. These tacos are crunchy on the outside, but spicy and cheesy inside. Serve each taco with a creamy, cooling cilantro lime ranch sauce, and a mix of your favorite taco toppings. They come together in minutes and are so delicious…the perfect weeknight dinner. Bonus, the chipotle chicken is great as a leftover. Pile it high onto your favorite tortilla chips for some seriously delicious nachos or serve it up atop greens for a Mexican inspired salad.

overhead photo of Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch

As a kid, tacos were a weeknight staple in our house. I’ve touched on this before, but my dad cooked tacos for dinner at least once or twice a week for multiple years straight. It probably wasn’t until I started to take over the cooking around the age of fourteen that we started to switch things up. So yes, the typical weeknight ground beef taco was a staple, and my dad had them down to a T.

He’d make his tacos with ground beef and store-bought taco seasoning. Then he’d simply stuff the meat into tortillas with a little cheddar cheese and nothing else. Well…maybe some lettuce for my mom and I. But no beans, no avocado, not even cilantro or a squeeze of lime. Very, very basic, and it’s just what my brothers wanted. At the time, I didn’t know any better, so I greatly enjoyed these tacos too. I took mine in a hard shell and oven-baked for extra crispiness on the outside, and soft and cheesy inside.

overhead photo of Chipotle Chicken Taco meat in skillet

And there you have it.

That’s my childhood taco story. Did we ever get sick of eating tacos? Honestly, I don’t think we did. I’m pretty sure that we were the ones requesting taco night so often. We loved it and still do! I’m always making tacos, whether it’s these quick skillet chicken tacos, my favorite Caribbean shrimp tacos, or these saucy instant pot BBQ chicken tacos. Tacos are still on the menu every couple of weeks.

But my absolute go-to taco?

It’s these. They’re classic, so simple, cheesy, crunchy, and SO GOOD. I love them, my brothers love them, and pretty much every other human who enjoys Mexican food (even just a little) enjoys these crunchy tacos.

photo of raw cilantro

To make these weeknight chicken tacos…

It is SIMPLE.

Pick up some ground chicken, turkey, or even ground beef. Just be sure to use what your family loves most! Simply brown the meat, add seasonings, and stuff into hard tacos. Then top with cheese, and bake in the oven until melted and crisp.

Doesn’t get any easier, but yet this is a dinner that everyone loves.

I do have a few little secrets however that make these tacos better than the rest.

stuffing the tacos shells with Chipotle Chicken Taco meat and cheese

The seasoning blend.

Over the years, I feel like I’ve kind of perfected the taco seasoning mix. It’s just a touch spicy, a little smoky, and hinted with garlic. I use a mix of chipotle chili powder (key ingredient) and smoked paprika to keep the taco meat extra flavorful. Most tacos mixes use regular chili powder, but I’ve always found that to lack flavor. Using chipotle chili powder adds the perfect amount of spiciness.

I like to use a good amount, so be sure to adjust this to your family’s taste level. Start with two teaspoons and work your way up to three if you like things spicy!

Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos after baking on baking sheet

My Shells? I make them at home.

Well, kind of, and the shells aren’t technically a part of the recipe. BUT I’m including it in the notes. Instead of using store-bought taco shells I like to take corn tortillas, stuff them with the taco meat plus cheese, then oven bake them until the tortillas are crispy. I rub each tortilla with olive oil and then flip them halfway through cooking. This is key to getting the tacos extra crispy on both sides.

If you have a couple extra minutes, I would highly recommend making your own “shells”. They’re very, very good…and much healthier than store-bought too!

overhead close up photo of Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch

That cilantro lime ranch? You need it too.

Most tacos are topped with sour cream, but trust me this cilantro lime ranch is so much better, but it’s also not your average ranch.

I used fresh cilantro and plenty of lime in place of the usual herb mix and stirred in some pickled jalapeños for a spicy, tangy kick. This is the perfect sauce to dollop onto each cheesy, crunchy taco.

If you wanted to take the toppings a step further, I would recommend a pineapple salsa or mango salsa. But you all know me, I love a good fruity salsa. Oh, and maybe add a nice margarita too. This spicy mango marg is my personal favorite.

overhead photo of Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with bite taken out of taco

If you make these weeknight Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch, 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!

Watch the How To Video:

Weeknight Cheesy Baked Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch.

Author: Tieghan Gerard
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 544 kcal

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

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Ingredients

Cilantro Lime Ranch

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • 1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
    2. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the ground chicken and onion. Cook, breaking up the meat as it cooks, until the chicken is browned, about 5 minutes. Add the chipotle chili powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, and salt. Add 3/4 cup water. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly around the chicken, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro. 
    3. Line the taco shells up on a sheet pan or in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Transfer to the oven and bake 5 minutes. Evenly divide the meat among each taco shell and top with cheese. Bake 10 minutes, until the cheese has melted.
    4. Meanwhile, make the ranch. Combine all ingredients in a glass jar and shake or stir until creamy. 
    5. Serve the tacos topped with ranch, avocado, red onion, and any other desired toppings.

Notes

For Easy Homemade Hard Shells: Warm 8-12 corn tortillas for 30 seconds to 1 minute in the microwave, until pliable. On a baking sheet, rub the tortillas with olive oil. Lay each flat and then layer evenly with cheese and chicken. Fold the other half of the tortilla over the filling, gently pushing to adhere (see above photo). Transfer to the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes more, or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp. 
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horizontal overhead photo of Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos

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Comments

  1. 5 stars
    These were AMAZING! My husband loved them more than any tacos I’ve ever made and said he thought they were as good as something at La Loma, our favorite mexican food place! Thanks for such a great recipe! I just realized I forgot to put the cilantro inside the tacos before they went in the oven and I also forgot the jalepenos and brine in the ranch and it was still so good! I’ll try it the right way next time, but if you don’t have jalapenos on hand, it would still be good. ?

    Reply

  2. These were AMAZING! My husband loved them more than any tacos I’ve ever made and said he thought they were as good as something at La Loma, our favorite mexican food place! Thanks for such a great recipe! I just realized I forgot to put the cilantro inside the tacos before they went in the oven and I also forgot the jalepenos and brine in the ranch and it was still so good! I’ll try it the right way next time, but if you don’t have jalapenos on hand, it would still be good. 🙂

    Reply

  3. 5 stars
    I make tacos all the time, and honestly my kids are tired of them. So I needed to change things up and this recipe was it! This was amazing! A little too spicy for the kids but I will be making this again. Really enjoyed the Cilantro Lime Ranch a game changer for sure! Thank you Tieghan for sharing this.

    Reply

    1. Hi Jennifer,
      Wonderful! I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan

      Reply

    1. Hey there,
      Wonderful! I really appreciate you giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan

      Reply

  5. 5 stars
    Made these for dinner tonight and they are straight up AMAZING! We love super spicy so were generous with the chili flakes and added extra chili powder. The sauce was not at all too salty, and I am generally salt-sensitive. Ours turned out looking less lovely than yours but tasted restaurant-level awesome. Every one of your recipes is so easy and spot-on….we have abandoned going anywhere else for new meal ideas ? So thankful someone has finally made cooking less annoying and more fun for us!

    Reply

  6. 5 stars
    made these last night but instead of ground meat, I used chicken thighs and cooked them on low in my crock pot for 8 hours but used the same seasonings in the recipe. SO GOOD and the cilantro lime ranch was such a great addition to all the flavors.

    Reply

  8. 3 stars
    We eat this type of food often in my house as my fiance and his daughters are Hispanic. I thought this would be a great recipe for me to try to prepare for them. Two things: I am sensitive to spice, so I had to tweak my portion because it was way too spicy for me. The fiance liked the spice. The other thing was the ranch. Maybe I did something wrong, but mine came out way too salty. I make crema a ton. I specifically followed this recipe to try something a little different from what I usually make. I usually don’t add that much salt anyway. So, I could also just have gotten used to what I make. Either way, I will try this again, with more tweaks. Thank you for the recipe. (Oh, and the only way to do this is the homemade tortillas. They are always better.)

    Reply

    1. Hi Amber,
      Thanks for giving the recipe a try, sorry to hear it wasn’t enjoyed. I’m sure homemade tortillas are great, I’ve never made them before:) xTieghan

      Reply

  9. Tieghan! These are IT. I paired them with the pickled red onion and wow. Then the ranch sauce… I could go on about these forever.

    Reply

  10. Ok these are absolutely amazing. I can never figure out the best method for making the shells- do you oil BOTH sides of the tortilla or just inside or just outside?? Mine still crack and hard hard to assemble. Thank you!!!!

    Reply

    1. Hey Kate,
      Awesome! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! I like to do both sides:) xxTieghan

      Reply

  11. 5 stars
    Made them with beef and they were yummy.

    I “marinated” the meat with the spices before cooking for max flavor.

    But the star of this recipe is the ranch!! My man CLEANED the bowl ??

    Reply

    2. 3 stars
      I want to make these work so badly! The flavors are so amazing. But I have tried skillet warming and stacked in foil warming.The tortillas and they just spring back open or break. Even with greatly reduced filling. Just a total mess. I may just have to go with nachos. I can’t find fresh enough tortillas.

      Reply

  13. 4 stars
    Great flavor and spicy! I attempted the homemade version of the hardshell tacos, they didn’t go so well. They wouldn’t stay folded over and there was no way there was flipping going on (all the filling was falling out. I ended up just sticking another tortilla on top and making more of a stacked tostada haha. Didn’t change the flavor!

    Reply

  14. Hi,
    I’m really looking forward to trying this recipe! One question…is the chipotle chili powder actually a chili powder (spice blend) or chile powder (single pepper spice, in this case chipotle)? I noticed the recipe says “chili” but the jar in the link says “chile”. Not trying to be nit-picky but they’d have different flavor profiles and so was just wondering. And I have chipotle chili powder, but not chipotle chili powder (which sounds delicious).

    Reply

    1. Hi KJ,
      For this recipe, you will want to use chipotle chili powder. Please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan

      Reply

  15. 5 stars
    These tacos are amazing. They go to the top of the list of my Half Baked Harvest recipe list. The chicken is perfectly seasoned. Making the taco shells from corn tortillas give them the extra yumminess and the homemade cilantro ranch is perfect!

    I am cooking my way through your first 2 cookbooks…..sort of like Julie and Julia and am sending comments and recipes to friends. Our favorites so far:
    Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes with caramelized onions – made for Christmas Eve and the family loved them
    Skillet Chicken and Broccoli Pot Pie with Garlic Butter Phyllo Crust- post Thanksgiving use of turkey leftovers
    Molten Chocolate Crack Pie – my husband says it is the best dessert I’ve ever made.

    Reply

    1. Hey Nancy,
      Awesome! Thanks a lot for making this recipe. I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Thanks so much for trying so many recipes! Happy Thursday❄️ xxT

      Reply