The ultra-crispy baked chicken flautas have fewer calories AND are easier to make than traditional versions. This recipe is a crowd favorite and has been pinned over a million times!
You guys, these baked taquitos are so good. SO. GOOD.
They’re really well seasoned (not spicy at all, but definitely not bland either). And baking them at a high temperature leaves them nice and crispy without any greasiness.
I even managed to sneak some vegetables into them.
You should make them ASAP.
I was worried that the flautas wouldn’t be filling enough on their own, so I served them with some refried beans. They ended up not really needing the beans, but it was a nice touch to round out the meal.
Taquitos? Flautas? What are these things called?
Taquitos and Flautas are deep fried tortillas wrapped around savory fillings.
Traditionally, taquitos are made with corn tortillas, while flautas are made with flour tortillas.
Since I used flour tortillas in this recipes, these are technically baked chicken flautas. However, the two works are often used interchangably and most people simply refer to both versions as taquitos.
Whatever you call them, they’re delicious!
The secrets to making healthier taquitos
I use a few tricks to keeping these delicious flautas on the lighter side.
- Bake instead of fry. Baking these taquitos uses less oil than frying, cutting both calories and fat. You can be them in a regular oven, like I did when I started making them, or in an air fryer.
- Cut the tortillas in half. Cutting the tortillas in half before you roll the filling up helps cut way back on calories and carbs! You’ll never miss that other half. Be sure to watch the video to see my rolling technique.
- Poach the chicken. You can make these flautas with chicken breasts or thighs. Whichever you use, poaching them will keep them extra juicy, for that perfect soft and creamy flauta filling.
What to serve with chicken flautas:
I love serving these chicken taquitos with Mexican rice or refried beans. They’re also great served on the side of a steamy bowl of tortilla soup.
More baked taquito ideas:
If you love baked taquitos, be sure to also try my:
- Baked Chicken and Hummus Flautas
- Baked Buffalo Chicken Taquitos
- Baked Vegetable Taquitos
- Baked Breakfast Taquitos
You’ll also love my collection of healthy Mexican food recipes.
Baked Chicken and Spinach Flautas
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless Chicken Thighs (about 4)
- 16 ounces Beer or chicken broth
- 2 cups Water
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 Jalapeno Pepper minced
- 3 cups Baby Spinach chopped
- 5 burrito-size Flour Tortillas 9 inches
- 6 ounces Quesadilla cheese or other soft cheese like Monterey jack shredded
- 1 teaspoon Olive Oil or cooking spray
- Salsa for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 450ºF.
- Put the chicken thighs in a deep sided saute pan and cover with the beer and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the liquid and shred it. Mix together the chicken and seasonings.
- Pour out all but 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the jalapeno and spinach and cook over low heat until for 2-3 minutes, or until the spinach is wilted.
- Cut the tortillas in half. Spoon 1/10th of the chicken (about 1 tablespoon) along the long edge of a tortilla. Repeat with the spinach and cheese. Roll the tortilla up, starting with the straight edge. Place seam-side down on an oiled baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
- Brush the flautas with olive oil or spray with cooking spray. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn them over and bake for until 10 minutes, or until crispy. Serve with salsa.
These were great! I just got done making them and eating them 🙂 My boyfriend loved them too which is a plus. I made a ton of extra chicken though so I could have leftovers and he can take some to work. I also used whole wheat tortillas for a little extra healthiness! YUM
Wish I had some of that light margarita mix around it looks really good too.
Found your link on pinterest and made these tonight! So delish and the hubby loved them too!
what kind of beer do you use?
Whatever’s in the fridge. 😉 Yuengling or Newcastle is good, but even something like Miller Lite works. Its just adds an extra dimension of flavor to the chicken.
I love flautas! Definitely going to try these.
My hubby and I are making these as we speak. Added the black beans for fiber as someone suggested. Also making some quacamole as a dipper. Thanks for the recipe. Wish I could have a margarita!
Ive been craving flautas recently too and been meaning to look for a baked version, thank you. I had to laugh at the comment about loving them & being weirded out by them, Im exactly the same way now. I also love the “light” or “skinny” margaritas, I think they taste so much better, the lime tastes like a chemical the next time you have a regular one. The Jose Light is the best bottled one Ive found. Thanks again, and for adding spinach!
Do you find queso quesadilla at a “regular” grocery store or a specialty store?
You can find it usually at any grocery store or Walmart (even the horrible ones around here that don’t always carry green onions or ricotta, wth?!?!?!). It is usually in the refrigerated random “Spanish” section (somewhere around the sausage normally), not in the cheese area (unless youre in a specialty store, then its with the cheese), it is white & round, it sometimes has a reddish enchilada type sauce on it in the vacuum packaging. If thats all you can find that would probably be fine in this recipe too.
I can’t wait to try them they look delicious! The only thing I will change is I’m going to wash them down with a SKINNYGIRL MARGARITA!! Still low in calories!
Nice. 😉 Those are pretty good too.
Just wanted u to know I voted since I was “stealing” this recipe.
Thanks so much! And enjoy! 🙂
These look so yummy! Do you think they’d freeze well? I’m finding myself getting take-out too often after work, so I’m looking for recipes I can make about once a month a freeze 🙂
I haven’t tried, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t freeze well. I’d probably freeze them unbaked (I think they’d crisp up better after being frozen if the oil is brushed on immediately prior to baking… but don’t hold me to that! ;))