Dinner tonight is baked chicken tostadas! This gluten-free chicken tostadas recipe combines crispy baked tostada shells with seasoned chicken, refried beans, cheese, and delicious toppings for a quick and easy weeknight dinner everyone will love.
One dinner I can always count on my whole family eating is tostadas!
Made with crispy tostada shells, seasoned chicken, refried beans, melty cheese, and fresh toppings, these fully loaded baked chicken tostadas are ALWAYS a win. It’s a fun twist on taco night that swaps out traditional taco shells for flat tostadas (crispy tortillas) instead.
This easy weeknight meal comes together in about 30 minutes start-to-finish, which makes it a great recipe for busy nights. Even if you have picky eaters at home, everyone can add the toppings they like, so there’s less fussing about what’s for dinner.
Even better? This easy recipe starts with simple ingredients…
Simple Ingredients To Start
- Gluten-Free Tostada Shells. You can’t make a chicken tostada without a tostada shell! We use corn tostada shells to keep these tostadas gluten-free. We’re fans of the easy of store-bought tostadas, but you can absolutely make your own!
- Shredded Chicken. Next up, you’ll need some cooked shredded chicken. Feel free to use leftover shredded rotisserie chicken, slow cooker chicken, Instant Pot chicken…whatever you have!
- Simple Seasonings. While we’ve made these chicken tostadas plenty of times using plain rotisserie chicken, I prefer to jazz up the chicken with simple seasonings, like chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, and cilantro.
- Refried Beans. I usually use fat free refried pinto beans with chili and lime, but you can use whatever refried beans you like!
- Cheddar Cheese. My daughter and I love salty cotija cheese, but other people at my house prefer grated sharp cheddar cheese instead. Use what you like best!
- Guacamole or Avocado. The creaminess is delicious here.
- Salsa or Hot Sauce. For some zing!
- Shredded Lettuce or Slaw. I usually add some finely shredded lettuce or some of our fresh cilantro lime slaw.
- Your Favorite Extras! Think chopped tomatoes, fresh cilantro, sliced jalapeños, your favorite salsa, or a drizzle of something yummy (more on this in a minute!).
Key Ingredient: Tostada Shells
Not all tostada shells are gluten-free, so if you’re buying store-bought, be sure to only pick up a certified gluten-free tostada, like the corn option from Guerrero. (I can find these at Target, Safeway, Kroger, Walmart, etc.) Or, you can make homemade tostada shells with corn tortillas, oil, and salt.
How To Make Baked Chicken Tostadas, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- Preheat & Prep. To start, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place 8 tostada shells on a sheet pan. (You may need two pans, depending on the size of your tostadas.)
- Season The Chicken. In a medium bowl, combine shredded chicken, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, chipotle chili powder, cilantro, and salsa. Stir to combine until the chicken is evenly coated. (You might be tempted to add more salsa here–I don’t recommend it! You don’t want the tostadas to get soggy.)
- Warm & Thin The Beans. In a microwave-safe bowl (or a small saucepan on the stove) warm the refried beans with 1-2 Tablespoons of water until they’re heated through, smooth, and easy to spread.
- Layer Tostadas. Spread each tostada with a thin layer of refried beans, then top with shredded chicken mixture, and cheddar cheese.
- Bake. Then, bake chicken tostadas 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
- Add Toppings. Remove from the oven and top with your favorite toppings. I like guacamole, lettuce or cilantro lime slaw, and maybe some cilantro-lime ranch, taco sauce or hot sauce, but you can add your favorites!
- Serve & Store. Enjoy right away. Leftover tostadas don’t keep well, so only make the amount you plan to eat at a time for best results. (The individual components, like chicken, beans, and cheese will all keep well 2-3 days in the fridge, if you want to make more later!)
Variations & More Toppings To Try
Consider this easy chicken tostada recipe more of a formula than a strict recipe. Just like when you’re making tacos or nachos, you can choose the toppings YOU like best! We mix things up all the time, and these are some of our favorites:
- Mix Up The Cheese! If you don’t have cotija or cheddar cheese on hand, you can swap in Pepper Jack or Monterey Jack cheese, instead.
- Try a New Salsa. Try Pico de Gallo, a smooth restaurant-style salsa, salsa verde, corn salsa, or even mango salsa here! Every one of them is delicious.
- Swap Lettuce out for Cilantro Lime Slaw! The crunchy cabbage and tangy flavor is delightful with the spices in the chicken and the creaminess of the refried beans.
- Add More Veggies! Use chopped tomatoes, pickled red onions, grilled corn, etc. Whatever’s on hand or in season!
- Use a Fun Drizzle! We love Cilantro Lime Ranch, Chipotle Ranch, Mexican crema, sour cream, or your favorite hot sauce or taco sauce.
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Chicken Tostadas
Simplify Prep. You don’t have to bake these tostadas, I just like melting the cheese. For simpler prep, you can heat the chicken, and heat the beans, then just let everyone build their own and layer toppings on the tostadas at room temperature.
Gluten-Free Tostada Shells. Not all tostada shells are gluten-free, so double-check your labels before purchasing! We like Guerrero corn tostada shells, which are certified gluten-free. Can’t find any at the grocery store? You can make your own tostadas with corn tortillas, oil, and salt. (See the blog post FAQ for more tips!)
Cheese. Freshly grated cheese melts better than pre-shredded or bagged shredded cheese, which is often coated in an anti-caking agent that makes melting trickier.
Make-Ahead Tips. To get ahead for later, you can season the chicken and keep it in the fridge up to 2-3 days. You can also grate the cheese and prep the toppings and store separately in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble them.
Recipe Card
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Gluten-Free Chicken Tostadas
Description
Our gluten-free chicken tostadas are a quick dinner for a busy night. You get crispy tostada shells, seasoned chicken & delicious toppings in every bite!
Ingredients
For The Seasoned Chicken:
- 12 ounces cooked, shredded chicken
- 3–4 Tablespoons minced cilantro
- 1 heaping tablespoon your favorite salsa (red or green)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
For The Tostadas:
- 8 gluten-free corn tostada shells*
- 1 can refried beans
- Seasoned chicken (above)
- 2 cups freshly grated cheddar cheese*
Optional Toppings:
- Guacamole or sliced avocado
- Sour cream, Mexican crema, or cilantro lime ranch dressing
- Shredded lettuce or cilantro lime slaw
- Diced tomatoes or pico de gallo
- Taco sauce, salsa, or hot sauce
- Cotija cheese
Instructions
- Preheat & Prep. To start, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place 8 tostada shells on a sheet pan. (You may need two pans, depending on the size of your tostadas.)
- Season The Chicken. In a medium bowl, combine shredded chicken, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, chipotle chili powder, cilantro, and salsa. Stir to combine until the chicken is evenly coated. (You might be tempted to add more salsa here–I don’t recommend it! You don’t want the tostadas to get soggy.)
- Warm & Thin The Beans. In a microwave-safe bowl (or a small saucepan on the stove) warm the refried beans with 1-2 Tablespoons of water until they’re heated through, smooth, and easy to spread.
- Layer Tostadas. Spread each tostada with refried beans, then top with shredded chicken and cheddar cheese.
- Bake. Then, bake tostadas 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
- Add Toppings. Remove from the oven and top with your favorite toppings. I like guacamole, lettuce or cilantro lime slaw, and maybe some cilantro-lime ranch, taco sauce or hot sauce, but you can add your favorites!
- Serve & Store. Enjoy right away. Leftover tostadas don’t keep well, so only make the amount you plan to eat at a time for best results. (The individual components, like chicken, beans, and cheese will all keep well 2-3 days in the fridge if you want to make more later!)
Notes
- Gluten-Free Tostada Shells. Not all tostada shells are gluten-free, so double-check your labels before purchasing! We like Guerrero corn tostada shells, which are certified gluten-free. Can’t find any at the grocery store? You can make your own with corn tortillas, oil, and salt. (See the blog post FAQ for more tips!)
- Cheese. Freshly grated cheese melts better than pre-shredded or bagged shredded cheese, which is often coated in an anti-caking agent that makes melting trickier.
- Simplify Prep. You don’t have to bake these tostadas, I just like melting the cheese. For simpler prep, you can heat the chicken, and heat the beans, then just let everyone build their own and layer toppings on the tostadas at room temperature.
- Make-Ahead Tips. To get ahead for later, you can season the chicken and keep it in the fridge up to 2-3 days. You can also grate the cheese and prep the toppings and store separately in the fridge until you’re ready to assemble them.
Great way to get some protein without doing the same-old things. I think the slaw makes it amazing!