These crispy, cheesy, protein-packed taquitos are the perfect game day snack or comforting meal. Tortillas get filled with a spiced meat, bean, and cheese mixture, and baked until perfectly crisp. Sprinkling cheese underneath each taquito is optional, but it gives you a delicious golden cheese skirt that adds even more crunch and flavor. Serve them with a simple pumpkin lime yogurt (or just use salsa) for dipping!
Ingredient highlight
Beans! are a great way to get in some protein along with a heavy dose of fiber, complex carbs, folic acid, iron, magnesium, and potassium to name a few. They are famous for making you fart (hehe) because of the specific sugars (oligosaccharides) they contain that we have trouble breaking down. Cooking your beans from scratch reduces the fart-causing substances!
Any easy way to sneak beans into recipes is to replace 1/2 of the meat with beans so you still get the meaty flavor but with a major fiber boost.
Servings 4
Prep Time 15 minutes 
Cook Time 30 minutes Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb ground chicken (or other ground meat)
- 1 tsp kosher salt, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼-½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 (15 oz) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup pickled jalapeños, chopped
- 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
- 12-16 medium corn tortillas*
- Olive oil, for brushing
For the sauce:**
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- ½ cup sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- *Corn tortilla tip! They are typically used for taquitos, but the grocery store corn tortillas can be difficult to roll. At the store, gently bend the stack of tortillas – if they’re sticking together, stiff or have broken edges, they’re likely old/will be hard to roll. If you can’t get your hands on high quality, fresh corn tortillas, use small flour tortillas instead. Sometimes you can find a wheat and corn mix as well.
- *The success of these holding together when rolling and during baking depends greatly on the quality of your corn tortillas (see above). If they explode in the oven, don't worry – it will still taste good and hold together! Flour tortillas are more fool proof if you want to ensure they stay together.
- **You can also just dip in salsa, guac, or any other sauce of choice.
- Make it a quesadilla! ~ These are a bit tedious to make. If you want to save time, you can turn these into baked quesadillas. If they aren't staying flat on your baking sheet, place another baking sheet on top for the first 10 minutes of baking time.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drizzle with olive oil.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil, meat, and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, breaking the meat into small crumbles as it cooks, until it is cooked through, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic, smoked paprika, cumin, cinnamon, and red pepper flakes (if using) and cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally.
- Add the beans and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and stir for a minute to combine. Turn off the heat, then use a fork to mash up most of the beans. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in the pumpkin and pickled jalapeños until combined. Add the cheese and mix until evenly distributed.
- Stack the tortillas, wrap them in a damp towel, and microwave until soft and pliable, about 30 seconds. Lay them on a cutting board or large flat surface and brush one side of each tortilla with oil (I like to do 6 at a time and leave the rest in the damp towel to keep warm or warm up again). Flip them over so the oiled side is facing down.
- Scoop a scant ¼ cup of the bean mixture into the center of each tortilla, or enough so that it’s filled but still “roll-able” (depends on size). Spread the filling out into a horizontal strip on the tortilla and roll it up tightly. Place on the baking sheet, seam-side-down. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
- Optional: sprinkle a line of extra cheese underneath each taquito – as it bakes, the cheese will melt and crisp up to form a “cheese skirt”.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until golden and crispy. Let cool for 10-20 minutes before removing from the baking sheet (so the cheese can crisp up and so you don’t burn your mouth off). Then, if any are stuck together from the cheese, use a spatula to break it apart.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the pumpkin, sour cream or yogurt, lime, and salt until combined.
- Serve the taquitos with the sauce for dunking.
Items you can prep ahead (optional)
- Make the pumpkin yogurt sauce
- Chop ½ cup pickled jalapeños
- Cook/mix together the filling
Substitutions:
- To make vegetarian, use an extra can of beans in place of the chicken. You’ll want to add some extra salt because beans need a lot of salt to taste good.
- To make vegan, skip the cheese or use vegan cheese.
- You can easily skip the beans or add an extra half pound of meat.
- Skip the pickled jalapenos if you don’t want any spice. If skipping, you can add in something else pickled, like pickled red onions or pepperoncini.
Storage:
- Store leftovers in an airtight container or resealable bag in the fridge for up to 6 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
Leftovers + Repurposing:
- To reheat from the fridge, place in a 350F oven for 10-20 minutes until warmed through and crisp. You could also pop them in the microwave, but they won’t be as crisp.
- To reheat from frozen, let them thaw out and follow instructions above. Alternatively, you can pop them in a 350F oven for 20-30 minutes or microwave until warmed through. It helps to cut them in half so they can heat through more evenly.
- Serve with all your desired toppings/dips!
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