These wonton taco cups are the perfect appetizer or fun twist on taco night! Layers of seasoned beef and cheese are baked in layers of wontons in a cupcake pan, then finished off with your favorite taco toppings.
How cute are these taco cupcakes? They’re as much fun to make as they are to eat, and make a delicious and hearty snack for any occasion.
Tacos are one of my family’s favorite foods to eat – there are endless ways to mix and match the flavor combinations, and they’re all totally delicious! These taco cups are a fun play on tacos that use wonton wrappers instead of tortillas. The wontons are layered with meat and cheese and baked to crispy, gooey perfection.
How to make taco cups
The first step in making taco cups is to cook up your meat. I use 90% lean ground beef, although ground turkey will also work. The meat is flavored with taco seasoning and a can of petite diced tomatoes. It’s important to use the petite diced tomatoes so that you don’t have giant chunks of tomato in your taco cups.
After your meat is ready, it’s time to build your taco cupcakes! The first layer is wonton wrappers which get pressed into the wells of a muffin tin.
After that, you’ll add a layer of meat and shredded cheese.
Then you’re going to repeat the process by stacking a second layer of wonton, meat and cheese on top of the first. From there the taco cups get baked until the cheese is melted and the wontons are golden brown.
You actually can just eat the taco cups as-is from here, but I do like to add a few more toppings. I finish my taco cups with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of fresh tomatoes and green onions. Other great topping choices are diced avocado, chopped cilantro, sliced olives or minced red onion.
I love that these taco cups feed a crowd, they’re perfect for birthday parties, Taco Tuesday, football parties or just for any time you have a taco craving!
More Mexican appetizer ideas
Taco Cups
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 pound ground beef I use 90% lean
- 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- salt to taste
- 1 14 ounce can petite diced tomatoes drained
- 24 wonton wrappers
- 1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup sliced green onions
- 1/4 cup diced fresh tomatoes
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat.
- Add the beef to the pan. Use a spatula to break up the meat, stirring constantly. Add the taco seasoning and salt to taste. You may not need to add salt if your brand of taco seasoning already contains salt.
- Cook the meat for 4-5 minutes or until cooked through. Stir in the canned tomatoes.
- Coat a 12 cup muffin tin with cooking spray. Place one wonton wrapper into the bottom of each muffin cup.
- Spoon approximately 1 tablespoon of meat into each cup and top with approximately 2 teaspoons of cheese.
- Place a second wonton layer on top of the cheese, then add the remaining meat and cheese across all the muffin cups.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes or until edges are browned and cheese is melted.
- Top each taco cup with a small dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of green onions and tomato, then serve.
Notes
- Recipe adapted from Kevin and Amanda.
- 93% lean ground turkey may be substituted for the ground beef.
Brought this to a Christmas gathering and it was a big hit. I decided to do them in a mini muffin pan. I figured it would be easier to manage as a finger food if it were smaller in size. And it worked perfectly and as a result it allowed for more pieces since I only needed one wonton for each cup. (I just cut one wonton in half, then crisscrossed it the muffin cup, then filled with meat and cheese.
I did save enough ingredients to try it in a bigger muffin pan later and it was just a delicious and enjoyable, but realized that for a bigger party the smaller size was definitely more manageable.
Thank you for sharing the recipe and for people’s comments.
Melanie, after placing the wonton or egg roll wrap which I have used before, corners opposite of each other then you place in oven to brown afterwards you can fill. To reheat try a air frier.
Making these for a catering event this weekend. What do you think about prepping the cups a day before so they are ready to throw in the oven on the day of our event?
I haven’t tested the recipe this way, my only concern is that the wontons might absorb extra liquid from the beef and not crisp up properly. You could definitely make the filling in advance.
Looks amazing ❤️
Can you use min muffin tins?
Yes you’ll just need to cut the wontons smaller!
Could I use fresh tomatoes instead of a can of tomatoes?
I think that should work fine!
I’m going to try out this recipe tonight! Wondering about the nutrition – how many servings are the given calories equivalent to?
The calories are per taco cup.
Hello, you place one wonton down first, add the meat and cheese, and then a second wonton on top of that and repeat? Seems like the second wonton wouldn’t cook properly.
Yes that is correct!
Oh my I made with my sun dried tomato low carb tortilla.. so good
Do I use regular sized muffin tins or min muffin tins?
Regular size!
I used mini muffin pan and they turned out great (and more bite size).
Will make this again, my spouse devoured it.
Great recipe my fiancé and I loved it
I used ground turkey and it was amazing
Great flavor but my wontons never got crispy 😭
Bake the wontons first for 5 minutes then fill. This has always worked for me.
This recipe was so yummy ♥️ I added cilantro lime creama and it was exquisite.
I’m helping cook for a girlfriend in a house of picky eaters! One of the kids is gluten free and I am celiac myself. Gluten free wontons seem to be impossible to find (trust me, I’ve searched for other recipes as well!!)! Do you have any suggestions? I feel like tortillas won’t get as crispy and that seems like half of the fun of this recipe! Any suggestions welcomed! If time allows, I will experiment and report back! ☺️
Unfortunately I can’t think of a great substitute, I feel like tortillas would be too soft.
You can use Tostito’s scoops
Tortillas will crisp up, I have tried in the microwave, I made like a crispy Tortilla with meat, beans and cheese. I’m sure the Tortilla will crisp in the oven as well.
These were fantastic!! I used beyond meat. They were so great, the kids asked if there were any left over the next morning for breakfast
Super easy, and delicious! I happened to have everything in the house to make them. It was a great New Year’s day food tray. I will definitely be making them again, soon.
I like the food & i want the Recipe please
Huge hit! These are great. I substituted dairy free cheese and dairy free sour cream (son has a dairy allergy) and my two toddlers and husband loved them too! It was easy and definitely going to be a go to new recipe.