Loaded with mashed pinto beans, shredded Mexican cheese and chili-spiced baked chicken, these Baked Chicken, Bean & Cheese Taquitos are just like your favorite tacos, but even more fun to eat!
If you’re looking for an easy, freezer-friendly meal, look no further than these Baked Chicken, Bean & Cheese Taquitos. Loaded with mashed pinto beans, shredded Mexican cheese and chili-spiced baked chicken, these taquitos are just like your favorite tacos, but even more fun to eat!
In case you’ve never had a taquito, let me explain. It’s basically a rolled up taco that’s cooked in a way that makes the tortilla hold it’s shape. Traditionally, they’re fried and of course super yummy. Because let’s be real – fried tortillas are the bomb. Everything tastes better fried. It’s just a fact of life.
BUT if you’re not into frying and are looking for an alternative way to cook them that still gives the tortilla a crunchy texture, they can be baked. All you gotta do is spritz the tortillas with a little olive oil and stick ’em in the oven. Works like a charm.
My favorite thing about taquitos? They’re fun to eat! WAY more fun than eating a taco. The tortilla holds its rolled up shape so they’re easy to dip in your favorite salsa or two.
After you make taquitos once, you’ll quickly realize that the possibilities of what to stuff them with are endless. Theses taquitos are filled with baked chicken seasoned with chili powder, cumin, onion powder and garlic powder. But if you’re looking for a vegetarian alternative, you can simply omit the meat and add some more mashed or even whole beans.
Once you’ve got your chicken baked and shredded, it’s time to fill your taquitos.
On a warm tortilla (I heated mine up in the microwave), spread about a tablespoon of mashed or refried pinto beans in the middle, top with some cheese and shredded chicken and carefully roll it up. Secure the seams of the tortilla using a toothpick and place seam side down on a baking sheet.
After all the taquitos are rolled up, secured and placed on a baking sheet, spritz the tops of the taquitos with some olive oil. Like with last week’s Baked Tortilla Chips, I highly recommend getting a refillable oil sprayer that you can use with your favorite olive oil. The Misto and the Evo are two really great options. And they’ll save you money in the long run.
But if you don’t have a Misto or any oil spray, you can also brush the tops with olive oil using a food or pastry brush.
Bake them in a 350 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges of the tortilla begin to brown and serve immediately!
I ate these suckers with a spritz of lime, some cilantro and a huge dipping bowl of avocado lime ranch that I bought at my local grocery store. Here are some other dipping sauces that would be DELICIOUS with these taquitos.
More taco recipes to try
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1/4 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp coarse sea salt
- 1 tsp olive oil or olive oil spray
For the taquitos
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1 lb shredded chicken about 3 cups
- 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
- 1 cup mashed or refried pinto beans about 1-15 oz can
- tsp Olive oil spray or of olive oil
Instructions
For the chicken
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder and sea salt.
- Place chicken on baking sheet and coat in olive oil or olive oil spray.
- Sprinkle seasoning on top of chicken and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until fully cooked.
- Shred with a fork and knife.
- Season with more salt if needed.
For the taquitos
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray large baking sheet with olive oil spray or grease with olive oil.
- Heat the corn tortillas in the microwave for about 30 seconds (or on a hot griddle until soft and pliable).
- Spoon about a tablespoon or so of beans and shredded cheese in the middle of the tortilla. Top with about 2 tbsp of shredded chicken and roll tightly. Secure taquito with a toothpick and place on a baking sheet seam side down.
- Repeat process until all tortillas are filled, rolled, secured and placed on the baking sheet.
- Spray the tops of the taquitos with olive oil or brush lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with some sea salt.
- Bake in oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until edges of the taquitos are browned.
- Serve topped with chopped greens, cheese, sour cream, and your favorite salsa or dipping sauce.
Isabel’s Tips:
Nutrition Information
I followed this recipe as a guide for chicken and refried bean (separate) taquitos. Somehow the bean fell apart but tasted great. Baking worked really well. Thanks!
Thanks Stacey!
Hello Isabel
Should I choose to use rotisserie chicken are the spices mentioned for the raw chicken still applied?
Hi Joanna! The flavor wouldn’t be as incorporated versus if it was raw chicken but it should still work!
Hi
Going to make the taquitos tomorrow
Thanks
I like to use my Air Fryer instead of the oven. Bake for 12-15 minutes at 300 degrees. I usually have ingredients on hand and find it convenient to make 3-4 taquitos in the air fryer for my lunch or dinner. This is a great recipe for single people who don’t want to make a full recipe.
These have become a home favorite! Love the whole freezing aspect. I make more than what the recipe says and make enough for two dinners!!!!
That’s great, Diana! So glad you like it! 🙂
My corn tortillas kept breaking no matter what I did, so I used flour fajita size. I also couldn’t find pinto beans so used black beans as a substitute. That said, these came out like restaurant-level delicious.
Made these for my fiancé to add some variety to our menus (he’s kind of picky) and he LOVED them! This recipe is great because it’s lower in fat, which is good for him – but they can also be adapted to fit keto as well. Thanks for this awesome recipe! 🙂
Thank you so much, Kate! I’m so happy your fiance loved them 🙂 My husband loves them, too. So good!
Your dish is absolutely out of this world. Why don’t you add a instructions video to show everyone how this great dish is made?
Hey! I am so excited about trying this recipe. I am planning on making these tonight, but not cooking them yet because they are for tomorrow’s dinner. Do you feel that the tortillas will get too wet in the fridge over night? I work late, so I am hoping my husband can just take them out of the fridge and pop them in the oven.
Hi, Heather. I apologize for not getting to this comment sooner since you probably already made the taquitos. How did they turn out? Did you make them in advance?
If going straight from freezer to microwave, how much time would it take to reheat properly?
Hi, Lydia. That’s a great question. If you’re just heating up a few on a plate, I would say to heat them up in increments of 30 seconds each and check on them. Otherwise, they may get a little too mushy. If you’re heating up a lot, i would do increments of 45 seconds and then check on them each time. Hope that helps!
Thank you for giving the recipe using chicken breasts & not just rotisserie chicken! I know it’s more convenient to use rotisserie chicken but I’m super picky on chicken and don’t care for rotisserie style. I know I’m weird but it’s a texture & grease thing for me. Can’t wait to try these!
Aw, you’re very welcome, Stacey. I can totally understand your feelings about rotisserie style chicken. Some are definitely better than others. Hope you like these!
Great flavor and idea! However mine cracked and burst in the oven… Any thoughts what I am doing wrong?
If the tortillas crack while you’re rolling them up and getting them ready for baking, that’s a sign that you need to heat them up some more in the microwave. It can be helpful to heat them in a wet paper towel to prevent them from drying out. If they’re cracking and bursting in the oven, that could be a sign that there’s too much moisture inside the taquito. OR the integrity of the tortilla itself isn’t that great. Some corn tortillas are definitely better than others. If you’re new to corn tortillas, I recommend trying different brands each time you buy a new package. You’ll quickly find out what your favorites are. Here’s the exact brand I used to make this recipe: http://www.missionmenus.com/en/products/view/mission-super-size-yellow-corn-10ct