Taco facts for kids

For other uses, see Taco (disambiguation).

Quick facts for kids
Taco
Three varieties of taco (clockwise from left): carnitas, carne asada, and al pastor. As is traditional, they are garnished simply with cilantro (fresh coriander) and chopped onion, and served with lime on the side for seasoning according to the diner's taste.
Type	Finger food
Main ingredients	Tortilla Protein (animal or vegetable)
Ingredients generally used	Vegetables Cheese Sauces

A taco is a classic Mexican dish. It's made with a small, hand-sized corn or wheat tortilla. This tortilla is then filled with tasty ingredients.

You fold the tortilla around the filling and eat it with your hands. Tacos can have many different fillings. These include beef, pork, chicken, seafood, beans, vegetables, and cheese.

They are often topped with things like salsa, guacamole, or sour cream. You might also find lettuce, coriander, onion, tomatoes, and chiles. Tacos are a popular type of antojito, which means "little craving" or Mexican street food. They are now enjoyed all over the world!

Tacos are different from similar foods. For example, burritos are usually much bigger and rolled up. Taquitos are rolled and then fried. Chalupas or tostadas have tortillas that are fried flat before adding toppings.

What's in a Name? The Word "Taco"
A Bite of History: The Taco's Journey
Traditional Taco Styles
Newer Taco Styles
See also
Images for kids
See also

What's in a Name? The Word "Taco"

The exact origin of the word "taco" for this dish isn't fully known. There are a few ideas about where it came from.

In Spanish, "taco" has many meanings. It can mean "wedge," "plug," or even a "billiard cue." The meaning of "taco" as a food item is a Mexican invention.

One idea is that the word "taco" came from Mexican silver miners. They used "taco" to describe the paper-wrapped gunpowder charges they used. These looked a bit like a rolled-up tortilla.

Another idea is that it comes from an ancient Nahuatl word. Nahuatl was spoken by the Aztec people. The word is tlahco, meaning "half" or "in the middle." This makes sense because the food is placed in the middle of the tortilla. People in ancient Mexico ate dishes similar to tacos long before the Spanish arrived.

A Bite of History: The Taco's Journey

There's a lot of discussion about when tacos first appeared in Mexico. Some historians believe tacos existed before the Spanish arrived. They say that native people in the Valley of Mexico ate tacos filled with small fish.

When the Spanish explorers came, Bernal Díaz del Castillo wrote about the first taco feast enjoyed by Europeans. This meal was arranged by Hernán Cortés for his captains in Coyoacán.

Other people think tacos are more recent. A popular idea is that silver miners invented them in the 18th century.

One of the oldest written mentions of "taco" for food is from an 1836 cookbook. It described rolling pork like a "tortilla taco." Another mention is from an 1861 novel. It talks about someone eating a "tortilla taco filled with red chile."

It's interesting to know that "taco" was originally a regional word, mainly used around Mexico City. In other parts of Mexico, people used different names. For example, in some areas, they said burrito or burro. In others, they said codzito. Over time, because of Mexico City's influence, "taco" became the most common name.

In 2024, a taco stand in Mexico City, El Califa de León, made history. It became the first taco stand to win a Michelin star, which is a huge award for restaurants!

Traditional Taco Styles

Tacos come in many delicious traditional styles. Each one has its own special flavor and way of being made.

Tacos al pastor ("shepherd style")

These tacos are made with thin pork slices. The pork is seasoned with a special mix called adobo. It's cooked on a tall, spinning rotisserie, similar to shawarma. This style came from Lebanese immigrants in Mexico.

Tacos de asador ("spit" or "grill" tacos)

These tacos are cooked on a grill. They can be made with carne asada (grilled beef), tacos de tripita (tripe grilled until crispy), or chorizo asado (grilled sausage). They are served on two small tortillas. People often add guacamole, salsa, onions, and cilantro.

Tacos de cabeza ("head tacos")

These tacos use different parts of a cow's head, cooked with steam. This includes the muscles of the head (cabeza), brains (sesos), tongue (lengua), cheeks (cachete), lips (trompa), and eye (ojo). The tortillas are warmed on the same steaming plate.

Tacos de camarones ("shrimp tacos")

These tacos started in Baja California, Mexico. They use grilled or fried shrimp. They are usually topped with lettuce or cabbage, pico de gallo, avocado, and a creamy sauce. All of this is placed on a corn or flour tortilla.

Tacos de cazo (literally "bucket tacos")

These tacos are made using a large metal bowl filled with lard for deep-frying. Common meats for these tacos include Tripa (tripe), Suadero (tender beef cuts), Carnitas (slow-cooked pork), and Buche (pork esophagus).

Tacos de lengua (beef tongue tacos)

The beef tongue is cooked for hours until it's very tender. Then it's sliced and lightly fried. Many people say a real taquería (taco shop) must offer tacos de lengua.

Tacos de pescado ("fish tacos")

These also came from Baja California, Mexico. They feature grilled or fried fish, lettuce or cabbage, pico de gallo, and a creamy sauce. They are served on a corn or flour tortilla. They became very popular in the United States, especially in California.

Tacos dorados (fried tacos; literally, "golden tacos")

These are also called flautas ("flutes") or taquitos. Tortillas are filled with cooked shredded chicken, beef, or barbacoa. They are rolled into a long cylinder and deep-fried until crispy.

Tacos sudados ("sweaty tacos")

These tacos are made by filling soft tortillas with a spicy meat mix. Then, they are placed in a basket covered with cloth. The cover keeps them warm and traps steam, which makes the tacos very soft.

Tacos de birria (stewed meat tacos)

These tacos are made with goat or beef that has been roasted or stewed with spices. They are often served with the broth from the meat as a dipping sauce. This style comes from the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Many taco stands offer sides with tacos. These often include whole or sliced red radishes, lime slices, salt, pickled or grilled chilis, and sometimes cucumber slices or grilled cambray onions.

Newer Taco Styles

Hard-shell Tacos

A hard-shell taco, made with a prefabricated shell

The hard-shell or crispy taco is a tradition that started in the United States. This taco usually has a crispy, fried corn tortilla shell. It's filled with seasoned ground beef, cheese, and lettuce. Sometimes, it also has tomato, onion, salsa, sour cream, or avocado.

You can buy these tacos at restaurants and fast-food places. You can also buy kits in supermarkets to make them at home. In Spanish, hard-shell tacos are sometimes called tacos dorados ("golden tacos"), just like taquitos.

No one knows for sure who invented the hard-shell taco. But different types of tacos became popular in the U.S. in the early 1900s. Companies started selling tools and ingredients to make them in the 1930s.

In the 1950s, a man named Glen Bell opened Taco Tia. He sold a simpler version of tacos. He later started Taco Bell in 1962. His restaurants helped many Americans try Mexican food for the first time.

Soft-shell Tacos

Three soft-shell tacos with beef filling at a restaurant in Helsinki, Finland

Traditionally, soft-shell tacos meant corn tortillas that were cooked to be soft, usually by grilling or steaming. Today, the term often includes tacos made with wheat flour tortillas. These are usually from big food companies or restaurant chains. They are filled with the same ingredients as hard tacos.

Breakfast Taco

Typical breakfast taco with eggs, sausage and salsa

The breakfast taco is a popular Tex-Mex dish. It uses a soft corn or flour tortilla. It's filled with meat, eggs, or cheese. Other ingredients can be added too. Some people say Austin, Texas, is the home of the breakfast taco. But many people in San Antonio, Texas, have been eating them for a long time. For them, it's just "breakfast"!

Indian Taco

A frybread taco

Indian tacos, also called Navajo tacos, are special. They use frybread instead of tortillas. Frybread is a type of fried dough. These tacos are often eaten at pow-wows and festivals by indigenous people in the U.S. and Canada.

Frybread became common in the 1860s. This was when the U.S. government forced the Navajo tribe to move from their homeland. They were given ingredients like flour and lard. These were used to make frybread because their new home couldn't grow their usual foods.

Puffy Tacos, Taco Kits, and Tacodillas

Puffy tacos have been popular since the late 1930s. They are made by quickly frying uncooked corn tortillas. This makes them puff up and become airy. The fillings are similar to hard-shell tacos. Henry's Puffy Tacos in San Antonio, Texas, helped make them famous.

Taco kits are sold in grocery stores. They usually have taco shells (corn tortillas already fried into a U-shape), seasoning mix, and taco sauce. You can also find soft taco kits with tortillas instead of hard shells.