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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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Watch the How-To Reel

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 9×13 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

This post was originally published on February 13, 2020
4.25 from 1469 votes (1,165 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. 4 stars
    Loved these! I may have added a little too much red pepper because they were very spicy and that built up over time too. But I’ll just cut back in that next time. Made my own shells and it was so worth it!

    Reply

    1. Hey Lindsey,
      Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it was enjoyed! Happy New Year! xTieghan

      Reply

  2. 5 stars
    Another winner! Really easy and so, so good. I can’t believe I’ve buying buying taco seasoning all these years when I could be making this deliciousness! Never again!

    Reply

    1. Hey Jennifer,
      Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am so glad it was enjoyed! Happy New Year! xTieghan

      Reply

  3. 5 stars
    My husband and I made these last night using ground turkey and the homemade shells. We loved them! Such a good twist on the tacos we normally make. These are going into the permanent rotation!

    Reply

  5. 5 stars
    Just made this for dinner and Cuban I just say yum!! I could put the ranch on top of ranch and be happy! Delicious! Thank you for sharing!!

    Reply

    1. Hey Bethany,
      I use Whole Foods 365 brand corn tortillas. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy New Year! xTieghan

      Reply

  7. My family loves all your recipes. I have a question regarding the “Ranch” – the recipe says 2 Tablespoons brine juice from 2 limes. Is that just the juice? I have never heard of brine juice and wondering what that was. Thanks.

    Reply

    1. Hey Sara,
      Sorry that is a typo, it is lime juice! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy New Year! xTieghan

      Reply

    1. Hey Brandy,
      So sorry I do not have a recipe for tortillas, I use store bought. I hope you love the recipe. Let me know if there is anything else I can help with! Happy New Year! xTieghan

      Reply

  10. 4 stars
    These were sooooooo good and quick & easy – a perfect Taco Tuesday recipe! I used ground chicken. The cilantro ranch is a must! Served alongside black beans and rice. I’m giving it four stars because I got super confused on the recipe vs. the recipe note on the hard shell tacos. They seemed to contradict each other and I truly didn’t know what to do. The other thing that I will stress emphatically is that you must work quickly after nuking the corn tortillas in the microwave. I would go at least 45 seconds to a minute. I only did 30 seconds. I didn’t realize that if I didn’t fill the tacos while they were super pliable, that the corn tortilla would break apart immediately. I did figure this out on my second batch – and those were perfection. Will definitely make again and hopefully do the taco shells the right way next time. I also read (just now, the next day) that I should have rubbed oil on both sides of the tortilla. I didn’t realize that when I made them.

    Reply

    1. Hey Amanda,
      Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, I am thrilled that it worked out for you! Happy Holidays! xTieghan

      Reply

  12. 3 stars
    Cilantro lime sauce was way to bitter with the combo of lime and jalapeno brine. Had to reduce it with extra sour cream and some pepper. Family is not a fan though. Anyone have an alteration recommendation?

    Reply

    1. Hey Ang,
      So sorry the cilantro lime was bitter, was there anything you adjusted? Can I help in anyway? Let me know! Happy Holidays! xTieghan

      Reply

  13. I made this last night using “Impossible” vegan burger meat, and they were delicious, for anyone looking for a vegetarian option! I also made the homemade shells option, and it worked out great. Thanks for another great recipe, Tieghan!

    Reply

  14. Made this crunchy tacos for dinner tonight and they were a HIT!!!
    I used ground turkey breast and thigh mix and it was so good. Loved how easy this receipt was to put together, great for a week night dinner.
    The Cilantro Sauce was so good, next time I will make more.
    This one is going into my receipt box!!

    Reply