The best frozen taquitos have crunch, plenty of filling, and are fun to have in the freezer. We tried everything from corn-wrapped chicken to flour-wrapped beef to find the best tasting taquitos on the market. Here’s our ranking of the top six.
What’s the deal with taquitos? (Yes, I’m standing in front of a brick wall dressed like Jerry Seinfeld right now.) They’re certainly a Mexican food, but at least two Southern California restaurants—one in L.A., one in San Diego—take credit for helping these delicious little taco rollups hit the mainstream. And what’s the difference between a taquito and a flauta? Is there one? I read around, and I’m still not certain. Do taquitos still qualify as taquitos if they’re made with flour rather than corn tortillas? (I’m going with yes on this one since lots of taquito brands go the flour route.) Anyway, I’ll give it a rest with the questions and tell you a couple things I do know: Taquitos are one of the easiest and most fun snacks you can have in your freezer, and we should all be eating them more often.
For this taste test, we gathered the most popular brands of frozen taquitos, cooked them in the oven as instructed, and tasted them head to head. I judged them on the amount of filling they pack (no one wants a dry, hollow taquito), but also just overall flavor. You’re not going to believe this, but the brands that included cheese in their filling tended to just taste better. Without further ado, here are the best six we tried.
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- El Monterey Extra Crunchy Southwest Chicken Taquitos
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I’m probably going to get dragged by taquito purists for giving these the top spot, but in a ranking where taste is the main consideration, I just couldn’t bump these suckers. For real, I shouted “holy shit” when I took my first bite. Their flour shells have a crispy, bubbly coating that gives them a little more crunch, but mostly it gives them a lot more flavor. The filling is really something, too. Like, how did they even fit this much stuff—chicken, cheese, peppers, beans—inside such a dainty tube! What a feat. These taste just like Southwest chicken egg rolls from a chain restaurant. Naturally, if you don’t think that taquitos should taste like Southwest chicken egg rolls from a chain restaurant, do not buy and eat these! But if you want to take a chance on something you just might love, pick up a box. I just can’t imagine not loving these.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Target
- José Olé Beef & Cheese Taquitos
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There’s something highly appealing about the light crispiness of a flour-tortilla-wrapped taquito. Yes, you miss out on some of the almost masa-like flavor you get with corn-tortilla-wrapped taquitos, but I think we can and should embrace both versions of the snack, especially because these taquitos from stud muffin José Olé are good as hell. They’re flaky, savory, and the filling is so moist thanks to the ample amount of cheese in the mix. According to my notes, I actually uttered the words “there is cheese exploding out of its butt.” Plus, the beef actually tastes beefy. Truly a top-tier snack.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Instacart
- José Olé Chicken & Cheese Taquitos
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Imagine you’re smokin’ a J at a buddy’s house. He disappears for ten minutes and you assume he’s going poop or staring into the bathroom mirror and contemplating the pitfalls of human consciousness when suddenly he re-enters the room carrying a plate of piping hot chicken taquitos. For real, this is the closest thing I’ve ever written to fan fic and it’s got me all revved up! Like José Olé’s Beef & Cheese taquitos, the Chicken & Cheese variety is moist and absolutely bursting with savory flavor. If you’re big on texture, I will warn that the chicken comes off as pretty mushy here, but these still manage to pack a lot of chicken and salty cheese flavor, and cook up so nicely with toasty little ends.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Walmart
- Delimex Chicken Taquitos
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Although flour-wrapped taquitos took the top three spots on this list (sue me!), Delimex made a great showing with this tasty and I suppose more traditional iteration of the taquito. The chicken filling isn’t all that exciting on its own, but what you get here is that good corn flavor and a mushy, masa-like texture that keeps you coming back for another bite. These come off as a touch dry, but some sour cream and salsa (ooh or how about queso?) will fix them right up.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Instacart
- Great Value Chicken Taquitos
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These taquitos reminded me of something you’d grab off the rollers at 7-Eleven, and I mean that in the best way possible. The difference? A box of 16 of these taquitos costs less than five bucks, which means that each taquito costs about 30 cents. 7-Eleven could never. And they taste good too! The filling seemed to involve peppers and seasonings that kicked the chicken up a notch. An excellent budget option.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde / Walmart
- TJ’s Black Bean & Cheese
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If you don’t eat meat but still want to party, try the Black Bean & Cheese taquitos from Trader Joe’s. Sure, they’re a snack, but the rib-sticking nature of the beans in the filling kind of makes these feel like a meal. Could they use more cheese? Absolutely. (I’m also a cheese fiend, admittedly.) But overall they’re super tasty and have a great corn flavor that perfectly compliments the filling.
Credit: Sarah Demonteverde
Best of the Best
Best Beef
Best Chicken
Best in a Corn Tortilla
Best Budget
Best Meat Free
Other products we tried: Starlite Cuisine Chik’n Taquitos, El Monterey Beef & Cheese, El Monterey Chicken & Cheese, Goya Chicken, Delimex Beef
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Another great list! I always linger on the taquitos but don’t know what’s worth the money. I’ll have to check out the winner, it sounds awesome.
They’re really good, they look about the same as the “bigger bolder” ones I tried and the filling sounds the same too, it’s gooey but really good filling