Ingredients
Units
Scale
Instructions
- Heat about 2 inches of canola oil in a large pot over medium heat.
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium mixing bowl.
- Stir in milk and melted butter.
- Combine with a fork until a shaggy dough forms. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or so until the dough becomes mostly smooth. The dough should feel tacky but it shouldn’t stick to your hands.
- Cut dough into 8 equal size pieces. Roll each into a ball.
- Use a rolling pin to gently roll out each dough ball into a circle about 6 inches wide and 1/8 of an inch thick.
- Gently shake excess flour off. Add dough to the pot of oil, cooking one shell at a time. Let it cook on each side for about 5 seconds, then use a tongs to gently fold it in half.
- Use the tongs to hold one half of the chalupa in the oil, cooking it for about 1-2 minutes. Then use tongs to hold the other half of the chalupa in the oil, cooking it for another minute or two.
- Once it’s a golden brown color, use tongs to gently remove the shell from the oil and let the excess oil drip off.
- Hang a wooden spoon over the center of a medium bowl. Place the cooked chalupa shell over the handle of the spoon to help form its shape as you cook the next chalupa shell.
- Then transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and continue cooking the remaining shells.
- You may need to turn the heat down a bit as you cook. If the shells cook faster than 1 minute per side, turn the heat down.
- Fill chalupa shells with the best taco meat recipe, shredded lettuce, shredded cheddar, sour cream, and diced tomatoes. Enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe works best with warmed or room-temperature milk. When cold milk is added to the dough it causes the melted butter to seize into chunks. Warm the milk by zapping it in the microwave for 30-45 seconds.
- Be sure to measure the flour correctly, spooning it into the measuring cup and using a knife to level it out. If you are scooping your flour right out of the bin and then leveling it off, you are likely adding too much flour.
- If you’re having trouble folding the chalupas while they fry, just cook them flat instead! Cook them for about the same amount of time on each side, let them rest on a paper towel-lined plate, and then top them flat with all your favorite taco fillings, assembling them kind of like a tostada. They will still taste just as delicious!
- Be careful with the oil! Make sure to use tongs when handling the shells and carefully place the shells into the oil. It’s also best to fry one shell at a time to keep the temperature of the oil consistent.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Vegetarian
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 227
- Sugar: 1.7 g
- Sodium: 160.8 mg
- Fat: 8.7 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 32.1 g
- Fiber: 1.1 g
- Protein: 5.1 g
- Cholesterol: 4.4 mg
