Tex Mex taquitos in a baked cheeseburger rolled tacos version. Ground beef, onions and shredded cheese, rolled up in a tortilla then baked until crispy for lunch, dinner or snacks.
Recipe | What’s the difference between flautas and taquitos?
Ingredients
The ingredients are fairly typical for tacos so you may already have everything handy to make some rolled tacos.
These rolled tacos aren’t authentic Mexican. They’re more of a Tex Mex version of taquitos or flautas. The giveaway is that yellow cheese. Authentic Mexican food doesn’t have yellow cheese. If you want something more authentic, you’ll definitely want to change to queso fresco, enchilado or even mozzarella cheese.
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The Food & Wine website has an article with seven different Mexican cheeses to explore.
My goal today wasn’t to make something authentic. I wanted a no holds barred “CHEESEBURGER” taco. If I had some bacon in the refrigerator, I would have added chopped bacon too! Mmmmm….. bacon. Maybe next time.
I’ve served these rolled tacos with fresh guacamole. If you’re looking for a good guacamole recipe, have a look at Anecia’s recipe at Smarty Pants Kitchen.
Take Your Time
You’re going to want to get your corn tortillas rolled as tightly as you can so you have enough tortilla to form a seam. I don’t know about you, but when I crumble and cook ground beef, I get big chunks of meat.
Chop the ground beef
Before you put the filling into the tortilla, you’re going to need to chop that up into more mangeable pieces. Use a knife or ulu, if you have one.
Shred the cheese
If you want the best, wonderfully melted cheese, you’re going to want to shred it yourself. I know that I use a lot of pre-packaged shredded cheese but it doesn’t melt the same way.
There’s some sort of coating on the pre-packaged shredded cheese to keep it from sticking together in the bag. I love that! But, it’s not really the best thing for super gooey melty cheese.
I like to use the food processor to make quick work of the shredding. You have my permission to eat the bits of cheese that stay in the top of the processor bowl.
Soften the tortillas
The next step is going to be softening the tortillas. I wasn’t completely successful in making all my tortillas perfectly soft. Some of them cracked but they still tasted great!
Remember that you don’t have to be absolutely perfect. Who needs perfect food? We want tasty food!
I brushed these corn tortillas with a very thin coating of olive oil before I put them on the hot griddle. After about 20-30 seconds, I turned them with my fingers. I don’t know. They’re not really that hot so I didn’t need a spatula. Besides, I was feeling brave with mom showing me how to turn them and she turned them like that.
It only takes around 40-60 seconds or so for the tortillas to be softened. Make sure you place them under a towel to help retain the heat.
Alternatives for heating
Sometimes, I like to brush the tortillas with water and heat them in the microwave. This definitely works well so, if you don’t want to heat the tortillas in a skillet or on a griddle, try that way instead.
I will usually use one method or the other depending on my mood. Today, I wanted to use this griddle for something new.
Your goal is soft tortillas. Any heat source should do the trick as long as you’re not drying them out. I’ve written more extensive details for softening corn tortillas.
Frequently Asked Questions
The difference is only about the type of tortilla! Flautas are usually made with blanca flour tortillas and taquitos are usually made with corn tortillas. My personal experience is that taquitos tend to be rolled up more tightly than flautas as well.
A rolled taco is the same as a taquito, only bigger! You have more room to add other things like cheese, beans or rice.
This is fun! The rolled flour tortilla versions are shaped like the musical instrument, a flute, and are therefore named after it.
No, not really. Although these rolled tacos are baked instead of fried, you’re still dealing with a lot of fat and calories from both the ground beef and the cheese. Reduce the fat by reducing the amount of cheese or using a low fat or fat free version. Drain the ground beef really well to remove as much fat as possible. There’s also a lot of sodium. You can reduce the amount of salt added but there’s still a lot of sodium in the cheese. Use less cheese or omit it altogether to reduce the sodium.
More Recipes, Please!
Although I try to provide authentic Mexican food recipes, sometimes I like to change things up in my cooking and include Tex Mex, like I’ve done with these cheeseburger rolled tacos. But, if you’re looking for something more authentic, try one of these tasty Mexican dishes.
For an easy, trending birria tacos recipe, try these delicious Chicken Birria Tacos.
You know that verde green salsa that you get at the table at Mexican restaurants? It’s so easy to make at home. Try our Mexican Salsa Verde Restaurant Style recipe.
Be sure to browse all our Mexican food recipes for more ideas.
Recipe
Baked Cheeseburger Rolled Tacos
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For more information, be sure to check the recipe details in the attached 24Bite® post.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Beef
- 1 large Onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Ground Pepper
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ teaspoon Cumin
- 4 ounces Diced Green Chiles, canned
- 6 ounces Tomato Paste, canned
- ½ cup Water
- 24 Corn Tortillas
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 12 ounces Cheddar Cheese, shredded
Instructions
- In skillet, on medium high heat, crumble and cook ground beef until done, about 10 minutes. Remove and drain fat. Place cooked ground meat on cutting board and chop into fine pieces. Set aside.
- Chop onion. Place cooked ground beef, onion, garlic powder, chili powder, pepper, salt, onion powder, cumin, green chiles, tomato paste and water in same skillet. Mix well. Cook on medium heat until heated through, about 10-15 minutes. Set aside.
- Heat dry skillet, griddle or comal to high heat. Very lightly brush olive oil on tortillas and cook each, turning about every 30 seconds until soft and pliable. This may take only about 40-60 seconds if the griddle is very hot. Remove to plate and cover with clean, dry towel, until all are cooked/softened, about 10-15 minutes total.
- Arrange the ground beef mixture, shredded cheese and tortillas for easy access.
- Preheat oven to 425℉.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place a tortilla on a plate. Place about two tablespoons ground beef mixture in the center. Place about 1 tablespoon shredded cheese on top. Roll as tightly as possible and place on parchment paper, seam side down. Repeat for each tortilla.
- Bake, uncovered, 15-20 minutes, until crispy and browned.
- Allow to cool 10 minutes before serving.
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Notes
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. All amounts are estimates and 24Bite® takes no responsibility for actual figures since calculations vary by packaging and supplier. Please calculate the amounts yourself based on package labeling if you have specific dietary requirements. 24Bite®, Kim Guzman or Christian Guzman shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on this website or actions you take as a result.
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