Smashed Chicken Tacos are an exciting twist on ground chicken tacos. They feature thin, crusted ground chicken seasoned with bold Mexican spices, topped with pico de gallo and an irresistibly creamy cilantro sauce. These smashed tacos are protein-rich and satisfying!
If you are looking for more yummy taco recipes, then try my air fryer chicken tacos or the potato tacos recipe next!
A Quick Look at the Recipe
✅ Recipe Name: Smashed Chicken Tacos
🕒 Ready In: ~45 minutes
👪 Serves: 8 tacos
🧑🍳 Main Ingredients: Ground chicken, Mexican seasoning, corn tortillas, cilantro sauce and pico de gallo
📖 Dietary Info: High protein
📌 Difficulty: Quick and easy recipe
Why you’ll love these smashed chicken tacos?
Instead of cooking ground chicken in a skillet and then spooning it into a tortilla, this recipe uses the viral smashed taco method—where the seasoned ground chicken is thinly spread directly onto the tortilla and cooked on a hot pan or griddle. The result is a beautifully crispy, flavorful crust with juicy chicken in every bite. It’s a quick, easy, and delicious way to enjoy tacos with a fun twist. Just add your favorite toppings, fold, and enjoy!
- maria doss
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Tips for Success
- Use ground turkey instead of chicken
- Use corn, wheat or corn tortillas
- Feel free to use any of your favorite taco toppings
More Taco Recipes
Smashed Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
For the taco
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper powder optional
- 8 medium corn tortillas
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
For the sauce
- 1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro lightly packed
- ½ jalapeno pepper remove seeds to make it less spicy
- 1 clove garlic
- ½ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- salt to taste
Instructions
To cook tacos
- Mix the chicken. Mix the ground chicken, chopped onion, garlic, chili powder, coriander powder, paprika, ground cumin, salt and cayenne together in a large mixing bowl.
- Spread chicken. Scoop about ¼ cup of the mixture onto each tortilla, then use the back of a spoon or fork to spread it evenly from edge to edge.
- Pan size. Use a non-stick pan that can fit 2–3 tortillas at once. If your pan is smaller, you’ll need to cook one taco at a time. Another option is to use two pans so you can cook multiple tacos simultaneously.
- Cook. Heat a little oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Place a tortilla with the chicken side down and cook for 4–5 minutes. Flip it and cook for another 1–2 minutes. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.Top with your favorite taco toppings and dig in, or use our given method to serve.
Serve
- Top each cooked chicken tortilla with some pico de gallo and a drizzle of the sauce. Enjoy!Make sauce. Add the sauce ingredients into a small blender and process until smooth.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.
Watch How To Make It
How to make?
You can find full printable recipe below, but here is a quick overview of the procedure along with step-by-step photos.
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If you are looking for more recipes using ground chicken, try my ground chicken stir fry or the air fryer chicken meatballs recipe.
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Hi, I’m Maria! I share easy, flavor-packed dinners, high-protein meals, and irresistible baking ideas. If you’ve ever asked, “Don’t know what to cook tonight?” you’re in the right place. And yes—there’s plenty here for breakfast, snacks, and dessert too. More about maria ->
Theron
I don't even know the way I stopped up right here, however I believed this post was once good.
I do not understand who you are but certainly you are going
to a famous blogger in case you are not already.
Cheers!
Georgina Smith
I love the spice mix, best I've tried. I created a buritto bowl by adding rice, black beans and the typical taco toppings. Awesome
Maria Doss
Love to hear that - Maria ❤️
Heidi | The Frugal Girls
These are such a fun way to change up Taco Tuesday! The bold flavors paired with the cool creamy sauce is the perfect combo!