57 Taco Recipe Ideas to Get You Through Every Tuesday of the Year (and Then Some)
Taco Tuesday is our favorite day of the week. But the usual suspects (read: ground beef with shredded cheese and basic fixings) can get a little, well…boring. Spice things up with these 57 taco recipe ideas, aka more than a year’s worth of weekly meals that your dinner guests will go gaga for. Whether you’re all about fork-tender birria, spicy shrimp or crispy cauliflower, these dishes will bust you out of your recipe rut for good.
RELATED: 18 Taco Bowl Recipes That Will Spice Up Your Lunch and Dinner Rotations
1. Crispy Cauliflower Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein, kid-friendly
BRB, going for a swim in homemade queso. The cauliflower is coated in taco-seasoned flour before being baked to crispy perfection.
2. BLT Tacos
Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, high protein, kid-friendly
The black pepper bacon cooks on a baking sheet in the oven for minimal mess and maximum crunch.
3. Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
Time Commitment: 7 hours and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, slow cooker recipe, high protein
Just season, set and forget the pork shoulder in your Crockpot until it’s fall-apart juicy and soft.
4. Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos with Blue Cheese Crema
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 35 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly
Taco Tuesday does Meatless Monday. (The funky blue cheese crema would taste great on cheeseburgers, too.)
5. Spicy Shrimp Tacos with Mango Salsa
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, high protein
One bite and boom: You’re at the beach with a cocktail in hand, preferably a margarita.
6. Pancake Tacos with Cheese and Bacon
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, high protein
We have a feeling these will become your kids’ new favorite breakfast. Drizzle theirs in syrup and yours in hot sauce.
7. Flank Steak Tacos with Cucumber Salsa
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy
The salsa is crunchy, citrusy and ridiculously refreshing, meaning it's just the ticket for your first alfresco dinner party of the year.
8. Poblano and Mushroom Tacos with Tomatoes and Goat Cheese
Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly
File under Sneaky Ways to Convince Kids to Eat Vegetables. (Thanks, goat cheese.)
9. Chicken Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour
Why We Love It: high protein, kid-friendly
The only downside to hard taco shells? All the filling falls out once you take a bite. These are fried after being filled, so all the goods (read: rotisserie chicken and cheese) stay in place. Genius.
10. Roasted Salmon Tacos
Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy
Complete with grilled pineapple salsa and vegan cashew-lime crema.
11. Jackfruit Tacos with Grilled Pineapple
Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein
This tangy tropical fruit is the ultimate plant-based meat alternative. Use non-dairy cheese instead of queso fresco to make the tacos vegan.
12. Grilled Carne Asada Tacos with Boursin Cheese
Time Commitment: 4 hours and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy, one pan
Marinating the flank steak in apple cider vinegar and lime juice helps tenderize the meat.
13. Spicy Sweet Potato Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients
The recipe calls for shredding the sweet spuds with a box grater, but you can get the job done even faster by using a food processor with a grater attachment.
14. Crispy Baked Fish Tacos with Cabbage Slaw
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, special occasion-worthy, high protein
Nothing says summer quite like lime-kissed, battered tilapia. Feel free to add sliced avocado and pickled onions before digging in.
15. Grilled Vegetable and Goat Cheese Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
Drape corn tortillas over your oven racks to turn them into taco shells with flat bottoms.
16. Chicken Tinga Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, one pan, beginner-friendly
Starring a punchy chipotle blender sauce that will keep your guests from realizing you started with rotisserie chicken.
17. Cauliflower and Plantain Tacos with Lemony Pesto Dressing
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegan, special occasion-worthy
Swap the plantain for yam or the cauliflower for broccoli if you’d like. (P.S.: Save some pesto to stir into fresh pasta.)
18. Slow Cooker Korean Short Rib Tacos
Time Commitment: 8 hours and 25 minutes
Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, one pot, crowd-pleaser, high protein
The briny dill pickle cuts right through the heat of the gochujang.
19. Rajas con Hummus Tacos
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, vegetarian
A dollop of labneh? Don’t mind if we do. For the uninitiated, these are loosely inspired by rajas con crema, a Mexican dish starring sliced poblano peppers and cream.
20. Fried Egg Breakfast Tacos with Hot Honey
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes (includes infusing honey)
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
Psst: Drizzle the leftover hot honey on pizza, fried chicken, roasted veggies, turkey sandwiches or even vanilla ice cream. Thank us later.
21. Biscuit Lime Fish Tacos
Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, beginner-friendly
The only thing better than fried fish? Fried fish on a flaky biscuit. (They start with canned biscuit dough, BTW.)
22. Easy Black Bean Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high fiber, beginner-friendly
Greek yogurt-lime crema > store-bought sour cream. The recipe calls for canned beans, so it comes together in a flash.
23. Fried Avocado Tacos
Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, vegetarian, special occasion-worthy
Consider these a one-way ticket to your happy place. (Hi, serrano cream sauce.)
24. Grilled Fish Tacos With Mango Salsa & Avocado Sauce
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, special occasion-worthy
Creole-spiced cod meets mango pico de gallo and the tangiest, creamiest avocado crema of all time.
25. American Breakfast Tacos
Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
To the maple syrup versus hot sauce dilemma, we say: ¿Por qué no los dos? Substitute breakfast sausage or chorizo for bacon if you'd prefer.
26. Carne Asada Street Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein, crowd-pleaser, one pan
Carne asada + onion + lime + cilantro = proof that sometimes, less is more. (Although a dollop of guac wouldn't hurt.)
27. Life-Changing Crispy Baked Fish Tacos
Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, crowd-pleaser, high protein
These panko-crusted gems are topped with cilantro-lime slaw and four-ingredient chipotle crema.
28. Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, pescatarian, one pan
Oh, honey-sweet chili mayo, where have you been all our life? The shrimp are coated in buttermilk batter and panko breadcrumbs and fried, so they're shatteringly crisp.
29. Birria Tacos
Time Commitment: 2 hours
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein, kid-friendly, one pot
If you’re not washing each birria taco down with a shot of the savory stew juice (aka consomé), you’re doing it wrong.
30. Quinoa Black Bean Tacos
Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, one pot
A healthy vegetarian main worth adding to your weekly rotation. Plate the leftover filling atop a bed of greens to make a quick salad.
31. Baked Beef Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, high protein
The melted cheese in these baked tacos will make this your new favorite way to prep the meal. Trust.
32. Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Tacos
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: Instant Pot recipe
Complete with garlicky, herbed ranch dressing from scratch. Fresh cabbage, lime and avocado cut through right through the heat of the Buffalo sauce.
33. Epic Vegetarian Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour
Why We Love It: vegetarian, kid-friendly
There’s truly no such thing as too many pickled onions. The same goes for creamy avocado dip and cotija cheese.
34. Korean Beef Tacos
Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
You had us at caramelized kimchi (OK, and again at sriracha mayo). The beef's seasoning would taste great on salmon or tofu, too.
35. 20-Minute Jackfruit Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: vegan, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients
Canned green jackfruit does it again. In terms of texture, it's a lot like pulled pork.
36. Ground Turkey Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, <30 minutes
Just as easy to prepare as beef, but with a fraction of the fat.
37. Spicy Shrimp Tacos with Garlic Cilantro Lime Slaw
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy
Pop the shrimp on the grill instead of cooking them in a skillet if the weather allows.
38. Vegetarian Crispy Cactus Tacos
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, special occasion-worthy
Nopales, no problem—especially when they’re drizzled in avocado sauce and black bean-corn relish.
39. Philly Cheesesteak Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, kid-friendly, one pan
Behold, the most epic sandwich-inspired mashup we never knew we needed.
40. Shrimp Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein
We love you, yogurt slaw. Toss the leftover shrimp atop kale, spinach or lettuce for tomorrow’s lunch.
41. Ground Beef Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, high protein, <30 minutes
How pretty is the cherry tomato pico de gallo?
42. Egg Tacos with Roasted Poblano, Onion and Corn Salsa
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein
Make double of the salsa to pair with grilled steak, pork chops, shredded chicken or seared fish. (You can also mix it into grain bowls or salads.)
43. Griddled Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein
They’re stuffed with chicken, refried beans, onions and cheese, then toasted like a quesadilla.
44. Grilled Chipotle Fish Tacos with Peach Salsa
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy
Choose your favorite white fish or make the tacos vegan by substituting Portobello mushrooms or tofu instead.
45. Squash Tacos with Chile Peanut Salsa
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free
These have unexpected Thanksgiving appetizer written all over them.
46. Salsa Verde Lentil Tacos with Mango-Pomegranate Pico
Time Commitment: 1 hour
Why We Love It: vegan, dairy free, one pot
Go the extra mile and make your own salsa verde, or save time with canned salsa verde or green enchilada sauce.
47. Greek Lamb Tacos with Minted Yogurt Sauce
Time Commitment: 3 hours and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein
Who knew tacos and gyros got along so well? Don't even get us started on the bonus herbed caper sauce.
48. Austin-Style Breakfast Tacos
Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
No wonder they say everything’s bigger in Texas: These are piled high with a generous dose of home fries.
49. Slow Cooker Tacos Al Pastor
Time Commitment: 4 hours and 10 minutes
Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, one pot, high protein, special occasion-worthy
This summery meal stars roasted pork shoulder and pineapple.
50. Zucchini Rajas Salmon Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, high protein
If you’re not into spicy food, this rendition of rajas trades poblano peppers for cool zucchini.
51. Street Corn Chicken Tacos
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy
Four words: Jalapeño. Lime. Cashew. Sauce.
52. Pea Guacamole and Seared Halloumi Soft Tacos
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly
If you think meatless tacos are boring, seared slabs of salty halloumi cheese will change your mind.
53. Grilled Steak Tacos with Cilantro Chimichurri Sauce
Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy
Catch us making these for every barbecue we ever host. Might we suggest finishing them off with a drizzle of chipotle mayo?
54. Mushroom Al Pastor Tacos with Garlic Lime Special Sauce
Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, one pan
Swap pork for meaty cremini mushrooms in chipotle-pineapple marinade.
55. Blackened Salmon Tacos with Forbidden Rice and Mango Guacamole
Time Commitment: 50 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy
Heart-healthy never looked so damn delicious. The salmon is baked, but you can also grill or sear it on the stovetop.
56. Ground Beef Tacos
Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, high protein
OK, we said no run-of-the-mill ground beef tacos. But we’d be lying if we said they didn’t hold a special, nostalgic place in our hearts (and tummies).
57. Chocolaty Dessert Taco Bar
Time Commitment: 1 hour
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy
Cookie shells filled with chocolate mousse and topped with everything from berries to edible rose petals? Swoon.
RELATED: 35 Mexican Side Dishes That Are Quick, Easy and Oh So Cheesy
For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.
