Turn your taco game up a notch with these crispy ground beef tacos! These oven baked tacos are about to become your new Taco Tuesday dinner obsession – say goodbye to soggy taco shells and hello to crunchy, crispy perfection.
Table of Contents
This recipe is…
Taco lovers, rejoice! We’re about to embark on a crunchy, flavor-packed adventure with these crispy ground beef tacos. Forget the ordinary, because these bad boys are anything but. Picture this: perfectly seasoned, sizzling ground beef baked in a crispy taco shell alongside melted cheese, loaded up with your favorite toppings. It’s a party for your taste buds, and it’s all happening right in your own kitchen.
Whether you’re whipping up a quick weeknight dinner or hosting a taco night fiesta with friends, these tacos are the life of the party. So, grab your apron and get ready to create crunchy taco perfection!
Looking for more perfect crispy taco perfection? We’ve got you. Try our Copycat Cheesy Gordita Crunch Tacos, Beef Birria Tacos, Crispy Black Bean Tacos, Ground Chicken Tacos, and Shredded Chicken Tacos. If you’re looking to change things up a bit, try these shredded chicken nachos!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They’re easy to make – once the ground beef is cooked and crumbled, you’ll just need to assemble the tacos (using regular ole corn tortillas), and then let the oven do the rest of the work.
- They’re crispy – these tacos give a whole new meaning to the typical crunchy taco. They’re baked into crispy, crunchy perfection.
Recipe Ingredients
The ingredients in this list are pretty basic! You’ll need ingredients to make the tacos themselves, ingredients for the dipping sauce, and ingredients for garnish. Find ingredient notes (including substitutions and swaps) below.
- Taco seasoning – feel free to purchase your favorite taco seasoning for this recipe, or, if you’re feeling ambitious, make your own homemade taco seasoning.
- Lemon and lime juice – you’ll need both lemon and lime juice for this recipe. Fresh citrus is always, always the best option, so be sure to grab lemons and limes vs. a shelf-stable bottle of citrus.
- Corn tortillas – while we did photograph this recipe with yellow corn tortillas (and while yellow corn tortillas *do* work), we found that white corn tortillas are slightly more pliable and less likely to break.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Recipe Variations and Modifications
- Use a different protein – ground turkey or ground chicken will both work great as substitutes for the ground beef here.
- Make it vegetarian – if you’re looking for a vegetarian option, follow the instructions for our Crispy Black Bean Tacos. They’re really similar to this recipe, but made with black beans instead of animal protein.
- Add some spice – add jalapeños into the tacos (or garnish with them) to add some spice to this dish.
How to Make Crispy Beef Tacos
This recipe is especially easy. Follow along below!
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 425°F. Brown the beef in a skillet with the taco seasoning. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the moisture has evaporated off of the meat. Add the lime juice and stir.
Step 2: Wrap the tortillas in a towel and microwave on high for 60 seconds. Then, lay the tortillas out on a sheet pan and spray or brush 1 side of the tortillas with olive oil. Flip the tortillas so the olive oil side is down.
Step 3: Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cheese on half of the tortilla. Top the cheese with 2 tablespoons of the ground beef mixture.
Step 4: Add another tablespoon of cheese on top of the ground beef mixture, then fold the tortillas in half.
Step 5: Bake the tacos for 20 minutes. While the tacos bake, make the ranch-style sauce by adding the mayonnaise, dill, and lemon juice to a bowl and whisking until smooth.
Step 6: Garnish with tomatoes, onion, and cilantro, then serve alongside the ranch dipping sauce and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
Microwave the tortillas before assembling the tacos – heating the tortillas in the microwave before assembling the tacos makes them more pliable.
Use white corn tortillas – while yellow corn tortillas *will* work, we found that white corn tortillas are slightly more pliable and do not break as easily when baking.
How to Serve
Serve your crispy tacos topped with tomatoes, cilantro, chopped white onion, and the homemade ranch-style dipping sauce. If you’re looking for a yummy side, black beans would be a delicious pick!
How to Store and Reheat
Store any leftover tacos in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
To reheat your tacos, either pop them in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes, or in a 350°F air fryer for 4-5 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Feel free to use ground turkey or chicken in place of the ground beef. Truly, when it comes to most ground protein recipes (like ground beef burrito bowls or ground turkey meatballs), the ground meat is 100% interchangeable with any other ground meat.
To get the crispiest taco shells, be sure to brush them with olive oil before assembling and baking them.
This is totally up to you and what you have time for! If you want to keep things super simple, buy pre-made taco seasoning, but if you’ve got 5 extra minutes, mix up your own! Our homemade taco seasoning recipe is the best of the best.
More Favorite Taco Recipes
If you tried these Crispy Ground Beef Tacos or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below!
Crispy Ground Beef Tacos
Ingredients
For the Tacos
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning, store-bought or homemade taco seasoning
- Juice of 1 lime
- 2¼ cups shredded Mexican-blend cheese
- 18 corn tortillas
- Olive oil, for brushing each tortilla (approx. ½ teaspoon per tortilla)
For the Ranch-Style Dipping Sauce
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon dried dill
- ¼ cup lemon juice
Optional Garnish
- Fresh chopped tomatoes
- Fresh chopped white onion
- Shredded cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Brown the beef in a skillet with the taco seasoning. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the moisture has evaporated off of the meat. Add the lime juice and stir.
- Wrap the tortillas in a towel and microwave on high for 60 seconds.
- Spray or brush 1 side of the tortillas with olive oil, then flip them over and place them on top of a sheet pan. If your sheet pan is not large enough to hold all of the tortillas, you can work in batches.
- Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of cheese on half of the tortilla. Top the cheese with 2 tablespoons of the ground beef mixture. Then, finish with another tablespoon of cheese. Fold the tortillas in half. Repeat for each of the tortillas.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- While the tacos bake, make the Ranch-style sauce by adding all of the ingredients to a bowl and whisking.
- Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
- Heating the tortillas in the microwave before assembling the tacos makes them more pliable.
- Use white corn tortillas. We found that these are more pliable and do not break when baking.
Nutrition
So easy! My teen boys gobbled these up & asked me to put the recipe on the rotation. Thanks for another winner!
Wahoo! So glad to hear that, Sonja! Thank you for taking the time to share this with us!