Easy and delicious authentic chicken flautas, known as flautas de pollo, filled with shredded chicken and fried, then served with a colourful and fresh assortment of toppings.
These authentic flautas de pollo are a wonderful marriage of simply seasoned chicken, rolled in tortillas, fried until crispy and served with abundant fresh toppings and Mexican cheese and crema.
Not only are chicken flautas a feast for the eyes, they are incredibly easy to make and wonderfully delicious!
Flautas is Spanish for “flutes”, an obvious reference to the long tube shape of flautas. Flautas are made from flour tortillas that are filled and then rolled up and fried until extra-crispy and with a savoury, spiced filling. Filled with chicken, these become “de Pollo”.
Ingredients and substitutions
A few notes about the key ingredients …
Chicken – as noted above, you can start with either left-over cooked chicken, chicken from a store-bought rotisserie chicken or a couple of uncooked boneless chicken breasts.
Salsa – just regular tomato salsa (mild, medium or hot) that you would use for nachos is fine here. Alternately, any Mexican-inspired sauce is fine (enchilada, chipotle etc.)
Large flour tortillas – large flour tortillas are traditional for flautas. In fact, it is the use of flour tortillas that differentiates flautas from taquitos, which are made with smaller corn tortillas.
Flautas topping ideas
When it comes to chicken flautas, I’m all about the toppings. I like to think of it as a both a garnish and a salad :) Here are some options for toppings. You don’t need to use all of them, but you’ll really want to for the best flautas experience.
- Iceberg lettuce – simply thinly sliced.
- Quick Pickled Red Onion – easy to make with red onion, cider vinegar and sugar (details in recipe card below)
- Cheese – Queso fresco or Mexican cotija cheese would be the best, most traditional option. Neither of these are available in my area, so I opt for crumbled feta cheese, which is a great alternative.
- Mexican Crema – you can certainly use store-bought if you have easy access, but it is easy to make your own Crema using sour cream, thinned with a bit of heavy cream or half and half (details in recipe card below)
- Cilantro – lots of fresh, chopped cilantro is always a good addition.
- Fresh pico de gallo, salsa, salsa verde or roja, sour cream and avocado or guacamole are good alternate (or additional) options.
How to make flautas de pollo
How to Bake or Air Fry Chicken Flautas
Can I bake flautas instead of frying? You can. You will, of course, sacrifice some of the crispiness. Simply place on a baking sheet, brush lightly with a little cooking oil (or spray with cooking oil) and bake for 15-20 minutes in a 375F. oven, or until golden and crisp.
Can I air fry chicken flautas? Yes! Preheat your air fryer to 385F. Brush the tops of the shaped rolls with cooking oil (or spray with cooking spray) and place seam side down into the air fryer, in a single layer with a bit of space in between. Air fry for about 8 minutes, flipping the flautas over halfway through cooking.
Can I reheat flautas? Yes. Again, you will sacrifice the “freshly fried” crispiness, but simply fry ahead, refrigerate, then reheat on a baking sheet in a 350F oven until warmed through.
Variations
These would be great with pulled pork or carnitas or Barbacoa (shredded beef)
You can add whatever you like inside the flautas like cheese, black beans, green chiles or extra spicing is all good.
What to serve with chicken flautas?
I think flautas are pretty much a complete meal in themselves, but if you are looking for a side, Mexican rice and some avocado slices would be great.
Top tip
I pared back the toppings here for the photos so you could actually see the flautas, but these are best with a heaping mountain of toppings, so don’t hesitate to load them up. It’s like a salad on top of the main course, instead of on the side ;) It also ensures that you get a bite of the fresh topping flavours along with the flautas in every bite.
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Get the Recipe: Flautas de Pollo (Chicken Flautas)
Ingredients
Chicken Flautas:
- 3 cups cooked shredded chicken, or *see Note 1
- 1/3 cup tomato salsa, mild, medium or hot
- 1/3 cup water
- 3 large flour tortillas
- Oil for frying
Quick Pickled Onions:
- 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar, or white vinegar
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, less if fine salt
Mexican Crema:
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 2 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- Pinch salt
Toppings:
- Iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced
- Quick Pickled Red Onion
- Crumbled Feta Cheese
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Mexican Crema
Instructions
- Make the Quick Pickled Red Onion: Place the sliced red onion in a small bowl. Add the vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Cover and let stand at room temperature while you make your flautas.
- Add the cooked chicken to a skillet over medium-low heat. Pour salsa over-top, then the water. Stir to combine. Cover the skillet and allow the chicken to warm with the salsa and water for 4-5 minutes. (The water should have been absorbed. If not, cook uncovered for a minute or so to cook it off). Remove the chicken mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or alternately just in a bowl with two forks). Run the mixer on low for a minute or two to shred the chicken. Set aside.
- Place a large tortilla on a cutting board. Cut the rounded edges off from each side, making a rectangle (see Step by Step photos above the recipe card). Place a row of the shredded chicken down the centre of the rectangle, then roll the tortilla up around it, rolling from the longer side. Place it seam side down, so it doesn’t un-roll. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
- Heat a 1/2 inch of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. (I like to cook just one at a time, in a small skillet. They cook up quickly and you don’t need as much oil to get the 1/2 inch in a smaller skillet). Add one of the rolled tortillas to the skillet, seam side down. Allow to cook about 30- 45 seconds, then begin rolling it a quarter turn and allowing it to brown a bit before rolling it a quarter turn again, until the tortilla is evenly golden all around. Remove to a cooling rack and repeat with the remaining rolls.
- While flautas are cooking, take a moment to stir together the sour cream and cream for the crema. Set aside.
- Place warm flautas on a platter. Top with topping ingredients, placing them in the order listed in the ingredients, finishing with a drizzle of the crema. (*I love to generously add the toppings, almost to the point you can hardly see the flautas.)
Notes
More Mexican recipes to love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
Every time we go out to eat at a Mexican restaurant, I order flautas. I haven’t attempted to make them at home, but when I do, this is the recipe I’ll refer to. Also, I’m all about the toppings, so I’ll take your advice and load them on!
Thanks Leanne and yes, the more topping the better :)
We made these last night and they were sooooo good!!!
We had a bit of trouble frying them as the first couple opened up at the seam. Think it depends on the quality/type of Tortilla you use, but we solved it by brushing a very small layer of beaten egg to the edge when rolling them up. After that the rest cooked perfectly :)
Another winner Jennifer!
Hi Glenn! Glad you enjoyed these and yes, some tortillas stay rolled better than others for sure. I like your egg wash solution. I have also seen where people use a thick cornstarch and water paste to “glue” them together. Haven’t tried it myself, but seems like a good option, as well. Thanks!
I love El Pueblito’s chicken flautas also. Can’t wait to try your version. Where do you buy queso fresco in Muskoka?
Hi Susan and thanks :) El Pueblito uses corn tortillas, which I think are tastier, but I have had zero luck with the ones I can buy locally. They split every time I try to roll them. So I’ve just resorted to flour tortillas :) And I haven’t found queso fresco in Muskoka. I find it Toronto once in a while and bring it home, but not much of that happening these days. I use feta, which is a reasonably good substitute.
I’d love to gobble up the whole plate Jennifer. They’re one of my favorite. Pinned and excited to try your recipe. I know my son Casey would love them.
Thanks Mary Ann :)
I just want to reach through my screen and grab the whole plate! They look so crispy and delicious, Jennifer! What a great recipe :)
Thanks Dawn and yes, the crispy with the fresh is my favourite part of this dish :)
Your flautas look spectacular! I can see why you like them so much – certainly a feast for the eyes and the flavors sound great.
Thanks Milena :) I never tire of sitting down to this colourful dish!
Looks amazing definitely going to have to try these! Is this Mexican restaurant called el pueblito by any chance?!
It is :) And I order the chicken flautas every time I go (and the churros, too!) Have you been?
Yes I love it there! Good margaritas! I basically eat the whole menu when we go
Lol! And yes, the margaritas are definitely the best, too!
These sound way too easy not to try! I’ve been craving authentic Mexican food lately and must give these a try soon. Do you have any recommendations for baking instead of frying?
Thanks Tricia and yes, to bake them, it’s about 15 minutes in a 375F oven!