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These homemade Tostadas are crunchy and easy to make! Crispy fried corn tortillas topped with refried beans, ground beef or chicken, cheese, and all the best toppings are a perfect family friendly dinner idea.
Love Mexican recipes? You’ll want to try out our Mexican Picadillo, Gorditas, and Chile Rellenos.
Why I Love This Recipe
- Easy: Making your own homemade tostada shells is a quick and easy process. Plus it’s a fun way to use up any leftover corn tortillas you may have.
- Versatile: Switch up the meat to make this tostada recipe how you want!
- The Toppings: Just like with tacos, these tostadas can be loaded up with all the best toppings making them completely customizable and loaded with flavor.
Ingredients
Tostada Toppings
- Beans: A layer of refried beans makes it easy for the other toppings to stick to the tostada shell.
- Meat: Choose your favorite meat, easy ground beef taco meat, chicken tinga, and shredded Mexican beef are popular options.
- Cheese: Crumbled cotija or queso fresco.
- Vegetables: Top with some shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sliced radishes, fresh avocado or guacamole.
- Finishing Touches: A sprinkling of fresh chopped cilantro, salsa or pico de gallo, and drizzle of Mexican crema or dollop or sour cream.
How to Make Tostadas
Prepare a large baking sheet with a wire cooling rack, set it aside. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat, once the oil is heated add the corn tortillas one at a time and fry until crispy, approximately 30-45 seconds. Using tongs, flip the tortilla and fry the other side. Tortillas should be lightly golden on both sides.
Prepare the toppings, the recipe card below walks through making Chicken Tinga but you can easily switch to use ground beef cooked with taco seasoning. Warm the refried beans.
Layer the crunchy tostada shell with refried beans, meat, cheese, shredded lettuce, radishes, salsa, and drizzle with crema or sour cream. Serve these tostadas warm.
Storage & Make Ahead Information
- Make Ahead: Prepare all of the toppings ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator until needed. Heat up the beans and meat as needed when ready to serve. Tostada shells are best fresh.
- Leftovers: Store any remaining toppings in sealed container in the refrigerator. Tostada shells can be stored in a bag or container at room temperature for 5-7 days.
Easy Homemade Tostada Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken Tinga
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 2 pounds chicken thighs boneless, skinless
- 4 cups water
- ½ white onion quartered
- 1 bulb garlic top cut off
- 1 bayleaf
- 4 roma tomatoes stems cut off
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo
- 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
Tostada Shells
- 8 corn tortillas
- ¼ cup avocado oil
- sea salt
Toppings
- refried beans
- shredded lettuce
- queso fresco crumbled
- 1 radish sliced
- cilantro chopped
- Mexican crema
Instructions
Chicken Tinga
- Heat oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat.
- Sprinkle the chicken with a small amount of salt. Sear the chicken in the dutch oven turning to sear both sides.
- Pour water into the pot, ensuring that the chicken is completely covered. Add more water as needed to fully cover.
- Add the onion, garlic, and bayleaves.
- Bring to a simmer and let cook for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and easily shredded.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
- Add the tomato to the pot of water and let simmer for several minutes until the peel starts to come off.
- Remove the tomato, onion and garlic from the pot and add to a blender.
- Pour in 1/2 cup of the broth into the blender.
- Add the chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, and the seasonings.
- Blend until smooth.
- Pour the sauce into a clean skillet or braising pan, heat over medium heat.
- Shred the chicken and add to the chipotle sauce in the skillet. Stir to coat the chicken.
- Cook for 10 minutes.
Tostadas
- Prepare a large baking sheet with a wire cooling rack, set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet, once the oil is heated add the corn tortillas one at a time and fry until crisped, approximately 30 seconds. Using tongs, flip the tortilla and fry the other side. Tortillas should be lightly golden on both sides.
- Remove the fried tortilla and set on the wire cooling rack, sprinkle with sea salt.
- Continue until all tortillas are fried. Add more oil as needed to fry all the tortillas.
- Assemble the tostadas by spreading a layer of refried beans, topped with chicken Tinga. Add the remaining toppings as desired, shredded lettuce, radishes, crumbled queso fresco, cilantro and a drizzle of crema.
Notes
- Make Ahead: Prepare all of the toppings ahead of time and store them in the refrigerator until needed. Heat up the beans and meat as needed when ready to serve.
- Leftovers: Store any remaining toppings in sealed container in the refrigerator. Tostada shells can be stored in a bag or container at room temperature for 5-7 days.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Photography by the talented KJandCompany.co
Used jar of salsa instead of tomato sauce. Nice kick!!? And so good.
Also I want to make. “Sopas” , not the soup.I love those kinda hasa marina little cups. Thanks, for sharing your recipes