Taco Sticks

We love how easy these Taco Sticks are to make and to eat! They are a fun and unique way to enjoy the classic taco flavors we all know and love.

Perfectly seasoned ground beef and gooey cheese are baked, after being wrapped up in pizza dough. It creates a puffy taco roll that is so delicious!

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Puffed Tacos in a Stick!

Tacos are a frequent request in our household. I love it, because they are an easy go-to dinner option, and they are one thing that is everyone’s favorite.

But, sometimes having just plain old tacos all the time can get rather boring. So, it’s fun to mix things up, and these taco sticks are the perfect way to do that. 

These make a super easy weeknight dinner that is kid-friendly and approved! They also make an easy appetizer for tailgates and parties! They are the perfect party food!

I would describe these as a pizza roll, but instead of pizza, they are tacos! The pizza dough makes a puffy pastry that is soft and flakey, and inside you have a delicious cheesy and meaty taco. How can you beat that combo? 

It’s also a great way to use up any leftover taco meat you might have from making tacos a previous night. Instead of just reheating the meat and having regular tacos again, you can try out these taco sticks! I promise everyone will love them.

Ingredients / Shopping List

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 package taco seasoning (plus water called for on envelope) – any brand will work.
• 2 tubes Pillsbury Pizza Dough – refrigerated, usually found by the canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls.
• 12 Colby Jack cheese sticks – these are found by the cheese section. They are orange and white cheese sticks. I think they melt better than a normal cheese stick.
• ¼ cup unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley

Additions & Substitutions

Ground Beef: You could use seasoned shredded chicken, ground chicken, or ground pork in place of the ground beef, if you wanted to make different styles of taco sticks. If you would like to keep them vegetarian, you could use meatless crumbles – my son loves them with this!

Cheese Sticks: You can use any flavor of cheese sticks that you like! You can even use a mixture of different kinds. I usually like to have some that are just cheddar and some that use the colby jack cheese sticks.

Add-ins: If you are someone who likes to load up your taco with all the garnishes, you can also load up your taco sticks. Try adding in onions, peppers, or olives to give them even more flavor! Kick them up a notch with some jalapenos!

Dipping Sauce: Our homemade salsa and and sour cream would be a delicious dip for these! You can also serve them with guacamole. 

How to Make Taco Sticks

1. COOK the ground beef.
2. MIX in the garlic, taco seasoning, and water.
3. UNROLL the pizza dough and cut it into 12 equal pieces.
4. FILL with a scoop of meat and a cheese stick cut in half.
5. FOLD pizza dough over the meat mixture and cheese.
6. PINCH the ends together.
7. BRUSH with butter and seasoning.
8. BAKE at 425 degrees for 12-14 minutes.

Tips for Making Cheesy Taco Sticks

Tip 1: It’s best to keep the tubes of pizza dough in the refrigerator until ready to use. That way they will stay chilled and won’t get gooey or sticky when you use them in the recipe.

Tip 2: Don’t overfill your taco sticks! You only need to add about 2-3 tablespoons of meat. This will depend if you are adding extra ingredients, such as vegetables. If these get too full they are hard to pinch shut and can create a huge mess when you bake them.

Tip 3: Be careful not to stretch the dough too much when you are pinching them together to close the taco sticks. If this happens, they’ll fall flat instead of being the puffy pastry stick you’re going for. 

Storage

Store leftovers in a sealed food storage container in the fridge for 4-5 days.

To reheat, I recommend using a toaster oven or placing them back in the oven and using the broil feature to crisp them up. They will be fine if you put them in the microwave, but the other two options will keep them nice and crispy!

Sometimes they get a bit soggy as leftovers, so they are best fresh.

More Easy Snacks

Blooming Quesadilla Ring | Garlic Butter Steak Bites | Oven Baked Beef Tacos | Sheet Pan Nachos | Beef Taco Ring (Made with Crescent Rolls) | Taco Pie | Asian Meatballs | Pizza in a Mug | Hot Cheeto Cheese Sticks

5 from 9 votes

Taco Sticks

Author — Jennifer Fishkind

Serves — 12

Perfectly seasoned ground beef and gooey cheese are baked, after being wrapped up in pizza dough. It creates a puffy taco roll that is so delicious!

PrintRatePin Save Saved

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Video

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 pound lean ground beef
• ▢ 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• ▢ 1 package taco seasoning plus water called for on envelope
• ▢ 2 cans Pillsbury Pizza Dough
• ▢ 12 Colby Jack cheese sticks
• ▢ ¼ cup unsalted butter
• ▢ 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried parsley

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Keep the tubes of pizza dough in the refrigerator until ready to use.
• Cook ground beef on medium-high heat in a frying pan until thoroughly cooked (5-7 minutes). Drain off excess fat.
• Add to the frying pan minced garlic, taco seasoning, and water called for on the seasoning package. Cook on high for 2-3 minutes until water has evaporated. Remove from heat.
• Remove pizza dough from the can and unroll it on the parchment paper. Using your hands shape into a 12×8 rectangle. Cut dough into 12 even pieces (each tube rolled out cut into 6 rectangles so each piece is 4×4 inches)
• Scoop approximately 3 tablespoons of meat mixture into the middle of each of the 12 dough rectangles.
• Cut a cheese stick in half and place on top of the meat.
• Bring up the sides of the dough and pinch together. Then pinch each end together and fold it up to the same side as the pinched center seam. Be careful not to stretch the dough too much or they’ll fall flat instead of being a puffy pastry stick. Place seamed sides down on the parchment lined baking sheets.
• Melt butter in the microwave then stir in garlic powder and dried parsley. Use a pastry brush or spoon to evenly coat each of the 12 taco sticks with the butter mixture.
• Place in the oven and cook for 12 – 14 minutes until tops of taco sticks are lightly browned.

Jenn’s Notes

TIP: Serve hot and with salsa, sour cream, and guacamole! 

STORAGE: Store leftovers in a sealed food storage container in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Nutrition Info

Calories: 333kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 952mg | Potassium: 134mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 392IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 3mg

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Once you try these, our family will be begging you to make taco sticks again and again. They are such a fun and easy way to have taco night with a twist. The gooey cheese and beef filled pastries are irresistible!