Hard Taco Shells

Love this recipe, quick & easy!! Taste soooo much better than the store bought… thnks

I’ve done it this way for years. Instead of regular salt I use Jalapeno Salt. Unfortunately for our waste line they are a family favorite. It is well worth the time

These were awesome and like another viewer started only little oil is need

I have friend who makes these and I e tried to no avail. I could never get the timing down and they would turn out greasy. The 15 seconds on the first side was spot on. And these are delicious!

very simple. just have to experiment to get the technique down. i used store bought raw corn tortillas, so the frying time was a little longer. didn’t add salt as that would be for chips, not taco shells.

This is the best way to have hard shell tacos! My mom did for years and I finally just started, I don’t want the pre-packaged taco shells ever again! And it’s easy too!

Taco tonight

Was raised on 100% authentic to my moms way Mexican food. You can’t compare the flavor of a fried tortilla shell. I didn’t use much oil and don’t sprinkle salt on them,(personal preference) @wholewheatbaker absolutely, pam and the oven are a healthier option, but sometimes you need the real deal.

Hard taco shells were created in the USA by chain restaurants who could not rely on their 17 year old cooks to properly prepare an authentic soft fried corn tortilla. I have known many people of Mexican heritage who refuse to eat them. If you have ever had properly soft fried corn tortillas, as I grew up with, you would always prefer them over hard fried tortillas in which the flavor of the masa has been cooked away.

I gave 2 stars just because of the effort to write this recipe. First of all, the reviewer who suggested less oil is absolutely right! With that much oil you could make a tone more but I suggest not. I’ve made shells both in oil AND baking… Personally, I feel oil fried shells taste much better (what doesn’t that is fried) BUT BUT BUT… you forgot the most crucial step in the whole process even before making sure the oil is hot enough. One must WARM the tortilla first! The old way is over the flame on a gas stove, but too many people would hurt themselves turning it if they don’t know what they’re doing. So my next suggestion that is “hopefully” a safer way is to warm the tortilla on a DRY pan until it has become somewhat cooked. I have a tortilla pan, some people use a pancake griddle or even an electric griddle. No matter the type of meal it is made of, white corn or yellow the tortilla will have a wrinkle-type look either way. So once this step has happened THEN one drops the tortilla in the oil sufficient enough to barely cover one side, probably 2-3 tbsp. and as it fries to a slight limpness turn it over and then fold (I use a spatula). I keep the spatula inserted upside- down to hold the tortilla in place and to keep from flattening too much and then flip to the other half and continue frying. If the tortilla bubbles, I use a potato masher to break it. I add a tbsp of oil as I go to keep the level needed. I sincerely DO NOT recommend putting all the oil in at once. It

AWESOME

I have never used purchased taco shells…I’ve always made my own. This is the exact method I use, only I don’t salt the taco shells. Probably personal preference. I have long scissor-type tongs for this purpose and they work great (not the kind you push on the end to open). And yes, if your shells are soggy your oil was either not hot enough, or your tortillas were old. We’ve gotten to like slightly LESS crunchy taco shells lately, but that just means I fry them for a shorter amount of time. I place the tortilla in hot oil (test with a tiny sliver of tortilla….if the oil is hot enough, it will sizzle when you drop it in). Leave it flat for about 5 seconds, turn it over and fold it in half. Grab the shell by the top, and just keep frying until it reaches the desired crispness. I drain them, upside down, on layers of paper towels. BTW, you can make awesome homemake tortilla chips the same way by simply cutting the tortillas in triangles. I usually stack 4-5 up and cut with my pizza cutter. I fry the tortilla chips first, before I make my taco shells. I *do* sprinkle the chips with salt when they’re first out of the oil (otherwise it won’t stick). Oh! And my son prefers the flour shells, which are amazingly good too. They just take a little practice as they puff up quickly and it can be hard to crease them once they’re puffy. Turn down the heat a tad for flour

yumi!!

Fast and easy way to make crispy taco shells. Like many other reviews have said, MAKE SURE OIL IS HOT when you place them in the oil, or the tortillas will end up absorbing the oil and they’ll be soggy.

Fantastic crispy shells! This was a really easy process with a short and fast learning curve. The first couple of shells I followed the directions to a T and the shells were too crisp to fold over, so then I tried using a wooden spoon and folding them over it as soon as they hit the oil, cooking for about 15 seconds then turning the folded taco shell over to cook the other side and that worked out much better for me. I used the metal tongs to help hold the bottom fold open while cooking. I didn’t measure the temp of my oil, I used the wooden spoon method. (When you put the end of the spoon handle into the oil, if it starts to bubble around the spoon, then the oil is hot and ready for use.) These turned out perfectly and were far tastier than the store bought premade shells that you crisp in the oven. Once the oil was hot, this was a very fast process overall and to make a dozen only takes a few minutes. This same recipe will also make tostada shells, crispy taco bowls, or if you cut the tortillas into strips or quarters you can make homemade restaurant style chips just as easily.

The only way to make taco shells! YUM!!!

This came in handy as I needed to fry up some yellow corn tortillas for, “Taco Salad I,” also from this website. I used an entire bag of small corn tortillas. Frying them up was easy. I drained them on a baking sheet lined with lots of paper towels and sprinkled them with hawaiian sea salt. Instead of using these shells to fill up with meat, I broke them up into tortilla chips for the salad. These are much tastier than the store bought taco shells! Next time I might take another reviewers tip and spray it with cooking spray and bake them in the oven to cut back on the amount of fat and cholesterol.

This is how I’ve made hard tacos for years. I’ve never used a rack or anything. I usually put a folded paper towel on a paper plate, fry the taco and then place in the plate. I flip it after a bit so the oil is soaked up on the both sides. Season with some salt and we’re good to go!

I took a coffee can lid and bent it half to place the taco shell around and with tongs put in oil and when done fliped it over to cook other side…comes out just like the store bought ones about 1/2 inch wide to put in taco mixture.

I tried to bake these and drape them over the cooking rack like another user suggested but they kept falling off XD So I just went for frying and, I really liked them. And they’re so much cheaper than the hard shell ones you buy at the store. If they aren’t as crispy as you want after you fry them, then go ahead and put them in the oven for a bit. But not too long, you don’t want to burn them.

kinda greasy, but great way to use up the rest of the tortillas