Crispy Baked Beef Tacos
Crispy beef tacos are a flavor-packed dinner with juicy ground beef, crispy baked tortilla shells, and your favorite toppings. Perfect for taco night or when you want something wildly satisfying. Gluten free and dairy free.
Ingredients
- 16 small corn tortillas see notes below
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ yellow onion diced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste
- 15 oz can refried pinto or black beans
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shreds I used Miyoko's to keep it dairy free
- avocado oil spray
Toppings
- shredded lettuce
- diced tomatoes
- sliced green onion or cilantro
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Preheat and prep. Preheat the oven to 400ºF/200ºC and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. You may need two baking sheets.
- Warm the tortillas. You can either do this in a hot skillet or in the microwave. See the package instructions. Transfer the warm tortillas to a plate covered with a kitchen towel. Set aside.
- Warm the beans. Warm the refried beans in a small saucepan to help make them easier to spread.
- Cook the beef. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. cook the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent, then add the ground beef. Cook until no pink remains then stir in the taco seasoning and tomato paste. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes to build the flavor, then remove from the heat.
- Assemble the tacos. Place the warm tortillas on the prepared sheet pan. Smear a generous spoonful of the refried beans on one side of the tortilla then top it with 2 tablespoons of the ground meat mixture and a sprinkle of cheese. Continue until you've used up all the filling (you may have some refried beans leftover).
- Fold the tortillas. Keep them upright, fold the sides up together, lightly pressing the edges together, then lay them down on the side you didn’t put any filling on. The weight from the filling side will hold the tacos together.
- Bake. Lightly spray the tops with avocado oil or brush with olive oil. Bake the tacos for 10-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and crispy.
Notes
The amount of tortillas you need may vary depending on the size of your specific tortillas. The tortillas I used were 5 ½ inches in diameter.
See the blog post for helpful tips, storage, and recipe FAQs.