Today I’m going to show you how to make a delicious gluten free taco recipe that has Greek-leaning flavours. If you’d like to make something a little more traditional, check out this homemade gluten-free taco seasoning recipe that you can use on ground meat.
The great news is that this taco recipe comes together pretty quickly and could easily be added to your lineup of weekly 30-minute dinner recipes to keep coming back to. Now, grab a large frying pan and let’s get to work.
Allergy Status
Free From: Wheat/Gluten, Dairy, Egg, Soy, Tree Nut (including Coconut), Peanut, Fish, Shellfish, Sesame, Top 9 Allergens, Alliums, Apple, Avocado, Banana, Beans & Lentils, Berries, Buckwheat, Cane/Refined Sugar, Carrot, Celery, Cinnamon, Corn, Cruciferous, Garlic, Latex Cross Reactive Foods (H/M), Legume, Lupin, Mushroom, Mustard, Oat, Onion, Pea & Pea Protein, Potato (Nightshade Variety), Poultry, Rice, Seeds, Squash & Gourd, Stone Fruits, Strawberry, Sweet Potato & Yam, Tapioca/Cassava/Yuca/Manioc, Tomato, Yeast
Friendly To: EOE, FPIES, GAPs, Paleo, SCD
Compatible With: Low Histamine
Low Histamine: If dill isn’t tolerated, omit or use a little fresh parsley in its place. Omit the lemon juice. This will change the flavour profile, but you’ll still have a delicious taco.
Simple Ingredients for Your Gluten Free Taco Recipe
Part 1 Ingredients
- 2 TBSP Oil of Choice of Cooking
- 160g Organic Bell Pepper (5.7 ounces, small dice)
- 100g Organic White Onion (3.5 ounces), sliced
- 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
Part 2 Ingredients
- 450g Organic Grass Fed Beef OR Grass Fed Ground Lamb
- 3 TBSP Organic Lemon Juice (fresh if possible)
- 2 TBSP Organic Dried Parsley
- 1/5 – 2 tsp Sea Salt
- 1 tsp Organic Dried Dill Weed
- 3/4 tsp Organic Dried Thyme
Ingredient Notes
The cooking fat can be anything from avocado oil to tallow to dairy free butter. It’s whatever you like to regularly cook with.
You can use any colour bell pepper, and any colour onion for this recipe.
For extra flavour, use smoked salt instead of sea salt. I like the Redmond’s brand and SF Salt Co. brand.
If you don’t have a gluten free tortilla, or are new to the gluten free life, further down in this post you’ll find info on tortillas and tortilla alternatives.
Directions for Your Gluten Free Taco Recipe
Start by heating a medium non-stick pan on medium-high heat (7/10 for me). Add your cooking oil, then the bell pepper onion. Add 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt and mix together. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring as needed to prevent burning. Don’t over-stir, as you want some browning.
Next, add yourPart 2 Ingredients. For the salt, 1.5 – 2 teaspoons is a good amount, but this should be done to taste. Break your meat into small pieces as it cooks. This also mixes everything together at the same time. Cook for 9 minutes, then increase the heat to high (9/10 for me). Cook for 2 minutes, then turn the heat off.
Depending on how fatty your meat was, you may want to drain the taco meat before serving. For serving, I used a store-bought soft taco tortillas, and topped with fresh diced cucumber, and this dairy free tzatziki sauce. If you need to make tortillas at home, RAISE has a few options.
If you have leftover taco meat, you can store it in your fridge for 5 days in an airtight container. Alternatively, you can freeze your leftover taco meat for easy future meals.
Batch Cooking & Meal Prep Notes
This recipe for gluten-free tacos is the type of easy recipe you can batch cook and freeze for future meals. This article outlines how to freeze taco meat.
Tip: freeze individual portions of meat which allows you to thaw only what you need for another delicious meal.
You can batch cook quite a bit of this meat, and you can create variation by using different proteins. For example, you could make 2 pounds with ground chicken, 2 pounds with ground lamb, and 2 more pounds with ground rabbit.
Leftover taco meat has a lot of potential as well. When you thaw the meat, you can make tacos, a taco casserole, and even a taco & waffle (as a play on chicken and waffles). This article outlines all sorts of ideas on how you can reuse your leftover taco meat.
More Taco Recipes
Each of these tasty taco recipes is gluten free, dairy free, top 9 free, and top 14 free.
- Taco Pot Pie Recipe
- Apple & Chicken Tacos (kid friendly tasty tacos)
- Street Tacos Recipe (top 9 free taco recipe)
- Taco Spaghetti Recipe
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Types of Gluten Free Tortillas
If you need a good alternative to a wheat tortilla, here are some you’ll be able to find in grocery stores and online (many brands ship nationwide).
- Almond Flour Tortillas
- Cactus & Corn Tortillas
- Cassava Flour Tortillas
- Chickpea Flour Tortillas
- Coconut Flour Tortillas
- Soft Corn Tortillas
- Jicama Tortillas (this is sold in the produce section since it’s essentially raw produce)
Be careful when purchasing Keto tortillas, as these can often contain wheat starch or other wheat/gluten based ingredients in small amounts.
Alternatives to Tortillas
I think it’s important to remember that you can still have a successful taco night without making soft tacos. Here are more options to consider:
- Cauliflower Rice (cook in a large skillet along with chopped onions and season with taco seasoning for a delicious base)
- Chips (tortilla chips, potato chips, etc.)
- Crisps (Le Pain des Fleurs makes gluten free crisps that could be used as a tortilla and chip alternative)
- Pancakes (with little to no sweetener, these can be picked up and folded almost like a soft tortilla)
- Pizza Dough (you could bake plain mini pizza dough rounds, or even make a full on taco pizza)
- Potato Slices (you can use these and make potato tacos which is a play on Irish nachos)
- Taco Shell (Siete Foods makes a grain free shell my kids enjoy when they want crunchy tacos)
- Zucchini Noodles
Delicious Gluten-Free Recipes
If you need easy gluten-free dinners and more, I’ve got you covered.
- Pepperoni & Cheese Waffles (easy allergy friendly recipe that my kids love)
- Taco Pasta Recipe (such an easy weeknight dinner)
- Gluten & Dairy Free Dutch Oven Peanut Chicken (a family favorite around here)
- Harissa Seasoned Meat (a mega delicious, but simple recipe)
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Great Ingredients to Keep on Hand
Anytime you’re managing Celiac Disease, food allergies, or other dietary needs, it’s important to keep your fridge, freezer, and pantry stocked with ingredients you love. This is a great way to ensure you can make whatever you’re in the mood for, however, it’s also a great way to make it feel like you have way more options.
If taco Tuesday is something you’d like to do regularly, here’s a list of gluten free taco toppings and ingredients to explore (and stock up on):
- Beans (Black Beans, Pinto Beans, White Beans, etc.)
- Cream Cheese
- Gluten Free or Grain Free Taco Shells
- Gluten-Free Tortillas
- Ground Meat
- Onions (white, yellow, and red onions are each a great option)
- Pico de Gallo
- Salsa
- Sauces (hot sauce, etc.)
- Sour Cream
- Fresh Tomatoes
- Tomato Sauce, Tomato Paste, Diced Tomatoes (these can all be part of a delicious homemade sauce)
Don’t forget to stock your spice cabinet with common taco ingredients such as chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, ancho chili, cumin, paprika, chipotle powder, and cayenne pepper. If you don’t see one of your favorite taco toppings, add it to the list. Keeping what you love on hand is going to make taco night a breeze.
Answering Your Gluten Free Taco Recipe Questions
Where can I purchase gluten free tortillas?
Some grocery stores have gluten-free sections where they keep all of the GF goods, and other stores have the gluten-free options all throughout the store next to their wheat-based counterparts.
You’ll need to check the gluten free section if there is one, then check where the wheat tortillas are, then check the freezer section. It’s not uncommon for gluten-free flour tortillas (along with bread) to be kept in the freezer section.
Before going to the store, I suggest calling ahead, as availability will be hit and miss. It’s extra important to call if there’s a particular brand your flour type you’re looking for. From there, if you can’t find what you’re looking for, check the company’s website. Some GF tortilla makers sell direct on their website. You can also check the Gluten Free Mall website to see if they ship tortillas.
Is there an easy way to make these as vegetarian tacos instead?
You can totally make these ground beef tacos as vegetarian tacos. My top meat free pick for you will be to use pulled jackfruit in place of the ground beef. I’ve worked with this brand before, but you can use any kind you’d like.
My next suggestion would be to use tofu crumbles in place of the ground beef. If you need a soy free tofu, check out Big Mountain Foods (made from fava beans) and Pumfu (made from pumpkin seeds). I don’t work with these types of products often, so you’ll have to do a little research on the cook time if you go in this direction.
Could I make this recipe with ground chicken or ground turkey?
Yes, you can absolutely swap the ground beef for ground chicken or ground turkey, or even ground rabbit or pork. Make sure you adjust your cooking time as needed, since you don’t want to dry out your meat (especially a lean meat).
Can I make this recipe with chicken breasts instead of ground meat?
Yes, you can make this easy recipe with chicken breast instead of ground meat. You’ll want to cut your chicken breast into small pieces, and still use a pound of meat. Where I call for the ground meat, use your chicken instead.
The overall cook time may change, and you’ll want to make sure the internal temperature of your chicken reaches 165f/74c.
Are chickpea flour tortillas any good?
My kids have had to try a wide range of gluten-free options where tortillas are concerned for several reasons (including to make review videos). What I can tell you is that they don’t like most store bought gluten-free flour tortillas, including the chickpea flour tortillas.
More often than not, they prefer homemade tortillas, or choose to go without tortillas and use chips instead. Now, does this mean you won’t enjoy them, not sure. If you’ve been gluten free for more than a couple of years and don’t have a point of reference, you may enjoy them. At the same time, if you don’t like chickpeas and other legumes as a general rule, I don’t think you’ll like the tortillas.
Would this taste good with an avocado crema?
I think so, however, this taco meat recipe is Greek leaning, so I’d suggest making the recipe first, sampling, then deciding if an avocado crema would pair well. You know your likes and dislikes best, and I don’t want to suggest something you may not enjoy.
Will this taco recipe taste good with almond flour tortillas?
My kids don’t love almond flour tortillas, so I can’t say for sure. I can tell you that this tastes good with gluten-free corn tortillas. If you regularly eat almond flour tortillas, it’s worth trying. If you don’t like it, you could always serve the meat over something else (like cauliflower rice) or alongside something like Japanese yams.
Is it possible to make a nightshade free taco spice blend?
It’s possible, so long as you manage your expectations when making said taco seasoning blend. You’ll want to use ingredients such as black pepper, onion, garlic, and ginger to start. From there, explore ingredients such as cumin and sumac (this isn’t common in grocery stores and may need to be ordered online).
Essentially, you want to think about aromatics and spicy flavor ingredients that aren’t nightshades when making your homemade taco seasoning mix. Will this be authentic Mexican food? No, of course not. However, it will be taco adjacent, delicious, and safe for you, and that’s all that really matters.
Also, don’t forget about fusion foods. Look into making Asian leaning tacos, or a sweet and sour taco, or even an Italian leaning taco. You’ll be able to pull from a range of spices in these cuisines that are all nightshade free.
Could I swap the parsley for fresh cilantro?
I don’t suggest it, as the fresh cilantro may clash with some of the other ingredients in this recipe. If you’re all out of parsley, or can’t have it, try swapping it for marjoram instead.
