Street Tacos

Once upon a time, I went on an impromptu drive to Mexico, where I fell in love…with street tacos. Local women lined the streets, manning their grill carts, serving up salty pulled chicken or pork wrapped up in freshly griddled corn tortillas, and topped with nothing more than a modest sprinkling of zesty onion and grassy cilantro. They assembled my taco swiftly and seamlessly, right before my very eyes, and if the sight of such transparent artistry wasn’t enough to bring me to my knees in due reverence, the unparalleled flavor certainly was. It was those tacos that made the trip unforgettable.

Luckily for me, my boys looooooooove tacos, so that works out nicely. They love every step of the process, from planning out the toppings to pressing the tortillas to scarfing down the tacos, so Taco Tuesday is pretty much a weekly thing in our house. They respect the taco.

The key to amazing tacos is really all about the tortillas. I highly recommend making them from scratch. It’s so easy, it’s relatively quick and it’s infinitely yummier, which is really all that matters. They can even be made in advance and refrigerated until you’re ready to use them, so when it comes time to put together your tacos, all you have to do is chop your onion and cilantro, shred your chicken right there in the crockpot and reheat your tortillas. Boom. Done.

I used flour tortillas for these, just to switch it up a little, but corn tortillas are equally tasty, and truer to the original Mexican street taco of my dreams. Whichever tortilla you choose though, these are a simple, delicious, tried-and-true taco classic – no impromptu border-crossing required.

Print Recipe

Street Tacos

These tacos are one of my all-time faves, a super delish reminder of one of my very first off-the-cuff adult adventures. Thanks to the crockpot, hands-on prep is pretty minimal.

Votes: 36
Rating: 4.03
You:

Rate this recipe!

Courses

Mexican

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

480 minutes

Servings

tacos MetricUS Imperial

Ingredients

• Chicken:
• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 1 onion roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• Toppings:
• 1 medium onion diced fine
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 12 tortillas
• corn tortilla recipe here
• flour tortilla recipe here

Courses Mexican Prep Time 10 minutes Cook Time 480 minutes Servings tacos MetricUS Imperial Ingredients Chicken: 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs 1 onion roughly chopped 3 cloves garlic minced 2 tsp chili powder 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp smoked paprika 1 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp black pepper Toppings: 1 medium onion diced fine 1/2 cup chopped cilantro 12 tortillas corn tortilla recipe here flour tortilla recipe here

Votes: 36 Rating: 4.03 You: Rate this recipe!

Instructions

1. For the chicken, line the bottom of a crockpot with the roughly chopped onion, then add the chicken and garlic. Mix the chili powder, cumin, smoked paprika, sea salt and black pepper and sprinkle over the chicken. Cook on low for 7-8 hours (recommended) or high for 4 hours.
2. When the chicken is fully cooked, use two forks to shred it.
3. If using pre-made tortillas, reheat them by throwing them onto a hot griddle for a few seconds on each side.
4. To serve, spoon some chicken into each tortilla and top with a little diced onion and chopped cilantro.
5. Enjoy the taste-bud fiesta.