These Mexican fried chicken flautas are a great quick and easy dish that can be served as an appetizer or main. Also known as rolled tacos, they are ready to serve in 30 minutes.
We love Mexican food in our house, and enjoy it at least twice a week! This chicken flautas recipe is bursting full of flavor and is perfect for a quick and flavorful weeknight meal.
If you love Mexican as much as we do, be sure to check out my Blackened Chicken Tacos and Easy Chicken Enchiladas.
Why you will love these chicken flautas!
- Quick and easy: This is such a great 30 minute recipe that comes together easily with simple ingredients.
- Customizable: They can be served as an appetizer or main course and you can choose all of your favorite Mexican toppings to add to them.
- Make ahead: The chicken filling can be made ahead of time for an even quicker weeknight meal!
How to make this chicken flautas recipe
Be sure to scroll down for the full recipe
- Make the filling: Saute the onion, jalapeños and seasonings and then stir in the chicken, salsa and lime juice.
- Warm the tortillas.
- Make: Place the filling into the tortillas and roll up.
- Fry: Fry in a large skillet until golden brown.
Can you make them ahead of time?
You can make the chicken filling ahead of time and store it in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze it. Reheat the chicken on the stovetop before adding to the tortillas.
The flautas are best served as soon as they are cooked, but if you have leftovers they can be reheated in the oven at 300F for about 20 minutes until crispy.
What toppings can you add?
I like to serve these with shredded lettuce, cilantro, salsa, and sour cream. You can add any of your favorite toppings like jalapeños, guacamole and pico de gallo.
Can you oven bake chicken flautas?
I prefer the texture of fried flautas, but if you want to skip frying, you can bake them in the oven. After you have rolled them, place the flautas on a parchemnt lined baking sheet and cook in a preheated oven at 425F for 15-20 minutes.
Tips for How to Freeze
Fried flautas can be frozen. Let them cool and place in a container. Thaw them in the fridge overnight and then bake in the oven at 350F or 10 -15 minutes.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Make sure your tortillas are warm and pliable before rolling. Once you’ve heated the tortillas, keep them covered in a pan or plastic container so they stay warm.
- It’s best to roll quickly to avoid tearing of the tortillas. No worries if any of your flautas have small tears after rolling. You can still go ahead with the frying process.
- Make it easy. I like to use shredded chicken for this recipe, and it’s a great way to use up leftovers from Roasted Chicken.
More Easy Mexican Chicken Recipes
- Mexican Chicken Soup (Spicy)
- Chicken Fajita Quesadillas Recipe
- Mexican Chicken Sheet Pan Nachos
- Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas (Salsa Verde)
Fried Chicken Flautas Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 onion diced
- 1 large or 2 small jalapeño peppers finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 1/2 cups shredded chicken
- 1/2 cup salsa
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack cheese
- 10-12 corn tortillas
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
Instructions
- Prepare the chicken filling: Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once heated, add in the onion, jalapeño peppers, salt, chili powder, and cumin. Sauté for a few minutes until softened. Stir in the shredded chicken, salsa, and lime juice. Remove from heat.
- Prepare the tortillas: Warm the tortillas by wrapping the stack of them in damp paper towels and microwaving for a minute.
- Prepare the flautas: Place about 2 tablespoons each of chicken filling and a sprinkling of cheese in the middle of each tortilla. Roll the tortillas up tightly and place them seam side down on a plate.
- Fry: Heat 1/4 cup of vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place 4 flautas in the pan, seam side down, and fry for about 1-2 minutes. Then, flip the flautas and fry for another 1-2 minutes until golden brown. Add the remaining vegetable oil to the pan as needed and repeat this process with the remaining flautas.
- Serve: Serve the flautas with your favorite toppings such as lettuce, cilantro, salsa, and sour cream.
Notes
- Make sure your tortillas are warm and pliable before rolling. Once you’ve heated the tortillas, keep them covered in a pan or plastic container so they stay warm.
- It’s best to roll quickly to avoid tearing of the tortillas. No worries if any of your flautas have small tears after rolling. You can still go ahead with the frying process.
- Fried flautas can be frozen. Let them cool and place in a container. Thaw them in the fridge overnight and then bake in the oven at 350F or 10 -15 minutes.
- I like to use shredded chicken for this recipe, and it’s a great way to use up leftovers from Roasted Chicken.
Theresa S. says
My family loves this recipe and it is now a family favorite. Top tier according to my son.
Becky Hardin says
Thanks for sharing your success!