These chicken taquitos (i.e. Mexican flautas!) are the epitome of a handful of simple ingredients yielding spectacular results- and in a jiffy.
The *Very* Best Chicken Taquitos 🌮
i.e. Mexican Flautas!
Whether you call them taquitos, flautas or tacos dorados, there’s a reason these guys are a staple of comida corrida (i.e. daily cooking) over in Mexico. With their contrasting textures and explosive flavors, calling them good is a serious understatement.
They’re absolutely *lit*.
And it doesn’t hurt that they’re seriously easy to whip up: white corn tortillas are tightly wrapped around shredded chicken (or beef)(or even mashed potatoes). Followed by a brief shallow-frying until golden ‘n super duper crispy. That’s it!
Just don’t forget the toppings, as these guys are what takes your taquitos from good to supreme. Must haves imho are: Mexican crema (or sour cream), a crumbly cheese (ideally something like cotija, but feta works wonders too), a fresh and crisp lettuce and a solid salsa (whether green or red, the choice is yours). Oh and bonus points for pickled onions and their extra sharpness, or even a pico de gallo if the mood strikes.
What protein to use?!
While I personally adore taquitos with a simple shredded chicken (particularly if we’re talking juicy thighs), they’re also spectacularly good with leftover carnitas or shredded beef.
But they’re also once in a while filled up with papa y chorizo (mashed potatoes speckled with pork chorizo) for fairly mind blowing results.
But are taquitos gluten free?
You’re in luck, because taquitos dorados (i.e. crisp golden tacos) are traditionally whipped up using white corn tortillas. Fully gluten free from the get-go.
How do I make them low carb and keto?!
While for soft tortilla tacos (where flour tortillas are interchangeable) my immediate recommendation goes to my (2g net carb!) tortillas… I gotta say that when it comes to crisp recipes I’ve since returned to experimenting with actual corn tortillas.
Particularly with terrific brands such as A La Madre, who are making excellent corn tortillas with good macros (think 3g net carbs). But I’ve also since expanded further and have been digging deeper into the world of ‘heirloom corn’. There’s some speculation, you see, that a lot of the problems with corn have arisen from the cultivation practices and genetic modification (similar to things like grass fed beef, butter, etc). And so, going back to original corn varieties and preparation methods appears to make a huge difference in the ending product.
And frankly? Over the past year I’ve focused on taking note of what individual foods do to my body, rather than follow pre-made diets, to great success. And corn has been an interesting addition back, particularly as a prime example of ‘smart carb eating’. i.e. since it’s generally enjoyed alongside plenty of protein and fats, the whole meal ends up having a fairly low impact on my glycemic response (particularly if preceded with a small veggie entree)(and, even better, if followed by a short walk). You know, this way I don’t go back to the sugar-high-and-crash cycle and use ketosis as the metabolic state that it actually is. #winning
p.s still, if corn is an issue, then do circle back to my grain free tortillas without a doubt as I’ve already used them before successfully for keto taquitos over here (but using a different methodology to get you crisp results quicker!).
Chicken Taquitos (i.e. Mexican Flautas!)
Ingredients
- 6 white corn tortillas
- 1 cup shredded chicken
- avocado oil or cooking oil of choice
To serve:
- Mexican crema sour cream or crème fraîche
- romaine or ice berg lettuce sliced
- cotija queso or Feta cheese crumbled
- salsa of choice
- pickled onions
Instructions
- Place a dry skillet (or comal) over medium heat and pre-heat the tortillas briefly (say 10 seconds on each side). This will simply allow you to roll your taquitos without the tortillas breaking.
- Add roughly 1/2 inch worth of avocado oil (or cooking oil of choice) to a skillet, and heat up over medium heat. To test the temperature, dip a tortilla and if it sizzles nicely, you're all set.
- Place about 2 1/2 tablespoons of shredded chicken towards the edge of each tortilla, roll them tightly to close. Insert one or two wooden toothpicks in order to keep them tightly wrapped while frying. Top tip: if you don't have any toothpicks on hand (I ran out here, in fact), wrap and fry your taquitos right away with the seam down first (it'll crisp up and remain closed thereafter).
- Fry taquitos until crisp and golden all over, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove from pan, and place on a paper towel-lined plate to drain briefly.
- Serve immediately with toppings of choice, my one advice: be (extra) extra!
Delicious! Call me American, but I’d never had flautas before (had to google how to pronounce it as I was waaaay off at first lol).
I eat low carb because I am a diabetic on an insulin pump, my goal being to have the most “normal” blood sugars possible. I also have a continuous glucose monitor (cgm) and thus can see how foods actually affect me in real time as they digest. Just wanted to weigh in – I totally have success eating small amounts of corn like you are talking about here!! A whole cob of corn…no. A big pile of corn chips…no. But something like a taquito, or taco, or tostada, with all the yummy ingredients/toppings etc, I have found is really quite benign as far as spiking my cgm graph. From repeat incidents I have learned that these types of foods are actually something I tend to count as more carbs than they truly seem to be, which I know because there is a carb:insulin ratio I follow and know works for me. Overestimating carb count=too much insulin administered=low blood sugar=proof the food is very low impact on blood sugar (hope I am making sense here). Anyway! I have never made taquitos before, got to try these bad boys out..think I might do beef. Thanks for the new idea, it will be fun!
Isis thanks so much for sharing your experience with all of us, its super valuable feedback. I’ve been educating myself a lot on this subject as of late, as my experience will vary a little as I’m metabolically healthy (I’m also going to be wearing a cgm though in the next few weeks to give you guys actual data… but also about how things such as sleep, exercise, meditation, cold therapy, etc affect it).
Alas! Do check out the A La Madre tortillas though, as they are lower in carbs (by about half I believe) than the regular corn tortillas. xo!
I love A La Madre tortillas! they make the best nachos too! WIll be making thank you Paola
They really are very good Shannon!