My family and I love taco night, but Walking Tacos make it much more fun! This family favorite Walking Tacos recipe is full of flavor, easy on the budget, and makes the best party food! It comes together quickly and lets everyone build their own personal walking taco exactly how they like it.

a white counter with walking taco ingredients laying out

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I highly recommend this recipe for game nights, backyard parties, camping, or a fun twist on a busy weeknight dinner. It is budget friendly and is huge on flavor. It makes the best handheld lunch or dinner, would be the star of a taco bar, or is a great meal to-go.

Walking Tacos are perfectly portioned since everyone gets their own bag of chips. With a savory, cheesy filling and that crunch from the chips, your kids and you won’t be able to stop eating them once you make them! They are budget friendly, come together fast, and super customizable.

Add this meal to your dinner rotation and your family will thank you for it!

Why you’ll love Walking Tacos

Tasty – It is one of the easiest and one of the tasiest taco recipes I’ve made. My whole family loves them!

Comes together fast – This recipe cooks in about 20 minutes. No need to heat up the oven, which mkes it perfect for a quick weeknight dinner.

Simple Ingredients – Most ingredients are already likely in your pantry, which helps the recipe come together fast. It keeps the cost lost when considering your grocery budget.

Customizable – Since everyone builds their own bag of tacos, this recipe works well for picky eats. You can easily swap in your family’s favorite toppings.

Ingredients

Ground Beef – ground beef browns quickly and soaks up all the flavor from the taco seasoning.

Taco Seasoning – Use store bought or your own homemade seasoning!

Refried Beans – These add the creamy texture to the filling.

Green Chiles – A can of green chiles adds a little extra flavor and a gentle little kick of spice without overpowering the dish.

Snack bags of Doritos – Feel free to sub out the chips with your favorite chips such as Fritos.

Toppings – Shredded Monterey cheese, lettuce, and sour cream are our favorites, but feel free to add whatever toppings your family loves!

The full recipe, along with the ingredients, can be found below.

Supplies needed to make Walking Tacos

A large skillet to brown the beef and combine the filling.
A can opener for the refried beans and green chiles.
Individual snack bags or bowls for serving.

How to make Walking Tacos

meat beans green chiles and taco seasoning in a skillet on a white counter

First, brown your ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat, breaking apart the meat as it cooks and browns.

Then, once the beef is fully cooked, drain any excess grease and stir in your taco seasoning along with a splash of water, following the instructions on the packet.

Next, add the can of refried beans and green chiles to the skillet. Stir everything together well until the mixture is warmed through and is evenly combined.

Finally, lightly crush the chips inside each individual snack bag, then split the beef and bean mixture evenly among the bags.

Lastly, once the filling is in the bag, let everyone add their own toppings. Shredded Monterey cheese, lettuce, and sour cream work amazing here, but you can lso add diced tomatoes, black olives, or a drizzle of taco sauce.

Grab a fork and enjoy your Walking Taco straight from the bag!

ground beef, refried beans, green chiles, taco seasoning in a skillet on a white counter

toppings for walking tacos on a white counter

walking tacos on a counter next to taco toppings.

Tips

If you don’t have a snack sized bags on hand, a small bowl works just as well; you just simply layer the chips and filling in the bowl instead.
You can easily swap ground beef for ground turkey, ground pork, or even shredded chicken if you’d prefer.
For a spicier kick, use hot green chiles or add a diced jalapeno to the filling.
This recipe is versatile and works well for a quick dinner, a part appetizer, a meal while camping, something warm for your lunchbox, a fun meal for a gathering.

FAQs

The key ingredients are ground beef, taco seasoning, refried beans, green chiles, and snack bags of Doritos or Fritos. Popular toppings include shredded Monterey cheese, lettuce, and sour cream. The recipe is very easy to customize with whatever you have on hand!

Some alternatives are offered in our “Tips” section.

Store the beef and bean filling separately from the chips in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. This keeps the chips from getting soggy. Simply reheat the filling and add it to fresh chip bags when you are ready to eat!

Yes! You can freeze just the beef and bean filling in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the fridge overnight, then reheat on the stovetop before adding it to your chip bags and toppings.

Absolutely! Prepare the filling in advance and keep it warm in a slow cooker. Then, set out the chip bags and toppings so that guests can build their own Walking Tacos as they arrive.

Recipe

Walking Tacos

A super simple and fun twist on taco night, Walking Tacos come together quickly on the stove and are served right in individual chip bags. They make a great weeknight dinner, party snack, or camping meal!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Total Time 25

Course Dinner, lunch, Snack

Cuisine American

Servings 10 people

Ingredients

1 pound Ground Beef
1 package Taco Seasoning
1 can Refried Beans
1 can Green Chiles
10 snack sized bags Doritos or Fritos

Toppings

Shredded Monterey Cheese
Shredded Lettuce
Sour Cream

Instructions

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium heat, breaking apart the meat as it cooks.
Once the meat is fully cooked, drain any excess grease and stir in your taco seasoning along with a splash of water, following the packet instructions
Add the refried beans and green chiles to the skillet and stir to combine everything well until it is warmed through.
Lightly crush the chips inside each individual snack bag.
Split the beef and bean mixture evenly among the 10 snack bags.
Top each bag with shredded Monterey cheese, lettuce, and sour cream – or your favorite taco toppings!
Serve your Walking Tacos immediately with a fork and enjoy!

Notes

Freezer friendly – the beef and bean filling freezes well for up to 3 months. Just thaw and reheat before serving.
Perfect for parties, game nights, a quick weeknight dinner, camping trips, and more!
Set out toppings so everyone can build their own bag.
Swap doritos for Fritos, or offer both so guests can pick their favorite!

Keyword beef, budget friendly, camping, dinner, ground beef, Less than 30 minutes, lunch, tacos, walking tacos