Oven Baked Tacos with Homemade Crispy Taco Shells

Who doesn’t love tacos??  I love this baked, casserole style version because my family can just add their toppings and pick up and eat!  Plus the melted cheese over the meat really takes these tacos up a notch.

The first time I made this dish, I also made my own crispy taco shells with corn tortillas.  I don’t think I’ll ever go back to store bought hard taco shells again!  I included the instructions on how to make them – I love that they are bit wider at the bottom because of the way they are draped over two of the bars on the oven rack.  They stand up great for this particular dish and are easier to fill! 
The meat (I used ground turkey) is browned and mixed with the taco seasoning – also homemade!!  Recipe included …I love, love, love my taco seasoning.  Then, the shells are stuffed, topped with cheese and baked.  Crispy, melty and so good!! 
After they are baked so the cheese is melted, add your favorite toppings.  We kept ours very simple with some diced tomato and lettuce.  You could add red onion, salsa, guacamole, sour cream or even Greek yogurt.  
Serves 5

Oven Baked Tacos with Homemade Crispy Taco Shells


1 pound 99% fat free ground turkey
3 tablespoons homemade taco seasoning
3/4 cup shredded cheese
toppings for tacos – chopped tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, sour cream, etc

For the taco shells
10 corn tortillas
olive oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Wrap 5 corn tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave for 30 seconds.  Repeat with the other 5.  Lightly brush each side with olive oil (or spray with misto) and drape each shell directly over two bars of your oven rack.  Bake for 6-8 minutes, or until crispy.

Brown meat, add 2/3 cup water and taco seasoning.  Stir and simmer for about 3-4 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.  Set aside.  Arrange taco shells standing up in a 9 x 13-inch pan.  Fill each shell with the ground turkey, dividing equally until all the meat is used.  Sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top of the meat.  Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Top with your favorite taco toppings and serve!