Walk up to any serious taqueria and the menu board can look like a vocabulary test. Suadero, cabeza, buche, tripa, lengua, campechano: every word is a filling, and every filling has its own history, technique and ideal salsa. This guide is our attempt to put the whole alphabet on one page, from adobada to zarandeado, with notes on how each one is cooked, where it comes from and what we like to eat it with.
It is not a complete encyclopedia. Mexico has thousands of regional variations, and any taquero will happily tell you that their version is the correct one. Think of this as a field guide: enough to order confidently, cook a few at home and know what you are looking at when a new truck opens down the street.
How to use this guide
Fillings are listed alphabetically, grouped into sections of the alphabet. Each entry covers the basics: what it is, how it is cooked and what to pair it with. At the end you will find a quick-reference table and a list of the fillings we think every home cook should master first.
- Cooking method tells you whether you need a grill, a pot or a whole weekend.
- Region points to where a style is most closely associated, not the only place you will find it.
- Salsa pairing is our opinion. Feel free to argue in the comments.
A through E
A is for Adobada and Al Pastor
Al pastor is the king of the Mexico City taco stand. Thin slices of pork shoulder are marinated in achiote, guajillo chile, vinegar and spices, stacked onto a vertical spit called a trompo and roasted in front of a gas flame. The taquero shaves off crisp edges with a long knife and flicks a sliver of pineapple from the top of the spit onto the tortilla with a move that takes years to master.
The technique descends from shawarma brought to Puebla by immigrants from the Middle East in the early twentieth century. The pork version with a red chile marinade took shape in Mexico City around the 1960s. In Tijuana and much of Baja, a similar style goes by the name adobada, often with a spicier marinade and no pineapple.
At home, you can get close by marinating thin pork slices overnight and roasting them stacked in a loaf pan, then slicing and crisping them in a hot skillet. Serve with onion, cilantro, pineapple and a salsa verde cruda.
B is for Barbacoa and Birria
Traditional barbacoa is lamb or goat wrapped in maguey leaves and slow-cooked overnight in an underground pit lined with hot stones. In central Mexico, especially Hidalgo and the State of Mexico, it is weekend food, sold by weight on Saturday and Sunday mornings with a cup of the rich consommé that drips into a pot beneath the meat. In northern Mexico and Texas, barbacoa often means beef cheeks, steamed until they collapse.
Birria comes from Jalisco and was traditionally made with goat, marinated in a paste of dried chiles, vinegar and spices, then braised until tender. The beef version from Tijuana, crisped on the plancha after the tortilla is dipped in the stew fat, has become one of the most popular taco styles in the United States. Order it with consommé for dipping and plenty of chopped onion and cilantro.
C is for Carnitas, Carne Asada, Cochinita Pibil and Chorizo
C is the busiest letter on the board. Carnitas, from Michoacán, is pork simmered slowly in its own lard in a wide copper pot called a cazo. The result is meat that is tender inside and crisp at the edges. Good carnitas stands sell different cuts: maciza for lean shoulder, costilla for rib, cuerito for skin and buche for stomach. Ask for a surtido if you want a mix.
Carne asada is the backyard classic of northern Mexico: thin beef, usually flap meat or skirt steak, seasoned with salt and lime and grilled over mesquite or charcoal. In Sonora it is often served on flour tortillas with guacamole and grilled green onions. The key is a very hot grill and a quick cook.
Cochinita pibil is the pride of the Yucatán peninsula. Pork is marinated in achiote paste and the juice of bitter Seville oranges, wrapped in banana leaves and slow-roasted, traditionally in a pit called a pib. It is shredded and served with pickled red onions and a fiery habanero salsa.
Chorizo, the spicy Mexican pork sausage seasoned with chiles and vinegar, is fried loose rather than sliced. It is often combined with potatoes as papa con chorizo, one of the most comforting fillings on any menu, or mixed with other meats in a campechano taco.
D is for Deshebrada
Deshebrada simply means shredded, and it usually refers to beef that has been simmered until tender, pulled into strands and then cooked again in a salsa of tomato, chile and onion. It is a staple of northern Mexican home cooking and a common filling in tacos de guisado and burritos across Chihuahua and Durango.
The beauty of deshebrada is its patience. The beef can be cooked a day ahead, and the second cook in salsa lets it soak up flavor. Serve on warm corn tortillas with a spoonful of refried beans underneath.
E is for Escamoles and Elote
Escamoles are the edible larvae and pupae of ants, harvested from the roots of agave plants in central Mexico. They have a buttery, nutty flavor and a texture sometimes compared to cottage cheese. Sautéed with butter, onion and epazote, they make a luxurious spring taco and are sometimes called Mexican caviar.
For a less adventurous E, try elote: charred corn kernels cut from the cob and tossed with mayonnaise, lime, cotija and chile powder. As a taco filling it works best with something rich, like a little crumbled chorizo or a few slices of grilled poblano.
A good taco is about balance: rich filling, bright salsa, something crunchy and a tortilla that tastes like corn.
Our editorial team
F through J
F is for Fish
Baja California gave the world the battered fish taco. Strips of mild white fish are dipped in a light batter, fried until crisp and served on corn tortillas with shredded cabbage, crema, pico de gallo and lime. Along the coast of Sinaloa and Nayarit, grilled and smoked fish tacos are just as common, including marlin cooked down with tomato and chile.
The mistake most home cooks make with fish tacos is using too thick a batter. You want something closer to tempura: a very cold mix of flour, a little mustard, salt and beer or sparkling water, whisked just until combined.
G is for Guisados
Guisados are stews, and a taco de guisado stand is one of the great pleasures of Mexico City. The cook lines up a dozen clay pots filled with fillings like chicharrón in salsa verde, rajas with cream, picadillo, mole verde and potatoes with chorizo. You point, and they spoon it onto a double tortilla, sometimes with a scoop of rice as a base.
Guisados are ideal for home cooking because they reheat beautifully. Make two or three on a Sunday and you have taco night covered for the week.
H is for Huitlacoche and Hongos
Huitlacoche is a fungus that grows on ears of corn, turning the kernels into swollen, blue-gray lobes. It has an earthy, smoky flavor that has earned it the nickname Mexican truffle. It is usually sautéed with onion, garlic, serrano chile and epazote, and it is one of the best vegetarian fillings there is.
Hongos, or mushrooms, are the other great meatless H. During rainy season, markets in central Mexico sell a staggering variety of wild mushrooms. At home, a mix of oyster and cremini mushrooms seared hard in a cast iron pan with garlic and chile gets you most of the way there.
I is for Intestines (Tripa)
Tripa, beef small intestine, is a cult favorite. The intestines are cleaned, simmered until tender and then fried on the plancha until crisp. You can usually order it suave (soft) or dorada (well done and crunchy). The crispy version has a rich, beefy flavor and a satisfying crunch that wins over many first-timers.
Pair tripa with a sharp salsa verde and plenty of lime to cut through the richness.
J is for Jamaica
Flor de jamaica, the dried hibiscus flower better known for agua fresca, has a second life as a taco filling. After steeping the flowers for a drink, the rehydrated petals can be sautéed with onion, garlic and chipotle. The texture is surprisingly meaty and the flavor is tart and bright. It is a clever, low-waste vegetarian option.
| Filling | Protein | Cook time | Best salsa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al pastor | Pork | 4 to 12 hours marinating, 1 hour roasting | Salsa verde cruda |
| Barbacoa | Lamb, goat or beef | 8 to 12 hours | Salsa borracha |
| Birria | Goat or beef | 3 to 4 hours | Chile de árbol |
| Carnitas | Pork | 3 hours | Salsa verde |
| Carne asada | Beef | 10 minutes | Pico de gallo |
| Cochinita pibil | Pork | 4 to 6 hours | Habanero |
| Fish | White fish | 5 minutes | Salsa roja and crema |
| 7 fillings | From 5 minutes to overnight |
K through O
K is for Kabocha and Other Squash
K is a tricky letter in Spanish, so we borrow from the squash family. Roasted kabocha or butternut squash with chile, a little honey and toasted pepitas makes a wonderful autumn taco. It is sweet, soft and pairs perfectly with a salty cheese like cotija and a smoky salsa of dried chipotle.
L is for Lengua
Beef tongue is one of the most tender cuts you will ever eat, once it is cooked properly. Simmer the whole tongue for three hours with onion, garlic and bay leaves, peel off the outer skin while it is still warm, then dice it and crisp it on the griddle. Lengua tacos are rich and silky, and they are often one of the pricier items on a taqueria menu for good reason.
Serve with salsa verde, onion and cilantro. If you have never tried it, this is the organ meat to start with.
M is for Machaca
Machaca is dried, shredded beef from northern Mexico, originally a way of preserving meat in the desert heat. The beef is salted, dried and pounded into fine threads. In Sonora and Nuevo León it is scrambled with eggs, onion, tomato and chile for machacado con huevo, a classic breakfast taco filling usually wrapped in a flour tortilla.
N is for Nopales
Nopales are the pads of the prickly pear cactus. Once the spines are removed, they are sliced into strips and either grilled whole or boiled and tossed into a salad with tomato, onion, cilantro and queso fresco. They have a green, slightly tart flavor similar to green beans with a little okra-like texture.
Grilled nopales with a slice of melted panela cheese is a quick, satisfying vegetarian taco. If the texture worries you, grilling rather than boiling keeps it to a minimum.
O is for Oreja and Other Offal
Oreja, pork ear, is simmered until soft and then crisped, giving a mix of chewy cartilage and crunchy skin. It sits alongside cabeza (head meat), cachete (cheek), ojo (eye) and sesos (brains) on the menu of a traditional taquería de cabeza, where the meats are steamed together and chopped to order.
These cuts are not for everyone, but they represent something important: the tradition of using every part of the animal, and of turning humble ingredients into something delicious.
El taco es el plato más democrático de México. Lo come todo el mundo, a cualquier hora.
The taco is the most democratic dish in Mexico. Everyone eats it, at any hour.
A saying we heard at more than one taco stand
P through T
P is for Pollo, Papas and Pescado
Pollo, chicken, is the most flexible filling on this list. It can be grilled and chopped as pollo asado, shredded into a chipotle and tomato sauce as tinga, or simmered in mole. Chicken thighs are always a better choice than breasts for tacos; they stay juicy and take on more flavor.
Papas, potatoes, show up in tacos dorados and tacos de canasta, and they are a cheap and filling option that is easy to love. Mashed potatoes seasoned with a little chile and folded into a tortilla before frying may be the most comforting taco there is.
Q is for Quesabirria and Queso
Quesabirria is birria with melted cheese, usually Oaxaca or Chihuahua cheese, folded into the tortilla and crisped on the griddle until the cheese forms a lacy, crunchy edge. It is messy, indulgent and absolutely worth the napkins.
Queso on its own also deserves a mention. Queso fundido, melted cheese often topped with chorizo, is scooped into warm tortillas at the table. And fried cheese tacos, where a layer of cheese is crisped into a shell, have become a popular low-carb trend.
R is for Rajas con Crema
Rajas are strips of roasted poblano chile. Cooked with onion and corn in a little crema, they become one of the most popular vegetarian guisados in Mexico. The poblanos bring a gentle heat and a smoky flavor, while the cream keeps everything mild enough for kids.
Char the poblanos directly over a gas flame until blackened, sweat them in a covered bowl for ten minutes, then peel, seed and slice them. That is the entire secret.
S is for Suadero
Suadero is a thin cut of beef from between the belly and the leg, cooked slowly in fat, much like carnitas, and then crisped on a round griddle with a raised center called a comal de choricera. It is a Mexico City specialty, often sold alongside longaniza and tripa at late-night stands.
The texture is what makes suadero special: silky and tender, with crispy edges. Order it with salsa verde and a squeeze of lime.
T is for Tinga and Tacos de Canasta
Tinga is shredded chicken or pork cooked in a sauce of tomato, onion and chipotle chiles in adobo. Originally from Puebla, it is smoky, a little sweet and a great way to use leftover chicken. It is one of the easiest fillings to make at home in under an hour.
Tacos de canasta, basket tacos, are a different concept entirely. The tortillas are filled with simple fillings like potatoes, beans, chicharrón or adobo, then stacked in a basket lined with cloth and plastic. The steam and oil soften them into tender little bundles. Vendors pedal around Mexico City in the morning with the basket strapped to a bicycle.
U through Z
U is for Uni
In Ensenada and along the Baja coast, sea urchin from local waters appears on tostadas and in tacos, often with nothing more than avocado, lime and a few drops of salsa. It is briny, sweet and creamy. It is not a traditional taco filling in the classic sense, but it is a delicious example of how coastal cooks use what the ocean provides.
V is for Verduras
Verduras, vegetables, are the foundation of many of the best meatless tacos. A mix of zucchini, corn, poblano and onion, sautéed together as calabacitas, makes a colorful filling. Roasted cauliflower with an al pastor marinade is another favorite that has appeared on menus across the United States.
The trick with vegetable tacos is to cook them hard enough to get color. Pale, steamed vegetables will never be as satisfying as a filling with some char.
W is for Wild Greens (Quelites)
Quelites is the name for the edible wild greens of Mexico, such as quintonil, verdolagas (purslane) and chepil. Cooked with garlic, onion and a little chile, they make a simple and traditional taco filling. Many cooks combine them with pork in salsa verde, especially verdolagas.
X is for Xnipec
X is for xnipec, the fiery Yucatecan salsa of habanero chiles, red onion, tomato, cilantro and bitter orange juice. It is not a filling on its own, but it is the essential partner for cochinita pibil, poc chuc and other dishes from the peninsula. The name comes from Mayan and is often translated as dog’s nose, because it is spicy enough to make your nose run.
Y is for Yuca
Yuca, also called cassava, is a starchy root used across Latin America. Fried until crisp and golden, it makes a hearty filling for vegetarian tacos, especially when paired with a sharp curtido or pickled onion. It is less common in Mexico than in Central America, but it shows up in plenty of Latin American kitchens in the United States.
Z is for Zarandeado
We end at the coast of Nayarit with pescado zarandeado: a whole fish, butterflied, marinated in a sauce of chiles, garlic and citrus and grilled over wood in a hinged basket. The name comes from the shaking motion used to turn the fish. The flaky, smoky meat is pulled off the bone at the table and wrapped in warm tortillas with salsa and onion.
It is a fitting way to finish the alphabet: a dish that is about gathering around a table, sharing and making tacos together.
A short history of the taco
Nobody knows exactly when the first taco was eaten, but the tortilla itself is ancient. People in Mesoamerica were grinding nixtamalized corn and cooking flat breads on clay griddles thousands of years before the Spanish arrived. Folding a tortilla around beans, chiles, fish or small game was simply the natural way to eat. The word taco appears in print much later. Historians have found it in Mexican writing from the late nineteenth century, and one popular theory connects it to the small paper-wrapped charges of gunpowder used by silver miners, which were also called tacos.
What is certain is that the taco grew up alongside Mexico City. As people moved from the countryside to the capital for work in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, they brought regional dishes with them, and cheap, filling tacos became the food of workers. Street stands selling guisados, tacos de canasta and later al pastor turned the city into the taco capital it remains today.
From there, tacos followed migration north. Mexican communities in Texas, California and across the Southwest built their own traditions, from breakfast tacos in San Antonio and Austin to the crispy, hard-shell tacos that fast-food chains carried around the world in the second half of the twentieth century. Today you can find handmade tortillas in Tokyo, al pastor in London and birria trucks in nearly every American city.
Building a taco bar at home
Once you know a few fillings, the natural next step is a taco bar, the easiest way to feed a crowd. The key is contrast. Offer at least one rich, slow-cooked filling, like carnitas or barbacoa, and one quick, bright option, like grilled chicken or fish. Add a vegetarian filling so everyone has a choice; rajas con crema or grilled nopales are both easy crowd-pleasers.
- Plan on three tacos per person, or four if the crowd is hungry.
- Keep tortillas warm in a cloth-lined basket or an insulated tortilla warmer, and heat them in small batches.
- Set out salsas from mild to hot, labeled, so guests know what they are getting into.
- Do not forget the drinks: horchata, agua de jamaica and plenty of cold water.
Everything except the tortillas can be made a day ahead. Most guisados and braises taste even better the next day, and salsas benefit from a night in the fridge for the flavors to come together. On the day, all that is left is warming, setting out bowls and letting people build their own.
Where to start
If you are building your home taco repertoire, these are the five fillings we recommend learning first. They cover a range of techniques and will teach you most of what you need to know.
- Carne asada, for grilling and the value of a hot fire.
- Tinga, for building a sauce from dried and canned chiles.
- Carnitas, for low and slow cooking in fat.
- Rajas con crema, for roasting and peeling chiles.
- Fish, for frying and batter.
Essential toppings
- Finely diced white onion
- Chopped cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Salsas
- Salsa verde, raw or cooked
- Salsa roja
- Habanero or chile de árbol for heat
- Pickled red onions
- Radish slices
A final word
The best taco filling is the one made with care. Whether you are standing at a stand in Mexico City, in line at a truck in Los Angeles or at your own stove on a Tuesday night, the joy of the taco is its endless variety. Keep exploring, keep tasting and let us know which letter is your favorite.
