With fewer than 10 ingredients, these chicken street tacos come together quickly and easily for a delicious weeknight meal. Marinate the chicken in my zesty, tangy marinade made with homemade chicken taco seasoning, grill the chicken breast, and dinner is done!
You Will Love This
- This chicken street tacos recipe is made with marinated grilled chicken and it's so easy to throw together! It takes just minutes to prep and the best part is you can get the chicken marinating up to 6 hours in advance so it's the perfect make-ahead meal! Once you're ready to eat, just cook the chicken in a hot cast iron griddle or on a grill, and dinner is done!
- If you loved this chicken taco recipe, be sure to check out my easy chicken taco seasoning, 3-ingredient slow cooker chicken tacos, and Greek chicken marinade.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Chicken Breast - Boneless, skinless chicken breast is the best for this recipe, but you could use boneless chicken thighs as well.
- Chicken Marinade - My homemade chicken marinade is made with chicken taco seasoning (a blend of spices including cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and paprika), lime juice, orange juice, olive oil, and cilantro and it will take your chicken from bland to delicious in minutes! If you don't have time to marinate the chicken - ideally the marinade needs about 1-6 hours for optimal flavor - just use the chicken taco seasoning by itself and you'll still get a ton of flavor.
Instructions
Combine the easy chicken taco marinade ingredients together in a bowl.
Add chicken breast to the bowl and nestle the chicken in until it's covered. Marinate for at least 1 hour and up to 6 hours.
Heat cast iron griddle over medium-high heat. Once hot, reduce to medium and add chicken.
Cook in batches until dark golden brown on the outside and cooked through on the inside.
Dice chicken into smaller pieces.
Add chicken to corn tortillas along with your favorite taco toppings.
Tips
- Make the marinade ahead of time! You can prep the marinade up to a day in advance and store it in the fridge. Then add it to the chicken whenever you're ready to marinate.
- Don't skimp on the salt and pepper in this recipe. The ingredient list is short and sweet which means a moderate amount of salt and pepper is going to go a long way in boosting the flavors of everything.
- If you notice the chicken seems to be sticking to the grill grates or grill pan, brush it with olive oil or vegetable oil to prevent sticking.
- Use chicken taco marinade for more than just tacos! Use this marinade on any of your favorite proteins. It's delicious on fish or steak but equally as good on veggies or tofu too!
- While street tacos are generally just topped with cilantro and diced onion, feel free to add your family's favorites. Some of ours include guacamole, Pico de Gallo, shredded lettuce or cabbage, and Cotija cheese.
FAQ
A traditional street taco is typically served with just meat, onion, and cilantro on a corn tortilla. While an Americanized taco is usually served with meat, lettuce, cheese, and tomato inside a flour tortilla. Both are delicious, but street tacos are a great way to really highlight the flavor of the meat.
Street tacos are traditional Mexican tacos made with corn tortillas filled with meat, diced onion, and cilantro. They are often served with salsa on the side as well.
Street tacos typically use small, soft, corn tortillas, instead of crunchy hard taco shells or flour tortillas. Each taco is often served using 2 corn tortillas per taco in case the first one breaks.
Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating
- Make-Ahead: You can absolutely make this street taco recipe ahead of time! You can make the marinade itself up to a day in advance and store it in the fridge. You can also grill the chicken and keep it in the fridge as an easy meal prep ingredient.
- Storage: Store cooked chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
- Reheating: Reheat this chicken in a cast iron skillet on medium heat until it's warmed through.
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Grilled Chicken Tacos with Marinade
With fewer than 10 ingredients, these chicken street tacos come together quickly and easily for a delicious weeknight meal. Marinate the chicken in my zesty, tangy marinade made with homemade chicken taco seasoning, grill the chicken breast, and dinner is done!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Marinating Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 8 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top/Grill
- Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons chicken taco seasoning
- ¼ cup olive oil
- juice from 1 orange (about 4 tablespoons)
- juice from 1 lime (about 2 tablespoons)
- 1 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
- Kosher salt
- fresh cracked pepper
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into 1-2 inch pieces
Serve with:
- street taco corn tortillas
- diced onion
- freshly chopped cilantro
- your favorite salsa
- crumbled Cotija cheese
- lime wedges
Instructions
- Combine chicken taco seasoning, olive oil, orange juice, lime juice, cilantro, and a couple large pinches of salt and pepper in a small bowl.
- Add chicken breast, nestling it into the marinade until it's covered.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 6 hours.
- Heat cast iron griddle over medium high heat.
- Once hot, reduce to medium and add chicken.
- Cook in batches until a dark golden brown crust forms on the outside and the chicken is cooked through.
- Dice and serve inside corn tortillas with your favorite taco toppings.
Notes
- Make the marinade ahead of time! You can prep the marinade up to a day in advance and store it in the fridge. Then add it to the chicken whenever you're ready to marinate.
- Don't skimp on the salt and pepper in this recipe. The ingredient list is short and sweet which means a moderate amount of salt and pepper is going to go a long way in boosting the flavors of everything.
- If you notice the chicken seems to be sticking to the grill grates or grill pan, brush it with olive oil or vegetable oil to prevent sticking.
- Use chicken taco marinade for more than just tacos! Use this marinade on any of your favorite proteins. It's delicious on fish or steak but equally as good on veggies or tofu too!
- While street tacos are generally just topped with cilantro and diced onion, feel free to add your family's favorites. Some of ours include guacamole, Pico de Gallo, shredded lettuce or cabbage, and Cotija cheese.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 152
- Sugar: 3.2 g
- Sodium: 235 mg
- Fat: 8.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 6.3 g
- Fiber: 0.4 g
- Protein: 13.1 g
- Cholesterol: 41.4 mg
Keywords: street chicken taco recipe, chicken taco marinade, easy chicken tacos
This post was originally published in April of 2017. It was updated in September of 2022 to include process shots, step-by-step instructions and tips for making the best chicken tacos every single time!
Luke
This is our go-to chicken taco recipe when we want chicken tacos at home! It's so quick and easy. We just serve it with diced onion, chopped cilantro, and a fresh squeeze of lime juice.
★★★★★
Lisa C
Hello, my son has picked your recipes for his Culinary Chemistry family meal project. 🙂 Can you tell me what "diced chiles in adobo" are. I didn't find them in the grocery search. Google pulled up Chipotle peppers. Is that the same?
Kylie Lato
Great question, Lisa. I am so glad that your son chose my chicken tacos for his family meal project!! Thanks so much for reaching out by email - I sometimes am able to answer my email more quickly than replying to comments so I'm glad I was able to help you via email. I love to hear from my readers! For others who may have your same question... Chiles in adobo are "canned in a red sauce that typically contains tomato puree and a variety of seasonings such as paprika, salt, onions, vinegar, garlic, and oregano. Used for making sauces, chipotle mayonnaise rubs as well as other recipes." That definition came from this article: https://www.gourmetsleuth.com/ingredients/detail/chipotles-in-adobo-sauce by Gourmet Sleuth. That article has some really great information for those who might be new to cooking with chiles in adobo. Thanks again Lisa - glad your family enjoyed the tacos!! 🙂
Kylie Lato
Ready in just 30 minutes, these grilled chicken tacos are perfect for those busy week nights when you’re short on time but want to get a healthy dinner on the table!
★★★★★