Cody Casey
Air fryers are a great way to make homemade taquitos, with many recipes available online for chicken, beef, or cheese fillings. The process is simple: prepare your chosen filling, roll it up in a tortilla, brush with oil, and air fry until crispy. Air fryer taquitos are a versatile dish, perfect for a quick and easy dinner, an afternoon snack, or a party appetizer. They can be served plain or with a variety of toppings and dips, such as guacamole, sour cream, salsa, or Mexican rice and beans.
Characteristics and Values Table for Air Fryer Taquitos
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Ingredients | Corn or flour tortillas, cheese, green chilis, shredded chicken, beef, beans, avocado oil, Mexican rice, salsa, guacamole, cilantro, spices |
| Preparation | Soften tortillas, fill with cheese and other ingredients, roll, brush with oil, air fry |
| Temperature | 380-400°F (180-200°C) |
| Cook Time | 6-10 minutes |
| Yield | 8-12 taquitos |
| Calories | 160 per taquito |
| Nutrition | Total Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0g, Unsaturated Fat: 4g, Cholesterol: 23mg, Sodium: 195mg, Carbohydrates: 13g, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Protein: 8g |
| Storage | Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, freeze for up to 3 months |
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What You'll Learn
Choosing your ingredients
When it comes to choosing your ingredients, there are a few key components to making homemade taquitos in an air fryer. The first is the choice of tortilla. Corn tortillas are more fragile than flour tortillas, and they need to be softened before being used to make taquitos. You can do this by placing them in the microwave wrapped in a damp paper towel for around 30-40 seconds, or you can heat them in a skillet. Spraying them with olive oil or avocado oil first will make them more pliable and help them crisp up in the air fryer.
The next key ingredient is the filling. You can choose from a variety of fillings, including cooked shredded chicken, shredded beef, pulled pork, or ground beef. If you're short on time, you can use shredded rotisserie chicken or leftover cooked chicken. For a vegetarian option, you can fill your taquitos with beans. To prepare the filling, cook your chosen protein with seasonings such as paprika, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley flakes, and salt. Cook the meat until it is no longer pink, then drain the excess fat and set it aside.
The final key ingredient is cheese. You can use shredded cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese sticks, or cheddar cheese sticks. If you're using cheese sticks, slice them down the middle to create a pocket for the filling. You can also add green chilis to the cheese for a spicy kick. Other optional ingredients include sour cream, Mexican tomato sauce, guacamole, and fresh cilantro for serving.
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Preparing the filling
If you're making your own filling, start by heating oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook until soft and translucent, which should take about 3 to 5 minutes. Next, add garlic and cook for about 1 minute until fragrant. At this point, you can add your choice of additional ingredients such as green chiles, Mexican tomato sauce, or salsa verde. You can also add cheese to your filling—mozzarella, cheddar, or pepper jack cheese sticks work well. If you're using cheese, be sure to not cut through the cheese stick, or the chilis will spill out. For a heartier filling, add shredded chicken, beef, or beans along with the cheese.
Once you've added your desired ingredients to the skillet, continue cooking and stirring for 2-3 minutes until everything is combined and warmed through. Season with salt and pepper to taste. You can also add other seasonings like paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley flakes, and more.
Now that your filling is ready, it's time to assemble your taquitos. Wrap your tortillas in a damp paper towel and heat them in the microwave for about 30-40 seconds, or until they are soft and pliable. You can also heat them in a skillet or directly on a gas stove. Place about 3-4 tablespoons of the filling in the center of each tortilla and roll them up tightly. Secure each taquito with a toothpick to prevent unrolling.
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Rolling the tortillas
Corn tortillas are more fragile than flour tortillas and need to be softened before being rolled up as taquitos. You can do this by placing them in the microwave wrapped in a damp paper towel for 30-40 seconds, or heating them in a small non-stick skillet. Spraying them with a little olive oil first and then heating gently on both sides will make them even more pliable and help them crisp up in the air fryer.
Once the tortillas are soft and pliable, you can start filling and rolling them. Place 3-4 tablespoons of your chosen filling in the middle of the tortilla and roll the tortilla up tightly over the mixture. If you are using cheese, you can slice a cheese stick down the middle, creating a pocket to stuff with the chillies, and then roll up the tortilla. Place a toothpick in the middle to prevent the taquito from unrolling.
Repeat this process until you have made enough taquitos. Remember to leave enough space between each one for the air to circulate when placing them in the air fryer basket.
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Cooking the taquitos
Taquitos are a great snack or meal option, and they're even better when they're homemade and cooked in an air fryer. Here's a detailed guide on how to cook homemade taquitos in an air fryer:
Prepare the Filling:
Start by preparing your desired filling. For a chicken filling, you can use shredded rotisserie chicken or cook chicken breasts in an instant pot and shred them. You can also use leftover cooked chicken. In a skillet, heat some oil over medium heat and add onions. Cook until they become soft and translucent. Next, add garlic and cook until fragrant. At this point, you can add your preferred ingredients like green chiles, Mexican tomato sauce, or other seasonings. Stir everything together. If you're using cheese, add it now and stir until it melts. You can use Mexican cheese, Neufchâtel cheese, mozzarella, cheddar, or queso fresco, depending on your preference. Finally, add your shredded chicken to the mixture and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Prepare the Tortillas:
You can use corn or flour tortillas for your taquitos. Corn tortillas are more fragile, so they need to be softened first. Wrap them in a paper towel and heat them in the microwave for 30-40 seconds, or until soft and pliable. Alternatively, you can heat them in a skillet. Brush both sides of the tortillas with olive oil or avocado oil before heating to make them more pliable and help them crisp up in the air fryer.
Assemble the Taquitos:
Take one tortilla and place 3-4 tablespoons of your chosen filling (chicken, beef, or cheese) in the center. If using cheese, you can use a cheese stick and slice it down the middle, creating a pocket to stuff with green chilis. Roll the tortilla tightly over the filling and secure it with a toothpick if needed. Repeat this process until you have the desired number of taquitos.
Air Frying the Taquitos:
Preheat your air fryer to 380-400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the taquitos in a single layer in the air fryer basket, ensuring they don't touch each other. Brush or spray the taquitos with olive oil, avocado oil, or cooking spray. Air fry for 7-10 minutes, depending on your air fryer and the number of taquitos. For a smaller quantity, you may not need to flip them. However, if you're cooking a larger batch, flip the taquitos midway through cooking and continue air frying for another 3-5 minutes until they're golden brown and crispy.
Your homemade taquitos are now ready to be enjoyed! Serve them with your favorite toppings and sides, such as guacamole, sour cream, salsa, fresh cilantro, or Mexican rice.
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Serving suggestions
Taquitos can be served as a quick and easy dinner, a snack, or an appetizer. They can be served plain or with a variety of toppings and sides.
For toppings, you could use crumble queso fresco, lettuce, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, green onions, or cilantro. For sides, you could serve Mexican rice and beans, or nachos made with carnitas meat.
If you want to make a full Mexican feast, you could serve taquitos as an appetizer followed by a main course of enchiladas suizas.
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Frequently asked questions
You will need chicken, cheese, tortillas, oil, and spices. For spices, you can use paprika, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley flakes, and salt.
First, cook the chicken and spices in a pan. Then, shred the chicken and add it to tortillas with cheese. Roll the tortillas and brush them with oil. Place them in the air fryer and cook until golden brown.
It depends on the quantity and your air fryer's model. Typically, it takes around 6-10 minutes to cook 2-3 taquitos at 400°F. For 8 taquitos, it may take around 7 minutes at the same temperature.
You can serve chicken taquitos with sour cream, salsa, guacamole, green onions, cilantro, and more. You can also serve them with Mexican rice and beans on the side.
Yes, you can make beef taquitos in an air fryer. The process is similar to chicken taquitos, but you cook ground beef with the spices instead of cooked chicken.
