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Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema

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Sweet and spicy barbecue pulled chicken with caramelized onions and tons of spices all tucked into a warm, crisp oven baked tortilla: these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema are heavenly.

Sweet and spicy barbecue pulled chicken with caramelized onions and tons of spices all tucked into a warm, crisp oven baked tortilla: these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema are heavenly.

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Baked taquitos are truly the best. A few months ago, I whipped up my Ultimate Greek Baked Chicken Taquitos with Tzatziki Sauce, and I instantly fell in love. And, as a matter of fact, y’all seemed to go crazy for this recipe, too!! There’s just something about saucy shredded chicken inside a crisp tortilla with a cooling dip that’s perfect for just about any occasion. Seeing as I can’t eat Greek taquitos for every meal, I obviously had to whip up a new variety of this fan favorite. Hence, I took some of my favorite barbecue flavors and these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema were born! 

The breakdown…

As mentioned earlier, baked taquitos make for the best weeknight meal. Yes, they’re delicious, versatile, and healthy — but, my personal favorite part is definitely their simplicity! To start everything off, you’ve got to season that chicken. Barbecue sauce itself has some good flavor, especially if you get a good one. My favorite is this brand. While Stubb’s is a more natural and low-sugar alternative, I find that it still is packed with flavor. That being said, go with what you love! 

Even with that good flavor from the sauce, I love to add a few spices to my chicken breast. In my opinion, chicken breasts are naturally pretty bland, so the more spices the better! I go with some garlic powder, dried oregano, onion powder, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes. The garlic powder and onion powder add a nice bit of cruciferous flavor, while the oregano brings in a bit of a bite that is delicious. Most importantly, you could say, is the addition of smoked paprika. With this little bit of flavor, the chicken takes on a smoky element that is out of this world. Then, with the optional addition of red pepper flakes, the chicken is truly perfect. No need to add anything else — it’s that simple!!

caramelized onions…

Before throwing your chicken into your pot for a good sear, go ahead and start caramelizing those onions! Red onion pairs wonderfully with barbecue sauce, but you could also go with a yellow onion or even scallions. Really, any form of caramelized onion is delicious in this Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema recipe — you can’t go wrong! 

Then, get a good sear on that chicken to start the cooking process, and go ahead and throw in your liquids! By cooking the chicken in the barbecue sauce, it’s really able to take on all of those good flavors – almost like a marinade. Yes, you could just do a traditional marinade of the chicken in the barbecue sauce ahead of time and cook it quickly; however, the low and slow method of cooking your chicken in the barbecue sauce allows for the same amount of flavor to go into the chicken, while also making the chicken super tender… it’s a win-win!

 Sweet and spicy barbecue pulled chicken with caramelized onions and tons of spices all tucked into a warm, crisp oven baked tortilla: these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema are heavenly.

low and slow!

After a quick 20-30 minutes, your chicken should be cooked through and tender! You could even cook the chicken over low heat, as opposed to medium-low, and cook it for about an hour… it all depends on how much time you have! Either way, the chicken will be super juicy, and ready to shred. My favorite way is to shred my chicken in the bowl of my stand mixer. Fitted with a paddle attachment on low speed, a slow mixer shreds chicken beautifully, and is super easy. Alternatively, you could just shred your chicken with two forks — it can just get a bit hot sometimes straight out of the pot!

Whether you shred your chicken in a stand mixer or with forks, make sure it ends up back in all that good barbecue sauce and cooking liquids! This is the key to juicy, tender chicken! With some freshness from the cilantro and melty goodness from the gouda (the ultimate smoky, melty cheese), this chicken is out of this world. After that, all you have to do for your taquitos is roll them up and pop them in the oven! I recommend overly stuffing your taquitos because, let’s be real, more is more. With a heaping ¼ cup tightly rolled up into each tortilla, a good layer of olive oil on the outside, and some time in the oven, you’re golden! These Barbecue Chicken Taquitos are truly delicious! 

like ranch, but better!

But, wait… we can’t forget about that herbed crema. I like to think of this crema as a lighter version of ranch dressing, just a little less “ranch-y,” if you know what I mean. While ranch is often served with barbecue (wings in particular), it’s not my favorite. I actually don’t think that typical barbecue chicken even needs sauce because it’s usually coated with barbecue sauce on the outside. That being said, these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos are a little different. Being that they are wrapped in a tortilla, I like to pair them with a cooling herbed crema to bring in a little more moisture, and of course that cooling, herbaceous flavor. 

that herbed crema…

This herbed crema really could not be simpler. It starts off with some simple Greek yogurt. If you can’t tell from my other recipes, I love using Greek yogurt in sauces and dips. I’m not a big fan of mayonnaise or sour cream, and, quite frankly, I’m not a big yogurt fan either. Still, Greek yogurt is much more subtle in sauces and dips, so I love to use it as a smoothing base for other flavors to shine. That’s exactly what it does in this herbed crema. 

To that base, I add a ton of flavor! Dijon mustard brings in the perfect tanginess, while the honey helps to counterbalance an overly mustard-y flavor. These two ingredients really help mask the flavor of the yogurt, and truly transform it into more of a crema. Then, with the addition of garlic powder, onion powder, lemon juice, dried dill, and dried parsley, you really get a burst of flavor that takes this crema into a “ranch” style dip. Lastly, you have to go in with those fresh chives and scallions. These flavors are absolutely essential to this dip — and definitely are not in your average ranch or crema. By blending them into this dip, you get a fresh punch of flavor that’s almost indistinguishable – but absolutely amazing. Basically, the moral of the story is do not skip this dip!! It truly makes this dish shine.

how to serve them up!

These Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema are perfect for practically any occasion. While game days, backyard barbecues, and summer picnics come to mind, you can really eat these taquitos any day of the week. Easy enough to whip up on a whim, yet delicious enough to please the whole family. You seriously have to try these. Better yet? These Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema make for amazing meal prep! I highly recommend making extra and saving them for lunches throughout the week — so good! I love to serve these up with a simple side salad for my average dinner, but they are also delicious as an addition to a large barbecue spread! 

Really, though, whenever and however you serve these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema up, they’re sure to be a hit! I hope you love them as much as I do! Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema

Recipe by Annie PatrickCourse: Main CourseCuisine: American, Tex MexDifficulty: Easy
Servings

15

taquitos
Prep time

15

minutes
Cooking time

35

minutes
Total time

50

minutes

Sweet and spicy barbecue pulled chicken with caramelized onions and tons of spices all tucked into a warm, crisp oven baked tortilla: these Barbecue Chicken Taquitos with Herbed Crema are heavenly.

Ingredients

  • taquitos:
  • 1 tsp garlic powder

  • 1 tsp dried oregano

  • 1 tsp onion powder

  • ½ tsp smoked paprika

  • Red pepper flakes, to taste

  • 1.5 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

  • 3 tbsp olive oil, divided

  • 1 red onion, diced

  • 2 cups barbecue sauce

  • 1 ½ cups chicken broth (or water)

  • 2/3 cup smoked Gouda cheese*

  • ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

  • 8-10 flour tortillas

  • herbed crema:
  • 1 cup Greek yogurt

  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard

  • 2 tsp honey

  • 2 tsp garlic powder

  • 1 tsp onion powder

  • 1 lemon, juiced

  • 1 tsp dried dill

  • 2 tsp dried parsley

  • ¼ cup fresh chives, chopped

  • 5 scallions, thinly sliced

  • Salt and pepper, to taste

  • ¼ -½ cup water, as needed to thin

Instructions

  • Rub the garlic powder, dried oregano, onion powder, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes over the chicken breasts.
  • In a heavy bottomed pot or dutch oven, heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the red onion and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Then, push the onions to the side, and add your seasoned chicken breasts. Sear on each side for 1-2 minutes. Then, pour in the barbecue sauce and broth, making sure that the liquids fully cover the chicken. Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20-30 minutes. Once it is cooked through and tender, shred the chicken with a fork or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and return to the cooking liquids.
  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and a baking rack.*
  • While the chicken is simmering, make the herbed crema. In a food processor, mix all of the crema ingredients. Thin with water, as needed, until you reach your desired consistency.
  • Add the gouda cheese and fresh cilantro into the pot or ducth oven with the shredded chicken and onions. Mix to combine.
  • Add about ¼ cup of mixture into each tortilla and tightly roll up. Place on the baking sheet with the seal side down. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. Brush the remaining tbsp of olive oil over the taquitos (alternatively, you could spray them with a full body olive oil spray). Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, flipping at the 10 minute mark.
  • Serve the taquitos warm with the cooling herbed crema dip. Enjoy!

Notes

  • If you do not have a baking rack, omit both the aluminum foil and the rack. Instead, simply grease your baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray.
  • Whole milk greek yogurt is best, but any greek yogurt will work. Use the thickest part of the yogurt (as opposed to the liquid part)
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