Sheet Pan Tacos

overhead shot of sheet pan full of tacos with a bowl of salsa

5 from 2 votes

Seasoned ground beef, tender veggies, fresh toppings, and fewer dishes make these sheet pan tacos a delicious quick weeknight dinner.

Prep Time35

Cook Time1

Total Time1 35

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: Sheet Pan Tacos Recipe

Servings:

Calories: 669kcal

Ingredients

5 tablespoons canola oil, divided into 2 tablespoons, 1 tablespoon, and 2 tablespoons
2 cups yellow onion, chopped
3 pounds ground beef, I used a ground chuck 80%-20% blend
2 ounces original taco seasoning, I used Old El Paso brand (two 1-ounce packets)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
16 soft taco flour tortillas (8-inch)
4 cups shredded Colby jack cheese (two 8-ounce blocks)
1½ cups store-bought pico de gallo

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Using a pastry brush, brush 2 tablespoons of canola oil onto the inside bottom and sides of a 13x18-inch rimmed baking sheet tray. You will need a second rimmed sheet tray for the baking process. Set aside.
In a large skillet, on medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil. Add the 2 cups chopped yellow onions and saute them for 2 to 3 minutes or until they are translucent and soft. Transfer the cooked onions to a plate and set them aside.
Add half of the ground beef and one of the 1-ounce taco seasoning packets, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon black pepper to the same large skillet on medium-high heat. Cook the ground beef for 4 to 5 minutes, breaking it up into crumbles until there is no longer any pink and the ground beef is completely coated with the taco seasoning spice blend.
Transfer the cooked ground beef to a large bowl or large shallow dish, and repeat with the second half of the ground beef and the second 1-ounce packet of taco seasoning, remaining 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon black pepper until all the ground beef is cooked. Transfer the rest of the cooked ground beef to the bowl with the first batch of cooked ground beef.
Add the cooked yellow onions to the cooked ground beef in the bowl, and stir to incorporate.
On the prepared rimmed baking sheet tray, you will lay out 10 of the flour tortillas. You will need to make sure that they are overhanging all sides of the sheet tray by at least 2 to 3 inches. You will also want to make sure that there are no gaps or open spaces between the flour tortillas. It should look like a solid layer of flour tortillas with all the sides overhanging. The part of the flour tortillas that are overhanging will be used to fold over and seal the sheet pan tacos once assembled.
Using a large slotted spoon, spoon the ground beef mixture evenly over the flour tortillas. Make sure to allow as much of the fat from the ground beef mixture to drip off through the slotted spoon before placing the meat onto the tortillas. This ensures that you don’t have soggy tortillas when baked.
Sprinkle the shredded Colby jack cheese evenly over the top of the ground beef layer.
Finally, using a slotted spoon, spoon 1½ cups of the pico de gallo over the top of the cheese. You will want to make sure that you allow as much of the juices from the pico de gallo to drain out before layering it onto your cheese.
Place your final 6 flour tortillas, overlapping each other in the center of your sheet tray, onto the top of the meat and cheese. Fold the overhanging flour tortillas over the top six tortillas so that you are enclosing all the meat and cheese.
Brush the remaining 2 tablespoons of canola oil evenly over the tops of all the flour tortillas. You can use the oil to help the top overhanging pieces stick to each other.
Place the second 13x18-inch rimmed sheet baking tray onto the top of the sheet pan taco making sure that all the folded-over tortillas stay in place. Place 1 or 2 oven-safe heavy skillets, like cast iron, onto the sheet tray to weigh it down. This will create a nice sealed sheet pan taco. It also helps to ensure that the flour tortillas become crisp and golden brown. Bake for 30 minutes.
Carefully remove the heavy skillet(s) and the top sheet tray. Continue to bake the sheet pan taco for an additional 30 minutes or until the top is golden and crisp. You may want to tent your 4 sides with long strips of aluminum foil (like you would a pie crust when baking) to ensure that the edges do not get too dark before the center of your sheet pan tacos gets nice and golden.
Allow the sheet pan taco to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Video

Notes

I used a standard-size flour tortilla for this sheet pan taco; however, the burrito or extra large-sized flour tortillas would also work. Note that you will not need to use as many extra-large flour tortillas. I do not suggest using anything smaller than the 8-inch size soft flour tortillas as it may make it very hard to keep the smaller tortillas to stay together when assembling the top of the sheet pan taco.
The part of the flour tortillas that are overhanging will be used to fold over and seal the sheet pan tacos once assembled.
If you have little ones that are sensitive to the fresh jalapeño or cilantro in the pico de gallo, you can cover only half of the cheese with the pico de gallo and leave the other half plain before covering your layers with the top flour tortillas.
If you have an excess amount of fat that has cooked out of your ground beef mixture while your sheet pan taco was baking, then you can very carefully tilt your pan and pour out the excess grease into a separate container. Once that grease has cooled, you can dispose of it. This will make sure that your sheet pan tacos are not sitting in any excess grease. You really want to make sure you use a slotted spoon to drip off as much excess fat before placing the ground beef onto the flour tortillas. If you use leaner ground beef, you will not have as much excess fat to worry about.

Inspiration for this recipe from Leite’s Culinaria

Nutrition