Crockpot Meals

57 Taco Recipe Ideas to Get You Through Every Tuesday of the Year (and Then Some)

By 3 years ago

Taco Tuesday is our favorite day of the week. But the usual suspects (read: ground beef with shredded cheese and basic fixings) can get a little, well…boring. Spice things up with these 57 taco recipe ideas, aka more than a year’s worth of weekly meals that your dinner guests will go gaga for. Whether you’re all about fork-tender birria, spicy shrimp or crispy cauliflower, these dishes will bust you out of your recipe rut for good.

RELATED: 18 Taco Bowl Recipes That Will Spice Up Your Lunch and Dinner Rotations

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 10 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein, kid-friendly

BRB, going for a swim in homemade queso. The cauliflower is coated in taco-seasoned flour before being baked to crispy perfection.

Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, high protein, kid-friendly

The black pepper bacon cooks on a baking sheet in the oven for minimal mess and maximum crunch.

Time Commitment: 7 hours and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, slow cooker recipe, high protein

Just season, set and forget the pork shoulder in your Crockpot until it’s fall-apart juicy and soft.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 35 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly

Taco Tuesday does Meatless Monday. (The funky blue cheese crema would taste great on cheeseburgers, too.)

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, high protein

One bite and boom: You’re at the beach with a cocktail in hand, preferably a margarita.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, high protein

We have a feeling these will become your kids’ new favorite breakfast. Drizzle theirs in syrup and yours in hot sauce.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 50 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy

The salsa is crunchy, citrusy and ridiculously refreshing, meaning it’s just the ticket for your first alfresco dinner party of the year.

Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly

File under Sneaky Ways to Convince Kids to Eat Vegetables. (Thanks, goat cheese.)

The only downside to hard taco shells? All the filling falls out once you take a bite. These are fried after being filled, so all the goods (read: rotisserie chicken and cheese) stay in place. Genius.

Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy

Complete with grilled pineapple salsa and vegan cashew-lime crema.

Time Commitment: 55 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein

This tangy tropical fruit is the ultimate plant-based meat alternative. Use non-dairy cheese instead of queso fresco to make the tacos vegan.

Time Commitment: 4 hours and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy, one pan

Marinating the flank steak in apple cider vinegar and lime juice helps tenderize the meat.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients

The recipe calls for shredding the sweet spuds with a box grater, but you can get the job done even faster by using a food processor with a grater attachment.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, special occasion-worthy, high protein

Nothing says summer quite like lime-kissed, battered tilapia. Feel free to add sliced avocado and pickled onions before digging in.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser

Drape corn tortillas over your oven racks to turn them into taco shells with flat bottoms.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, one pan, beginner-friendly

Starring a punchy chipotle blender sauce that will keep your guests from realizing you started with rotisserie chicken.

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegan, special occasion-worthy

Swap the plantain for yam or the cauliflower for broccoli if you’d like. (P.S.: Save some pesto to stir into fresh pasta.)

Time Commitment: 8 hours and 25 minutes
Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, one pot, crowd-pleaser, high protein

The briny dill pickle cuts right through the heat of the gochujang.

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, vegetarian

A dollop of labneh? Don’t mind if we do. For the uninitiated, these are loosely inspired by rajas con crema, a Mexican dish starring sliced poblano peppers and cream.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 5 minutes (includes infusing honey)
Why We Love It: vegetarian, <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser

Psst: Drizzle the leftover hot honey on pizza, fried chicken, roasted veggies, turkey sandwiches or even vanilla ice cream. Thank us later.

Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, beginner-friendly

The only thing better than fried fish? Fried fish on a flaky biscuit. (They start with canned biscuit dough, BTW.)

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high fiber, beginner-friendly

Greek yogurt-lime crema > store-bought sour cream. The recipe calls for canned beans, so it comes together in a flash.

Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, vegetarian, special occasion-worthy

Consider these a one-way ticket to your happy place. (Hi, serrano cream sauce.)

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, special occasion-worthy

Creole-spiced cod meets mango pico de gallo and the tangiest, creamiest avocado crema of all time.

Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly

To the maple syrup versus hot sauce dilemma, we say: ¿Por qué no los dos? Substitute breakfast sausage or chorizo for bacon if you’d prefer.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein, crowd-pleaser, one pan

Carne asada + onion + lime + cilantro = proof that sometimes, less is more. (Although a dollop of guac wouldn’t hurt.)

Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, crowd-pleaser, high protein

These panko-crusted gems are topped with cilantro-lime slaw and four-ingredient chipotle crema.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, pescatarian, one pan

Oh, honey-sweet chili mayo, where have you been all our life? The shrimp are coated in buttermilk batter and panko breadcrumbs and fried, so they’re shatteringly crisp.

Time Commitment: 2 hours
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein, kid-friendly, one pot

If you’re not washing each birria taco down with a shot of the savory stew juice (aka consomé), you’re doing it wrong.

Time Commitment: 45 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, one pot

A healthy vegetarian main worth adding to your weekly rotation. Plate the leftover filling atop a bed of greens to make a quick salad.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, high protein

The melted cheese in these baked tacos will make this your new favorite way to prep the meal. Trust.

Complete with garlicky, herbed ranch dressing from scratch. Fresh cabbage, lime and avocado cut through right through the heat of the Buffalo sauce.

There’s truly no such thing as too many pickled onions. The same goes for creamy avocado dip and cotija cheese.

Time Commitment: 35 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser

You had us at caramelized kimchi (OK, and again at sriracha mayo). The beef’s seasoning would taste great on salmon or tofu, too.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: vegan, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients

Canned green jackfruit does it again. In terms of texture, it’s a lot like pulled pork.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, <30 minutes

Just as easy to prepare as beef, but with a fraction of the fat.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy

Pop the shrimp on the grill instead of cooking them in a skillet if the weather allows.

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, special occasion-worthy

Nopales, no problem—especially when they’re drizzled in avocado sauce and black bean-corn relish.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, kid-friendly, one pan

Behold, the most epic sandwich-inspired mashup we never knew we needed.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein

We love you, yogurt slaw. Toss the leftover shrimp atop kale, spinach or lettuce for tomorrow’s lunch.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, high protein, <30 minutes

How pretty is the cherry tomato pico de gallo?

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, high protein

Make double of the salsa to pair with grilled steak, pork chops, shredded chicken or seared fish. (You can also mix it into grain bowls or salads.)

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein

They’re stuffed with chicken, refried beans, onions and cheese, then toasted like a quesadilla.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy

Choose your favorite white fish or make the tacos vegan by substituting Portobello mushrooms or tofu instead.

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free

These have unexpected Thanksgiving appetizer written all over them.

Go the extra mile and make your own salsa verde, or save time with canned salsa verde or green enchilada sauce.

Time Commitment: 3 hours and 30 minutes
Why We Love It: special occasion-worthy, high protein

Who knew tacos and gyros got along so well? Don’t even get us started on the bonus herbed caper sauce.

Time Commitment: 40 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly

No wonder they say everything’s bigger in Texas: These are piled high with a generous dose of home fries.

Time Commitment: 4 hours and 10 minutes
Why We Love It: slow cooker recipe, one pot, high protein, special occasion-worthy

This summery meal stars roasted pork shoulder and pineapple.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: <30 minutes, pescatarian, high protein

If you’re not into spicy food, this rendition of rajas trades poblano peppers for cool zucchini.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy

Four words: Jalapeño. Lime. Cashew. Sauce.

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, beginner-friendly

If you think meatless tacos are boring, seared slabs of salty halloumi cheese will change your mind.

Time Commitment: 1 hour and 20 minutes
Why We Love It: high protein, special occasion-worthy

Catch us making these for every barbecue we ever host. Might we suggest finishing them off with a drizzle of chipotle mayo?

Time Commitment: 30 minutes
Why We Love It: vegetarian, one pan

Swap pork for meaty cremini mushrooms in chipotle-pineapple marinade.

Time Commitment: 50 minutes
Why We Love It: pescatarian, high protein, special occasion-worthy

Heart-healthy never looked so damn delicious. The salmon is baked, but you can also grill or sear it on the stovetop.

Time Commitment: 20 minutes
Why We Love It: kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, high protein

OK, we said no run-of-the-mill ground beef tacos. But we’d be lying if we said they didn’t hold a special, nostalgic place in our hearts (and tummies).

Cookie shells filled with chocolate mousse and topped with everything from berries to edible rose petals? Swoon.

RELATED: 35 Mexican Side Dishes That Are Quick, Easy and Oh So Cheesy

For even more great recipes, check out our first cookbook, Only the Good Stuff.

Tags: Crockpot Breakfast, Crockpot Chicken, Crockpot Dishes, Crockpot Meals, Crockpot Stew, Dump Dinners, Dump Meals, Slowcooker Meals