A QUICK & TASTY recipe for the best Chicken Tacos!
Why wait for Tuesday when you can have these delicious, flavorful chicken tacos on any day of the week!
Mexican street-style tacos were my absolute favorite food when I lived in San Diego. They are incredibly yummy and pocket-friendly!
After I moved out of California, it got harder to find good tacos near me. 😕 So I tried out many recipes to create the perfect chicken tacos recipe.
After several attempts, I came up with this recipe. And I’m proud to say that it is one of the best chicken tacos I’ve ever had! The secret lies in the spices used for the chicken marinade.
This chicken taco recipe is super quick and easy to make for a weekday dinner. And it is budget-friendly and is ready in 30 minutes!
It’s the perfect dish for BBQ parties. And it’s a great recipe for camping too! Meg and I carry our cast iron pan when we go camping, and it’s easy to make this over a campfire!
So let’s learn how to make chicken tacos!
Breaking it down into 4 simple steps!
- Cook the chicken
- Prep the toppings
- Make your own spicy mayo
- Assemble and serve!
Cook the chicken
First, let’s marinate the chicken. Cut the chicken into small bite-sized pieces and add it to a large bowl. Season it with lime juice, red chili powder, garlic powder, ground black pepper, ground cumin and salt. Mix it well!
For tastier results, marinate the chicken overnight or at least 30 minutes before and refrigerate it. But if you’re in a hurry, you can always cook it right away!
Once you’re ready to cook the chicken, add olive oil to a large pan and set it on high heat. We want the chicken nicely roasted and browned. When it’s completely cooked, set the chicken aside.
Substitutions
You’re obviously not bound to chicken. You can substitute it with anything. Ground pork or beef also tastes really good in tacos! If you want to go the vegan way, tofu, cauliflower or mushrooms are great substitutes! Or you could simply add in more vegetables.
Prep the toppings
Great news, we’re done with the cooking part already! Now all we need to do is prep the toppings for our tacos. This would include diced onion, diced avocado, finely chopped cilantro and thinly shredded red cabbage. Cut some lime wedges for garnishing.
Make your own spicy mayo
In a small bowl, add about 1/2 tablespoon of mayonnaise per taco. So for this chicken tacos recipe that would be about 1/3 cup. Add red chili powder, garlic powder, ground black pepper and salt. Mix well and voilà! You’ve just made spicy mayo!
Assemble and serve!
It’s now time for the final step. Heat up the corn tortillas before adding the toppings. Let it cook on each side for about 15 seconds on a hot pan. This makes it nice and soft.
Let’s begin the assembly by spreading about 1/2 tablespoon of the spicy mayo evenly onto the tortilla. Then add in the cooked chicken and top it with some onion, avocado, cilantro and red cabbage. Squeeze a few drops of lime juice to complete your chicken taco!
Tips
- Traditionally, tacos are made with corn tortillas. But you can use flour tortillas as well.
- You can marinate the chicken first and then move on to chopping the veggies.
- Tacos are best served hot! So if you want to meal prep, you can cook the chicken in advance and keep all your chopped toppings ready. But I suggest heating up the tortillas and chicken just before you serve.
- Feel free to experiment with different toppings. The more the better! Try sour cream, tomatoes, pico de gallo or guacamole!
- You can substitute the chicken with shrimp or tilapia.
- Make it vegan by swapping the meat with sweet corn, beans, mushrooms, cauliflower or even tofu!
You now have the secret to the best chicken taco recipe!
You did it! I hope you enjoy your meal as much as we did! 
If you enjoyed this recipe, be sure to check out my chicken quesadillas recipe! Please leave your rating and comments below. It’ll motivate me to keep creating and sharing my experiments in the kitchen with you guys!
See you next time!
Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
Tortillas
- 8 mini soft corn tortillas (can be substituted with flour tortillas)
Chicken marinade
- 4 chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces (or 3 chicken breasts)
- 1 tbsp chili powder (use 1 tsp for a milder taste)
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp lime juice (about 1 whole lime)
- 1½ tsp salt (add to taste)
Toppings
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- ½ cup cilantro (finely chopped)
- 1 large avocado (cut into small cubes)
- ½ cup red cabbage (thinly shredded)
- 1 lime (cut into 4 wedges)
Spicy mayo sauce
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tsp red chili powder (use ½ tsp for a milder taste)
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- salt (add to taste)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients under the Chicken marinade section to a bowl. Mix well with the chicken to coat evenly.
- In a large skillet or pan, cook the chicken on high heat. Stir occasionally until slightly charred. Typically takes 4-5 minutes. Keep the cooked chicken aside.
- Heat up the corn tortillas on a hot pan or a griddle for 15 seconds on each side.
- Add all the Spicy mayo ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
- To prepare your taco, first spread a thin layer of the spicy mayo on the tortilla. Then add about ⅓ cup of cooked chicken. Top it with some onions, avocado, red cabbage & cilantro. Squeeze a few drops of lime juice on the tacos.
- Enjoy your finger-licking chicken tacos! 😊
Looks great 👌Gonna try this one !
Can confirm – these chicken tacos while camping… Phenomenal!