Oven Baked Buffalo Chicken Tacos - These super easy oven baked tacos are loaded with creamy buffalo chicken mixture and then topped with extra shredded cheese! Perfect recipe for taco Tuesday or any day of the week! So much flavor without all of the mess.
So I have a little confession. Before experimenting with these oven baked tacos, I haven't had an oven baked taco before. Crazy, right? We are always doing the typical "cold" taco. By "cold" I mean just warming the taco shells in the oven for a couple of minutes, adding the meat mixture, and finishing them off with our favorite toppings. Those were good. But these buffalo chicken tacos in the oven are perfection!
By baking the mixture and then adding a lot of shredded cheese on top, it allows the flavors to blend into the shell. So, so, good. So if you were like me before and hadn't tried oven baked tacos before, please try these! Especially if you love buffalo chicken.
We love anything with buffalo chicken, as you can see. We have made buffalo chicken french bread, cheesy buffalo chicken cups, buffalo chicken pasta (to die for, so good!), buffalo chicken spaghetti squash (low carb), and healthy buffalo cauliflower bites! And much more that haven't made it to the blog yet.
If you do not prefer spicy foods, you do not have to worry about these buffalo chicken tacos being too spicy. The type of hot sauce you use will determine how spicy they are. I like to use Frank's Red Hot because it has a lot of flavor for a hot sauce and it isn't too spicy, but just enough for my liking.
If you are making a big batch of tacos for a group or a larger family, I recommend using a 9x13 baking pan instead of an 8x8.
Oven Baked Buffalo Chicken Tacos - These super easy oven baked tacos are loaded with creamy buffalo chicken mixture and then topped with extra shredded cheese! Perfect recipe for taco Tuesday or any day of the week! So much flavor without all of the mess.
- 2 large chicken breasts, roughly 2 lbs
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ½ tsp paprika
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened at room temperature
- 2 tbsp butter
- ½ cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
- 12 hard taco shells
- buffalo chicken mixture
- 1 cup Mexican four cheese shredded cheese
- lettuce (optional)
- tomatoes (optional)
- sour cream (optional)
- hot sauce (optional)
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Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Grease an 8x8 baking dish or sheet. Set aside.
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Mix together the salt, pepper, and paprika together in a small ramekin. Coat each chicken breast lightly with the spice mix.
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Place chicken into baking dish or sheet and bake for 18 minutes. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Allow the chicken breasts to completely cool and then shred using two forks or by using a mixer.
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Place the cream cheese, butter, and hot sauce into a large pan and simmer over medium heat until the cream cheese has melted. Making sure to stir frequently.
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Place the shredded chicken into the mixture and stir to coat. Remove from heat.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line hard taco shells into an 8x8 baking dish or a 9x13 baking dish, depending on how many tacos you are making.
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Place 1-2 tablespoons of the buffalo chicken mixture into each hard shelServe with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, and hot sauce. (optional)l, top with shredded cheese. Repeat with all tacos.
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Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese has melted.
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Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, and hot sauce. (optional)
Nutrition estimated is based upon the brands I used. Yours may vary depending on brands.
Katie says
Hi! This looks amazing. Can't wait to make it for my boyfriend. I had a question about the frank's red hot sauce. Just making sure I buy the original franks and not the buffalo wing frank's red hot. Please email me to let me know!
Chelsea says
Great question, Katie! I recommend using Frank's Red Hot and not the buffalo wing sauce. Enjoy!
Jill G says
The Buffalo Franks is the best to use I only use that for my regular buffalo chicken dip has the BEST flavor. But obviously everyone has their own preference.
Kristin says
I have made it with both and there is no difference that I can tell. The wing sauce is maybe a little less strong.
Kris says
I love this recipe !! When I was pregnant I had to have these once a week. Super delicious and simple to make. Thanks for the recipe
Sydney Kelly says
Oh my gosh!!!! These were SOooo yummy!!! Even my dog was loving the smell in the kitchen????????EVERYone loved❤️them! Definitely will be making again & again. Also, I used the tip & and put the chicken in the blender - perfect????
Valerie says
Do you put the lettuce and tomatoes on before you bake the tacos? These look so good!
Chelsea says
No, those are toppings after baking, Valerie.