These Air Fryer Taquitos are loaded with shredded chicken, refried beans, cheddar cheese, and green chile salsa. With salsa, sour cream, and guacamole for dipping, they make a great light dinner or hearty appetizer.
These crispy loaded chicken taquitos are rolled and air fried to make them super crispy, and they’re healthy, too.
Why do you call them Loaded Air Fryer Taquitos?
Most recipes for chicken taquitos are just chicken and cheese rolled up in tortillas and deep fried. These are different. Better!
To make these air fryer taquitos, I first spread some refried beans on each tortilla. Then I add a flavorful mix of shredded chicken, sharp cheddar cheese, salsa verde, and spices.
Then to keep them on the lighter side, I cook these taquitos in an air fryer rather than deep frying them.
These healthy taquitos are so, so good. Kids love them. Adults love them. You are going to love them!
From muffin pans and racks that fit inside your basket to oil sprayers, tongs, skewers, racks, and more, these are the accessories we use the most with our air fryers.
What ingredients do you need?
- Shredded chicken. You can use rotisserie chicken or any leftover cooked chicken you happen to have on hand.
- Refried beans. I love to use my homemade Instant Pot refried beans, but you can use canned refried beans, too.
- Salsa verde. I like Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Salsa, which is made with Hatch green chiles. It’s on the spicy side, which my family loves. You can use any salsa you like, though!
- Chili powder
- Ground cumin
- Paprika
- Corn tortillas
- Oil for brushing or spraying
How do you make them?
These chicken taquitos are so easy to make in the air fryer. Here are the steps:
- Heat the tortillas in the air fryer for a few minutes (wrapped in foil.)
- Mix the filling ingredients together.
- Spread a bit of refried beans on each tortilla.
- Add a spoonful of the filling mixture.
- Roll the tortilla up around the filling.
- Spray or brush each taquito with oil.
- Cook in the air fryer, turning over in the middle of cooking, until golden brown and crisp.
Can you make these taquitos in the oven?
Yes! You can bake these taquitos in the oven and they will be just as crispy and delicious. Bake them at 425ºF for about 15 to 20 minutes.
What do you serve with loaded air fryer chicken taquitos?
These are hearty taquitos that can absolutely make a good filling and healthy entrée, or you can serve them as an appetizer.
Either way, I like to serve them with an assortment of things to dip them in. I usually serve salsa, guacamole, and sour cream alongside.
If you want to make this a meal, add a bold, flavorful Southwest Salad.
Tips for success
Follow these tips to make the best air fryer taquitos:
- Be sure to preheat the tortillas for a few minutes as directed in the recipe. This makes them more pliable. If you skip this step, the tortillas make break when you try to roll them up. So frustrating!
- Use regular taco size corn tortillas, not the tiny street taco size.
- Use pre-cooked chicken. I use either leftover roast chicken or buy a rotisserie chicken from the supermarket.
- If you don’t have any cooked chicken, you can quicky poach some breast or thigh meat and then shred it.
I use this GoWise 5.8-Quart Air Fryer and love it. There are lots of great choices of air fryers available, including basket style like mine or oven style.
Air Fryer Taquitos
Ingredients
- 1 cup shredded chicken
- ¼ cup green salsa or salsa verde I like Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Salsa
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- 1 cup shredded sharp white cheddar cheese or use a Mexican blend
- ½ cup refried beans
- 10 corn tortillas
- Oil for brushing or spraying
Instructions
- Wrap the tortillas in foil.
- Place the foil-wrapped tortillas in the air fryer and heat at 400ºF for about 5 minutes.
- While the tortillas are heating, in a medium bowl, mix together the chicken, salsa, garlic, chili powder, cumin, and paprika. Stir to mix well. Add the cheese and toss to incorporate it.
- Remove the tortillas from the air fryer and place a parchment paper liner in the air fryer basket, if desired.
- Spread each tortilla with about 1 tablespoon of refried beans, then put a heaping tablespoon of the chicken mixture in a line down the center. Roll the tortilla up around the filling and secure with a toothpick if necessary. Place each filled and rolled taquito in the air fryer basket, seam side down if not using toothpicks.
- Mist or brush each taquito all over with oil (you can use olive, safflower, sunflower, canola, avocado, corn, etc.)
- Cook in the air fryer for about 7 minutes, until the taquitos are light golden brown on top.
- Turn the taquitos over, mist or brush with a bit more oil, and cook for 4 or 5 minutes longer, until they are golden brown and crisp all over.
- Serve immediately with desired toppings.
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