You’ll never want to buy a taquito from the freezer section again after you try these easy homemade chicken taquitos in the air fryer! Transform leftover rotisserie chicken into crunchy, homemade chicken taquitos in less than 20 minutes. Creamy salsa chicken air-fried taquitos are the BEST healthier comfort food alternative to traditional taquitos.

What is a Taquito?

Taquitos are a delicious, crunchy, and addictive handheld Mexican dish. A taquito is a rolled taco that is traditionally deep-fried or shallow-fried. Small (6″) corn tortillas are typically used to wrap taquitos, however, small flour taquitos can also be used to contain the glorious filling. The filling is traditionally chicken or beef.

You may have also heard of a fluta before. A fluta and a taquito are filled with the same filling, but the main difference between the two is the size. While a taquito’s wrapper consists of a small rolled tortilla, the fluta uses a much larger tortilla.

How to Make Chicken Taquitos in the Air Fryer

Homemade salsa chicken taquitos in the air fryer are so easy to make! Taquitos are typically fried to achieve their crunchy, golden exterior, but you can make much healthier taquitos in the air fryer with a few ingredients and very little prep!

Here are a few tips to help you make the BEST homemade chicken taquitos in the air fryer:

Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit ahead of time! This is a super important step because it helps to the taquitos from unrolling throughout the cook.
Before rolling up the taquitos, heat 3 corn (or flour) tortilla shells for 45 seconds on a microwave-safe dish covered with a damp paper towel. I only like to heat up to 3 shells at a time, because they cool pretty fast.
Place the taquitos seal-side down in the hot air fryer.
Don’t overfill your air fryer basket! I use a 6 qt air fryer, and 6-8 taquitos are as many taquitos as the air fryer basket will fit while staying crunchy. I suggest cooking in batches to ensure the crispiest taquitos. You will only need to cook 2 batches.

How To Transform Leftover Chicken

At Fancy Frugal Fixes, we love to find ways to transform our leftovers into something DELICIOUS and to minimize household food waste. Let me tell you, these taquitos are one of THE best go-to recipes to use up a few cups of leftover rotisserie chicken!

And as a bonus–taquitos make wonderful meal prep! Two birds with one stone. That’s my kind of a recipe.

If you have 2 cups of leftover chicken, then you have got to try out this easy, and much healthier air-fried chicken taquito recipe.

What’s Inside of a Taquito

Typically taquitios consist of chicken or beef mixed with some sort of cream cheese or sour cream and cheese. While this traditional combo is delicious, it can lack a bit of flavor and health benefits. Homemade salsa chicken taquitos in the air fryer have a few additional ingredients and healthier swaps to make these taquitos dynamic and feel-good flavor bombs.

2 cups diced cooked chicken (or rotisserie chicken)
- Use cooked chicken in this recipe like rotisserie chicken or you can also cook up about 2 chicken breasts
Salsa
- Add your favorite salsa to these taquitos! We love medium regular red salsa to add a little kick to the taquitos.
Hot Sauce
- Completely optional, but if you like your taquitos a bit more spicy–add it in!
Black Beans
- Add some more protein with a can of black beans. Make sure to drain all the excess liquid out of the can and continue to rinse the can out until the liquid is clear.
Neufchâtel cheese (or cream cheese)
- Neufchâtel cheese has 1/3 less fat than cream cheese. In this dish, Neufchâtel cheese is indistinguishable from cream cheese. Save some fat and calories and add in Neufchâtel cheese instead. If you can’t find Neufchâtel cheese, just use cream cheese instead.
Optional Add-In: Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- I didn’t add sharp cheddar cheese to this recipe, but you can add up to 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese if desired into your taquito filling.

How to Use Up 1/2 block of Neufchâtel cheese (or Cream Cheese)

Need a recipe to use up the other half of the block of Neufchâtel cheese? Make a delicious dish of Decadent Blueberry Cheesecake Baked Oatmeal for breakfast (it will work great with Neufchâtel cheese instead of cream cheese)! DELICIOUS!

Homemade Chicken Taquitos in the Air Fryer

Can I Make Chicken Taquitos in the Air Fryer if I Don’t Have An Air Fryer

If you have an oven you can easily bake these taquitos instead. Oven-baked taquitos will still be crispy, crunchy, and just as delicious as their air-fried counterparts.

However, the cooking time will increase, and the taquitos are more likely to unravel. Air fryers are the ideal tool for creating homemade taquitos quickly, but don’t worry a traditional oven will work too (I have made taquitos in the oven several times before purchasing an air fryer).

Follow the steps below to make the best oven-baked homemade chicken taquitos:

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare the taquitos as normal (following the steps in the recipe below).
Place taquitos seal side down, on a lined baking sheet, and spray tops with avocado oil or olive oil if desired. Bake the taquitos at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about 15- 20 minutes.

Can I Meal Prep or Freeze Homemade Chicken Taquitos?

YES, to both!!!! Chicken taquitos in the air fryer make one of the BEST meal prep and freezer prep recipes. You can easily make a big batch to store in your fridge or freezer.

Storing Instructions

Let your homemade chicken taquitos fully cool down on a wire rack. When the taquitos have fully cooled, place them in sealed meal prep containers or a gallon-sized freezer bag. Homemade chicken salsa taquitos will last for up to 5 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer.

Reheating Instructions

Reheat taquitos in a preheated air fryer at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 3 minutes. Reheat for 4 minutes from frozen.

If you Like Chicken Taquitos in the Air Fryer You Might Also Like These Easy Chicken Recipes

Looking for more easy chicken recipes? Fancy Frugal Fixes has got you covered! Whether you are looking to use up leftover chicken or want a quick recipe, we have got plenty of low-fuss recipes for you.

Check out these insanely good, trusted chicken recipes: