30+ Taco Recipes to Make for Dinner Tonight

updated Apr 10, 2023

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Beef birria tacos on plate. — Credit: Photo: Joe Lingeman | Food Stylist: Cyd McDowell

The wonderful thing about tacos is that they require more inspiration than actual recipe. Because when it comes down to what to stuff inside tortillas, the sky’s the limit, and you can put as much or little effort in as you like. If you’ve got time, pulled pork, roasted cauliflower, sweet potatoes, or boneless chicken thighs are all good choices for a taco filling. And for those nights when fast and easy is the name of the game, assemble tacos with a rotisserie chicken and bag of slaw, start with a can of black beans and avocado, or scramble those last few eggs in the fridge. While tacos are certainly meal on their own, but sometimes having an easy side dish for taco night (think, taco slaw, salad, or rice) is just the thing to round out dinner.

Here are more than 30 of our best taco recipes to give you inspiration for your next taco night.

In This Article

Meaty Tacos
Fish Tacos
Vegetarian Tacos
Breakfast Tacos

Meaty Tacos

Everything from chicken breasts and thighs to quick-cooking ground meat, hearty pulled pork, and even rotisserie chicken are a good start for a truly delicious taco night.

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Flank steak marinated with chipotle, citrus, cilantro and onions.

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No other chicken tacos will come close to being as good as these.

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Easy Ground Beef Tacos

These easy ground beef tacos are a winning weeknight dinner loaded with moist, flavorful beef and your favorite toppings.

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Instant Pot Beef Birria Tacos

This step-by-step guide will walk you through making the very best homemade beef birria, plus how to turn it into crispy quesatacos.

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Grilled Chicken Tacos

A quick and easy weeknight grilled chicken taco recipe.

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Téllez Household Tacos

Mexican cookbook author Lesley Téllez shares her family's favorite taco recipe, complete with easy spiced chicken thighs and lots of fun toppings.

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Chicken Tacos with Broccoli Slaw

Start with a pack of ground chicken, and 10 minutes in the kitchen is all you need to bring these family-friendly tacos to the table.

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Cheesy Gordita Crunch-Inspired Beef Tacos

These Taco Bell-inspired tacos feature a double taco shell stuffed with a beef-and-bean filling.

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Rotisserie Chicken Tacos

The easiest weeknight chicken tacos start with a rotisserie chicken and bag of broccoli slaw.

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Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

Salsa-seasoned shredded chicken tacos topped with a cool avocado dressing is the ultimate taco dinner.

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Slow-Cooker Chicken Tacos

Cook up a bunch of spiced shredded chicken in the slow cooker, then dress up your tacos any way you like.

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Slow Cooker Beef Tacos

These 3-ingredient bulgogi-inspired tacos are super easy to bring to the table with the help of your slow cooker.

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Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos

Chicken thighs, peanut butter, and spicy sambal combine to create the easiest-ever slow cooker chicken tacos.

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Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Tacos

Transform a cut of pork into a sweet and spicy taco filling with just a jar of pickled jalapeños and a drizzle of maple syrup.

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Pulled Pork Tacos

Anytime I have a little bit of leftover pulled pork, tacos are my favorite way to stretch it into a meal for the whole table.

Fish Tacos

Fish tacos are easy (and fast!) to make at home. Any kind of white fish — fresh or frozen — is fair game. You can also use salmon for tacos, as well as frozen shrimp.

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These seared fish tacos start with inexpensive white fish, which cooks in a flash for an easy weeknight dinner.

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These fun and festive tacos lean on three main components: well-seasoned shrimp, a creamy slaw, and a tangy, fruity salsa.

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Mahi-Mahi Tacos

Mild mahi-mahi stuffed into warm tortillas with a creamy avocado and red cabbage slaw.

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15-Minute Chile-Lime Salmon Tacos

The salmon is kissed with a punchy chile-lime coating, and stuffed in a warm tortilla with lime-tinged avocado, crunchy shredded cabbage, and a sprinkle of fresh cilantro leaves.

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Quick & Easy Crispy Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw

These crispy fish tacos start with frozen beer-battered cod fillets, which makes them extra quick to prepare.

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Sheet Pan Shrimp Tacos

Dinner is as easy as tossing shrimp with smoky cumin and chili powder, roasting for a few minutes, then piling them into warm corn tortillas.

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Fish Tacos with Rhubarb-Pineapple Salsa

The sweet and tangy salsa is hands-down the star of these tacos.

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Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa

Spicy, smoky shrimp and a homemade tomatillo salsa combine in these flavor-packed summer tacos.

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These homemade fish tacos boast the crispiest golden fish fillets — no deep-frying required.

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Roasted Shrimp Tacos with Mango-Avocado Salsa

A punchy fruit salsa is our favorite way to dress up basic shrimp tacos.

Vegetarian Tacos

Almost any combination of beans and veggies works to make a satisfying taco. Some of our favorites include smoky roasted cauliflower, black bean and sweet potato, and mushroom and poblanos.

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Jackfruit Tacos

This recipe essentially transforms a can of young jackfruit into a plant-based taco without too much effort.

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Taco de Quelite Estilo Baja (Quelite Fishless Taco)

Huauzontle and squash blossoms are breaded and fried until crisp in this plant-based riff on Baja-style fish tacos.

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Mushroom “Carnitas” Tacos

These vegan "carnitas" are meaty, savory, and pleasantly greasy.

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Black Bean and Sweet Potato Tacos

A quick and easy recipe for soft tacos filled with black beans and sweet potatoes, which can be made vegan without the cheese.

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Roasted Mushroom and Poblano Tacos

These quick and easy vegetarian tacos are filled with roasted portobello mushrooms and poblano peppers and topped with creamy goat cheese.

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Roasted Cauliflower Tacos

From the lightly charred and spiced cauliflower florets, to the crispy, tangy pickled cabbage, to the cool avocado-yogurt crema, this is how to tackle Taco Tuesday, veggie-style.

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10-Minute Black Bean Tacos

This effortless dinner is just one reason I always keep a couple of cans of black beans in the pantry.

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Crunchy Black Bean Tacos

Heat your tacos in a skillet and they fall somewhere between soft-shell taco, hard-shell taco, and quesadilla. They're pretty amazing.

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Kale and Black Bean Tacos with Chimichurri

Herby, bold chimichurri sauce isn't a traditional taco topping, but it is downright delicious and makes these plant-based tacos sing.

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Tacos with Roasted Winter Vegetables and Red Cabbage Slaw

Still figuring out what to do with those leftover roasted veggies in the fridge? Turn them into tacos, of course!

Breakfast Tacos

I love them in the morning, but I happen to think breakfast tacos are even better served for dinner. Here are some of my favorite picks.

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Basic Breakfast Tacos

The crispy bacon and a mix of diced potato, onion, and sweet bell pepper can all be made in advance, so come morning all you have to do is whip up the scrambled eggs.

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Soy Chorizo and Fried Egg Breakfast Tacos

These vegetarian egg tacos start with soy-based sausages made with the same warming spices as traditional chorizo.

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Huevos Rancheros Tacos

Pile cheesy scrambled eggs, roasted red peppers, and black beans and you've got a kid-friendly dinner made in minutes.

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Scrambled Egg Tacos

A mix of zucchini and corn gives these breakfast tacos a summery spin.

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