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Enjoy the flavors of perfectly crunchy Oven Baked Turkey Tacos with this delicious and easy-to-make recipe. The tacos feature everything you love like tomatoes, chiles, cheese, and onion!
The most delicious ground turkey tacos
Chicken tacos, beef tacos, chorizo tacos… if it has “tacos” in the name, it’s likely a winner in my book! But sometimes, I want tacos in a healthier style made with all of the delicious flavor but fewer unnecessary additions. That’s where these come in!
These oven baked turkey tacos are a delicious, healthy meal option made with all of the toppings we love: onion, tomatoes, and cheese, to name a few. Ground turkey is used as a low-fat meat choice, and each individual taco is assembled and baked (shell included!) for a unique approach to the dinner classic.
Ingredients in oven baked turkey tacos
Each ingredient in ground turkey tacos is used to add flavor and great texture. In addition to these, I sometimes add lettuce (after baking) to include a bit of extra crunch!
- Taco shells: Start with 12 hard taco shells. We’ll be adding all of the fillings and assembling each one before baking!
- Avcado oil: 2 tbsp of avocado oil will be used to sauté the onion.
- Onion: Use 1/2 of a small yellow onion, and dice it into small pieces.
- Turkey: For the meat, 1 lb of ground turkey will be plenty for filling all 12 taco shells.
- Taco seasoning: Add flavor to the dish with 1 packet of taco seasoning.
- Diced tomatoes: 1 14oz can of drained diced tomatoes will add a delicious flavor.
- Green chiles: For added flavor and a dash of heat, include 1 4oz can of green chiles (drained).
- Refried beans: 1 14oz can of refried beans will add bulk and extra protein to the tacos.
- Cheddar: Add cheesienss with 1 cup of shredded cheddar.
- Cilantro: Last but not least, garnish the tacos with fresh cilantro before enjoying.
Kitchen tools required to make this recipe
You will need 5 main kitchen tools to prepare this turkey taco recipe. Before starting, grab a cutting board, chopping knife, baking dish, large pan, and a spatula. For measuring you will need 1 tablespoon and 1 cup.
How to make this turkey taco recipe
These are made a bit differently than regular tacos. Rather than preparing the fillings and assembling before enjoying, we’ll assemble each shell and pop them in the oven for added crunchiness and flavor!
To begin, preheat the oven to 400°F and grease a 9×13 baking dish.
Lay the taco shells upright in the baking dish and bake for 6 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large pan. Once hot, add the diced onions.
After about 2-3 minutes when the onions start to soften, add the ground turkey. Cook until no longer pink.
Reduce the heat to medium and add the taco seasoning, diced tomatoes, and green chiles. Stir until well combined. Cook for 4 more minutes, and then turn off the heat.
Add 2 tbsp of the refried beans to the bottom of each taco shell. Layer the meat mixture on top of the beans, using up all of the meat across the 12 shells.
Sit the shells upright in the baking dish and top with cheese.
Bake for 8 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro before serving.
Additional taco toppings
The world of tacos is large, and there are so many toppings you can include! Try out some of these ideas, either baked into the tacos or sprinkled on top at the end.
- Diced jalapeno
- Diced green pepper
- Black beans
- Red onion (for a more potent flavor if preferred)
- Lime rice
- Cotija cheese (add after baking)
- Sour cream (add after baking)
Storing and reheating
Leftover turkey tacos can be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated for 1-2 days.
Because turkey tacos are pre-assembled they are best enjoyed immediately after preparing. However, the leftovers are certainly still delicious! I recommend reheating in an air fryer or oven. An air fryer is going to result in a crispier taco!
If you liked this recipe, you’ll want to try these!
If you’re like me, you can never have too many tacos! Try these tempeh tacos, or go for something similar yet different with taco dip, enchiladas, or salsa!
Recipe by Erin Morrissey and Photos by The Mindful Hapa
Oven Baked Turkey Tacos
Enjoy the flavors of perfectly crunchy Oven Baked Turkey Tacos with this delicious and easy-to-make recipe. The tacos feature everything you love, like tomatoes, chiles, cheese, and onion!
Ingredients
- 12 hard taco shells
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- 1/2 small yellow onion, diced
- 1lb ground turkey
- 1 packet taco seasoning
- 1 14oz can diced tomatoes, drained
- 1 4oz can green chiles, drained
- 1 14oz can refried beans
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- cilantro for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F and grease a 9×13 baking dish
- Lay 12 taco shells upright in baking dish and bake for 6 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large pan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, add diced onions.
- After about 2-3 minutes once onions start to soften, add in ground turkey. Cook until no longer pink.
- Reduce heat to medium and add in taco seasoning, diced tomatoes, and green chiles. Stir until well combined. Cook for 4 minutes then turn off heat.
- Add 2 tbsp of refried beans to the bottom of each taco shell. Then stuff the shells full with the meat mixture, using up all of the meat on the 12 shells.
- Sit the shells upright in the baking dish, then top with cheese.
- Bake for 8 minutes, and then sprinkle with cilantro for serving.
- Enjoy!
Notes
These are best eaten day of, but can be reheated in an airfryer or oven.
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Sami says
YUM!!! Delicious easy taco recipe. Will be using this recipe for tacos moving forward. Thanks, Erin!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Sami, so glad you loved them!!
Janet says
We love these tacos! I’ll never make tacos another way again 🙂
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Janet, so glad you loved them!!
Christine says
Another tasty dinner item by ELW! Easy to make & loved by all for a Mexican themed dinner night. Even made the Salty Dog drink!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Christine, so glad you loved them!!
Marissa says
Delish!! So crunchy but soft at the same time. Loved them! Also so easy and super quick
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Marissa, so glad you loved them!! 🙂
Beth says
These tacos are everything! Flavorful, easy to make, and fun! My boyfriend couldn’t stop saying how good they were and even said “who needs Taco Bell wit these tacos?!” These will definitely be a repeat recipe around here, thanks Erin!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Beth, so glad you both loved them so much!! 🙂
Sam says
We had these today for Cinco de Mayo and they were phenomenal!! My husband even said he’s never making his own tacos again. 🤣
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Sam, so glad you both loved them!!
Sam says
So much flavor!! And so simple! I used ground chicken because that’s what I had, and they turned out great 😊
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Sam, so happy you enjoyed them!! 🙂
Brittany says
This took taco Tuesday to a whole new level!! Absolutely incredible!!!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Brittany, so glad you loved them!!
Nikki Campbell says
The most amazing way to have tacos! My husband and I will never make them a different way again.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Nikki, so glad you both loved them!!
Courtney says
Loved these tacos! So easy to make and so much more flavorful than my standard tacos. I cannot wait to make them again!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Courtney, so glad you loved them!!
Megan says
These are amazing!!!! 10/10 will make again soon
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Megan, so glad you loved them!!
Moira says
We loved these! So yummy- my husband raved about them and said it’s the best meal we’ve had in a long time! Another awesome ELW recipe
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Moira, so glad you both loved them!!
Kristin says
Best tacos ever!! We’ve made them 2 times in the past 2 weeks!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Kristin, so glad you loved them!! 🙂
Kate says
We eat tacos every other week. This was such a great change up. So simple yet delicious!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Kate, so happy you loved them!! 🙂
Maisie Heldt says
I absolutely loved them! I used 97/3 ground turkey and usually it’s so dry and hard to flavor but erin hit it spot on!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Maisie, so glad you loved them so much! 🙂
Emily Kellam says
Just made these last night! So easy and delish! Love the addition of the refried beans 🤩 will def be making again!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Emily, so glad you enjoyed them!! 🙂
Julie says
This is what nachos should be! The shells are so crispy and you get toppings on every bite. Super easy to make especially if you need something for a crowd.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Julie, so glad you loved them!! 🙂
Len says
These were awesome and so easy. I used 1 cup of thawed frozen corn instead of beans because we love beans but beans don’t love us. 🙂 I just mixed the corn with the turkey mix at the end. I used a rotel tomatoes with chiles and also added the can of chiles for a little more heat. I actually found low sodium taco seasoning. To serve added a chopped avacodo, shredded lettuce and a bit of sour cream. The most difficult part of this reciepe was getting the shells upright.
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Len, so glad you enjoyed them and made them your own! Thanks for sharing!!
Dale Laing says
These tacos were so incredibly easy to make. Just delicious! I had leftover chicken from a rotisserie so I used that instead of ground turkey. We loved it!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Dale, so glad you loved them and made them your own!!
Avery says
These tacos were so good!! They were packed with flavor! It was a great meal for leftovers too!
★★★★★
Erin says
Hi Avery, so glad you loved them!!