The best part? You can make Navajo tacos in your own kitchen using our recipe! And if you want to take it up a notch, we’ve got plenty of ideas for what to put on top of that fry bread.
Navajo Tacos
No matter where you are—whether it’s a 4th of July party or a chili cook-off—you can find me eating a Navajo taco on a thick paper plate next to my siblings and friends. We’d bring them to the park or just outside on the grass so we didn’t make a huge mess. And almost always, my favorite combination was chili and ground beef, but sometimes I would get one with just beef instead. I loved how perfectly spiced the meat was, how tender the lettuce and tomatoes were when they got mixed in with everything else on the taco, and how creamy that sour cream tasted next to all that melted cheese!
Ingredients in Navajo Tacos
The base of a delicious Navajo taco recipe is our soft Homemade Fry Bread. This from scratch recipe is super easy and always turns out light, fluffy and delicious! Use the fry bread on for scones too! Top with honey and butter or cinnamon sugar. YUM!If you’re pressed for time, use biscuit dough in place of fry bread dough. You know, the refrigerated dough in a can. You can use pre-made pizza dough too. Just flatten out the biscuit dough into round discs and then fry up in hot oil as directed in the recipe card below.Frozen dough is another quick alternative to Navajo fry bread. I love using Rhode’s frozen dinner rolls because the dough balls the perfect size for mini Navajo tacos. Let them rise on a cookie sheet covered in plastic wrap, then form each piece of dough into flat discs, then fry just like you would a the biscuit dough or homemade dough.Then, you’ll need chili. We make a huge batch of our Easy Homemade Chili, use some for this recipe, then freeze the rest for later. You can use a can of your favorite chili for an easier dinner too.Shredded cheese is next. Do yourself a favor, and shred it from the block. The pre-shredded cheese is convenient but doesn’t melt as well and just doesn’t taste as good.Top with shredded lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, anything you like.
Toppings for Navajo Tacos
This recipe is perfect for anyone who has little time but a big appetite! They’re really simple to throw together and so delicious. For toppings, I know some people like to use re-fried beans instead of chili. That’s not the way I was brought up, so I can’t in good faith encourage this sort of behavior. You can have refried beans AND chili, but never JUST re-fried beans. The chili is what makes them so good! So here are our favorite toppings for Navajo tacos, and of course add your own to the mix!
Refried beans (if you must)Seasoned ground beef – brown in a large skillet in a little vegetable oil, then season with cumin, chili powder, and paprika. Or you can use your favorite taco seasoning.Shredded chickenCheddar cheeseShredded lettuceDiced tomatoesOnionsGreen onionsGreen pepperBlack OlivesSour CreamSalsaRanch DressingPaprikaGarlicSliced Avocado or Guacamole
More Hearty Chili Recipes
This dish is a complete meal all on its own. We rarely serve anything alongside our Navajo tacos, except a big old napkin, and maybe some ice cream for dessert. Here are a few more hearty recipes guaranteed to fill you up!
How to Make Navajo Tacos
Mexican Chili in a Tostada Bowl: Easy and Flavorful Recipe in Just 35min
Pork Chile Verde
Crockpot White Chicken Chili
Chili Cheese Dogs
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