These Crispy Tacos are cheesy and delicious. They’re stuffed with chicken and a yummy spicy pickle sauce that you’re going to love. This is the perfect meal for Taco Tuesday or an easy weeknight dinner that even the kids will love. This dish is super easy, versatile because you can make it your own with the filling, and addictive!

❤️ Why You’ll Love Crispy Tacos

• Crunchy: There is just something so satisfying about the crunch that comes from these Crispy Tacos. It pairs so perfectly with the gooey cheese and delicious fillings.
• Versatile: Tacos can be made your own by adding your own fillings. This is a great way to get the kids involved in the kitchen, too!
• Healthy: This recipe uses healthy, whole ingredients that you can feel good about putting in your body. They taste great and are good-for-you!

🍲 Ingredients

Tahini – Tahini is a creamy sauce made from sesame seeds, and it adds a nutty flavor to sauces and dips. It’s also high in healthy fats and antioxidants, and it helps make the perfect creamy pickle sauce for these Crispy Tacos.

Greek Yogurt – I love using Greek yogurt as a base for sauces because it’s good-for-you, packed with protein, and is a healthier alternative to sour cream or mayo, which often is the base of a creamy sauce. Greek yogurt is so versatile, and you can’t even tell the difference when it’s swapped into a recipe.

👩‍🍳 How to Make Crispy Tacos

1. Marinate the chicken: To a bowl add the salt, pepper, turmeric, chili powder, greek yogurt, smoked paprika, garlic powder and 2 tbsp olive oil. Whisk together until combined and then add the chicken pieces. Toss to coat with the marinade and marinate on the counter for 30 minutes.
2. While the chicken marinates, make the green sauce: To a food processor add the dill, jalapeno, lemon zest and pickle. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped. Add the lemon juice, pickle juice, tahini, Greek yogurt and olive oil and pulse until you get a fairly smooth sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper if desired. Set aside in the fridge.
3. Make the tomato salad by combining the halved cherry tomatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper and red wine vinegar. Toss to combine and set aside.
4. Dice the red onion and set aside.
5. Cook the chicken: After the chicken has marinated for 30 minutes, heat a large skillet (or flat top grill) over medium-high heat. When the skillet (or grill) is hot, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and then add the pieces of marinated chicken. Cook, stirring often, until the chicken is cooked through and browned. Remove from the heat and set aside.
6. Tip: If you’re using corn tortillas, wrap them in a paper towel and warm them in the microwave for about 30 seconds before assembling them so that they’re more pliable.
7. Assemble the tacos: Lay the tortillas out on a cutting board or even a large baking sheet. Divide the cheese between 10 soft tacos, sprinkling the cheese over each tortilla. Then layer the cooked chicken on one side of each tortilla.
8. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and when the pan is hot, layer 2 tortillas at a time in the pan (don’t fold them over yet). Let them cook for about 1 minute until the cheese starts to melt, then use a spatula to fold over the tortilla to close it. Cook the tortillas for 1-2 more minutes per side until crispy. Repeat until all tacos are cooked.
9. To serve, pull the taco apart and add a tablespoon or two of the tomato salad and diced red onion. Fold the taco back up and dip it into spicy pickle sauce and/or tzatziki.

🪄 Tips and Tricks

• Sauce: If you don’t have time to make the Spicy Pickle Sauce, you can use any creamy sauce in these tacos, like tzatziki.
• Meat: You can totally swap the chicken thighs with ground chicken or chicken breast. I just love how juicy and flavorful thighs are.
• Filling: You can add anything to your tacos. Try tomatoes, grilled corn, red onion, sweet peppers, jalapenos, and the list goes on. Make these your own!

🗒 Variations

If you love these Crispy Tacos, you’re going to love some of my other taco variations:

• Big Mac Tacos
• Sheet Pan Fish Tacos
• Buffalo Chicken Tacos

🗒 Best served with

• Pickled Jalapenos
• Guacamole
• 7-Layer Dip

👝 How to Store Leftovers

These are best enjoyed fresh for ultimate crispiness, but you can store leftovers in the fridge and reheat in a pan. If you can, try to keep them disassembled until you’re ready to re-heat.

🤔 Common Questions

Cheesy Crispy Tacos with Chicken and Spicy Pickle Sauce

No ratings yet

These delicious Crispy Tacos are cheesy, crunchy, and loaded with chicken, and a yummy spicy pickle sauce that you'll want to smother everything with.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved!

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Marinating time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Course Main

Cuisine Mexican-Inspired

Servings 10 tacos

Calories 409 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

For the chicken

• 1 1/2 lbs (650-680 grams) boneless skinless chicken thighs, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1 ½ tsp Diamond Crystal Salt
• ½ tsp ground pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp ground chili powder
• 3 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• 1 ½ tsp smoked ground paprika
• 1 ½ tsp garlic powder
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Spicy pickle sauce

• 1/2 cup packed chopped fresh dill
• 1 jalapeno, seeds removed, coarsely chopped
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest plus
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 small pickle
• 1 tbsp pickle juice
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 6 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Tomato salad

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
• 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ tsp Diamond Crystal Salt
• ¼ tsp ground pepper
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar

For serving

• 1 1 small red onion diced
• 10 6-inch soft corn or flour tortillas
• 3 cups grated mozzarella cheese
• Optional: tzatziki for dipping

Shop Ingredients on Jupiter

Instructions

 

• Marinate the chicken: To a bowl add the salt, pepper, turmeric, chili powder, greek yogurt, smoked paprika, garlic powder and 2 tbsp olive oil. Whisk together until combined and then add the chicken pieces. Toss to coat with the marinade and marinate on the counter for 30 minutes.
• While the chicken marinates, make the green sauce: To a food processor add the dill, jalapeno, lemon zest and pickle. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped. Add the lemon juice, pickle juice, tahini, Greek yogurt and olive oil and pulse until you get a fairly smooth sauce. Taste and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper if desired. Set aside in the fridge.
• Make the tomato salad by combining the halved cherry tomatoes with olive oil, salt, pepper and red wine vinegar. Toss to combine and set aside.
• Dice the red onion and set aside.
• Cook the chicken: After the chicken has marinated for 30 minutes, heat a large skillet (or flat top grill) over medium-high heat. When the skillet (or grill) is hot, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and then add the pieces of marinated chicken. Cook, stirring often, until the chicken is cooked through and browned. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Tip: If you’re using corn tortillas, wrap them in a paper towel and warm them in the microwave for about 30 seconds before assembling them so that they’re more pliable.
• Assemble the tacos: Lay the tortillas out on a cutting board or even a large baking sheet. Divide the cheese between 10 soft tacos, sprinkling the cheese over each tortilla. Then layer the cooked chicken on one side of each tortilla.
• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil and when the pan is hot, layer 2 tortillas at a time in the pan (don’t fold them over yet). Let them cook for about 1 minute until the cheese starts to melt, then use a spatula to fold over the tortilla to close it. Cook the tortillas for 1-2 more minutes per side until crispy. Repeat until all tacos are cooked.
• To serve, pull the taco apart and add a tablespoon or two of the tomato salad and diced red onion. Fold the taco back up and dip into spicy pickle sauce and/or tzatziki.

Notes

• If you don’t have time to make the spicy pickle sauce, just serve with our tzatziki sauce and they will still be delish!
• If you love these tacos, try our Easy Buffalo Chicken Tacos

Nutrition

Serving: 1taco | Calories: 409kcal | Carbohydrates: 27.7g | Protein: 32.8g | Fat: 19.2g | Saturated Fat: 3.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3.7g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10.6g | Cholesterol: 57.1mg | Sodium: 919.4mg | Fiber: 2.2g | Sugar: 2.8g

Review This Recipe Let us know how it was!