Cheese Taco Shells are huge in the keto and low-carb community. I was curious to see how they would turn out since I’ve never attempted them before.
Would they work? Were they easy for first timers? Were they delicious? Keep reading to find out! P.S. If you’re not on a low-carb diet, keep reading, I have you covered too!
Hidy-ho folks! How’s everybody doing? I’ve been well, just busy TCOB in my life, thanks for asking! In this week’s post, I test the keto and low-carb popular Cheese Taco Shells. I’ve seen them pop up on the internet whilst researching low-carb recipes so I wanted to give them a try. Especially since I miss eating taco like nobody’s business. Holy crap do I miss tacos! Yes, I’m aware of taco lettuce wraps but it’s not the same, not by a long shot. Lettuce wraps are flimsy AF, I’m after a low-carb taco shell that I can really grip and sink my teeth into.
I decided to write and film this post to see just how easy it is to make Cheese Taco Shells. Because why? Because sometimes people make difficult recipes look too easy. For example, you know the Tasty video recipes that pop up on your Facebook feed? Those Tasty folks are notorious for making adorable food videos that supposedly anyone can tackle. Well, I was on YouTube and noticed Tasty had a few Behind The Scenes Videos and guess what? The staff at Tasty failed a few of those recipes on the first, second, and third try. It looks to me as if Tasty is trying to pull the wool over our eyes! Try these ridiculously looking easy recipes, they say. It will be easy and fun, they say. I decided to be the judge of that, hence this post.
Did we Nail or Fail Cheese Taco Shells? Watch this video to find out!
I’m not sure why I’m being so dramatic, I mean, it’s clear from my photography we nailed them. Hahahaha, I’m a tard.
THE TEST
The first step in making Cheese Taco Shells is melting the cheese. I don’t have a microwave so I opted to melt the cheese in the oven. First I preheated my oven to 375 degrees. Next, I put roughly 1/2 cup of shredded cheese on top of a cookie sheet lined with a silicone baking mat. Then I popped the cookie sheet in the oven for 6 minutes. The cheese melts into a bubbly circle. Watch the video to see exactly what I mean. Last, I pulled them out of the oven.
Most tutorials I read said to mop off the excess grease with a paper towel then hang the cheese over a chopstick or spoon (supported by two tall cups) so a shell can form. I did as instructed and mopped off the grease, that pools on and around the melted cheese, immediately out of the oven. Mistake. The cheese is too hot so it stuck to my paper towel. I tried to pick up the cheese and burnt my damn finger. Using a knife or spatula to pick up the cheese circle only bunched the cheese up together. I was starting to doubt the recipe worked.
I let the cheese cool for a couple of minutes. Once cool, you can easily pick up the cheese circle with your fingers. The cheese is pliable but delicate so be gentle. The tutorial said to hang the cheese shell over a spoon or chopstick, supported by two large cups, and allow it to cool. Mistake. I couldn’t get the spoon or chopstick to stay on the cups, it would fall off. And if I bumped the table? Forget about it, everything would fall.
THE METHOD I USED WHICH WORKED GREAT FOR ME
- Cook the cheese in a 375-degree oven for 6-8 minutes. 8 minutes will result in a crisper shell.
- Allow the cheese circles to cool for 4-5 minutes before mopping off the grease and picking them up.
- Lay the shells over a rolling pin. I did two at a time but I think you can pile more on.
- I placed the rolling pin in my fridge against some other items so it wouldn’t move. I’m not certain if you have to put the cheese in the fridge but I assumed the shells would harden faster. If you don’t put the rolling pin in the fridge, place it on the counter against another item so it doesn’t roll around.
- After that, the Cheese Taco Shells were done!
THE END RESULT
I loaded up the Cheese Taco Shells with a meat mixture and our favorite fixin’s. I added tomato, avocado, and cilantro. You can add whatever you like, you do you. Kieran and I picked up our tacos and prepared for the first bite. The first thing I noticed is you can grip the Cheese Taco Shells like a corn or tortilla shell. And I mean, you can get a good grip, once the shell has hardened it means business. This automatically puts my cheese shells in a good light. I took a bite of my taco and immediately wanted to happy dance all over the damn kitchen.
You guys, I’ve missed tacos while being on the keto diet. I’ve been craving a regular’ole taco that didn’t consist of a bowl or a wrap. F all that noise in the face! I wanted an actual taco damn it! The Cheese Taco Shells quenched my taco-loving craving the moment the cheese hit my taste buds. This new taco wasn’t playing around.
The taste of the Cheese Taco Shells was mother rucking amazeballs. Yes, I said rucking, I’m trying to swear less. Cough…
Dude, the taco flavor was just what the taco doctor ordered. Or on fleek. Whatever you cool kids are saying these days. It was delicious. I’ll admit the shells were a tad greasy but nothing a napkin couldn’t handle. The shells won’t make a mess on your face but you’ll want to wipe your hands afterward, no big whoop.
Here are my final thoughts on the Cheese Taco Shells.
- Did the recipe work? Yes!
- Would I make them again? Yes, a million times yes. In fact, we are eating them again next week.
- Were they easy to make, even for a first timer? Yes. Every shell I attempted turned out perfect.
- Were they quick to make? Yes. The cheese melts in 6-8 minutes, depending on how crispy you want the shell. They are cool enough to handle roughly 3-5 minutes out of the oven then you can eat them right away or mold them into shells for a few minutes.
PAY ATTENTION NON-KETO/LOW-CARB DIETERS – THIS IS IMPORTANT. You should make this recipe with your regular flour or corn tortillas. I guarantee the addition of a cheese shell will take your tacos to another level. I’m drooling just thinking about sinking my teeth into a flour tortilla with a Cheese Taco Shell layer underneath. Epic AF.
So, there you have it folks, a strong endorsement for Cheese Taco Shells! YAY! I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am right now. I get the taste and feel of a regular taco without consuming carbs. I’m a happy momma!
Alright, folks, that’s a wrap on Cheese Taco Shells! I’m stoked because Kieran and I are finally doing our kind of camping this weekend! We’ve been working our butts off around the house building things, mulching our yard, we moved 11 yards of mulch over the 4th of July – ouchy momma, and other odds and ends. It dawned on us it’s already mid-July and we haven’t really adventured in Oregon this summer. I told Kieran house projects be damned, we need to camp, hike, and explore! I’m hoping to camp a TON this summer which will hopefully result in us finally producing camping videos. I’m so f’ing excited! Anyway, it’s about that time I get packing for our trip. Have a great weekend and I’ll see you next week!
Thank you for being apart of the WorkAmerica Food community, I sincerely appreciate you!
Sincerely,
Christina
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Cheese Taco Shells
Ingredients
- ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese per taco shell
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375.
- Line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking matt. I'm guessing the grease from the cheese would soak through parchment paper, rendering it useless.
- My cookie sheet had room for two 1/2 cup piles of cheddar cheese. Spread the cheese into a single layer the best you can.
- Transfer the cookie sheet to the oven and cook for 6-8 minutes. The longer you cook the cheese the crisper the shell will be.
- Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and transfer it to the top of the stove. Allow the cheese to cool for 3-5 minutes before handling.
- Take a paper towel and mop off the access grease that will pool on and around the cheese.
- Carefully lift the cheese shells off the cookie sheet and transfer them on top of a rolling pin. Lean the rolling pin against another item so it doesn't roll around all over the place.
- Allow the cheese to continue cooling for a few minutes then they are ready to use as taco shells!
- Stuff the shells with your favorite taco fillings and enjoy!
Notes
1/2 white onion, diced
1-2 jalapeno, diced (remove seeds and veins for less heat)
Your favorite taco seasonings – see below
1/4 cup water Heat a skillet on your stove at medium-high heat. Add the onion and jalapeno into the dry pan. I cook with vegetables without oil for a couple minutes until they soften. Now add the ground beef. Stir and break up the beef until it’s crumbly and cooked through 5-7 minutes. Add your favorite taco seasonings and stir until everything is well combined then add the 1/4 cup water. Turn your burner to high and bring the mixture to a boil. Then turn down the heat and let simmer for 25-30 minutes, stirring it occasionally. If the mixture cooks to fast and dries out, add more water. If the water doesn’t absorb into the meat after 30 minutes turn up the heat a little. Taste and adjust for seasonings and your taco beef mixture is done! Stuff that ish into the Cheese Taco Shells and enjoy! *I used a few shakes of dried basil, dried oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, ground turmeric, ground cumin, smoked paprika, chipotle powder, salt, pepper, and red chili flakes for my taco seasonings. Note, I don’t always measure, I’ll just add a couple or few shakes of each. After the meat is cooked through I’ll taste and keep adding seasonings until it’s exactly how I want it.