3-Chile Beef Flautas Recipe

If you were looking for a reason to love Mexican food even more, let us introduce you to flautas: Rolled and deep-fried, the flute-shaped tortillas are filled with flavorful meats and piled high with fresh toppings and creamy sauces. Typically eaten as appetizers before the main course, the crunchy rolled tortillas are a savory snack meant for indulging; a meaty alternative to chips and salsa. With a few more tortillas or extra filling, flautas can also easily make for a full meal, especially when paired with chunky salsas, cheese, and crunchy veg. The best part is that they are easy to make at home, so you can enjoy the crunchy rolled appetizer without even leaving the house.

Flautas should not be confused with taquitos, which are thinner, snack-sized, and wrapped with corn tortillas. Flautas are usually filled generously and wrapped in flour tortillas, which crisp in a more airy, delicate way in the frying oil. This recipe, written with developer Michelle McGlinn, is a guide to making perfectly crispy, beef-filled flautas that are hearty enough to be eaten for dinner. The beef, which is braised in a broth of guajillo, ancho, and árbol chiles, is spicy, smoky, and rich, making it a perfect base for the crunchy tortilla and any variety of toppings. Though braising and frying take some time, the results are worthwhile — and make taco night just a little more exciting.

To first make the beef filling that is rolled inside every tortilla, you'll need to grab a small chuck roast. You only need between 1 and 2 pounds for this recipe, since each flauta only requires a small amount of beef to fill. If you can't find a small roast, simply adjust the recipe and save any leftovers for tacos, burritos, or quesadillas. Besides beef, you'll also need oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, allspice, oil, garlic, apple cider vinegar, beef broth, and three types of chile. Though you can use any dried chile for this recipe, we recommend ancho, guajillo, and chiles de árbol, which offer a unique balance of smoky, spicy, and slightly sweet flavor. To finish the flautas, you'll need oil for frying, tortillas, sour cream (or crema), cilantro, and radishes. You can use either corn or flour tortillas, but we recommend flour, which are more typical for flautas.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Combine the oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, and allspice in a small bowl.

Coat the chuck roast on all sides with the spices.

In a Dutch oven over medium heat, toast the chiles until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Remove from the pot.

Add the oil to the pot.

Add the beef and sear on all sides, about 4 minutes per side.

Once seared, remove the pot from the heat and add the garlic, vinegar, beef broth, and toasted chiles.

Cover and cook for 4 hours, or until pull-apart tender. Halfway through cooking, check the pot and add beef broth as needed.

Shred the beef using two forks.

In a deep skillet or large pot, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat until a thermometer reads 350 F.

While the oil is heating, roll the flautas. Working in batches of 5, wrap the tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave to soften, about 20 seconds.

Add ¼ cup of beef to a tortilla.

Tightly roll the tortilla into a cylinder and secure with a toothpick. Repeat with the remaining beef and tortillas.

Add the flautas to the oil in batches of 4 or 5 at a time and fry until golden brown, turning as needed, for about 4-5 minutes.

Remove the flautas and drain them on paper towels.

To serve, top with sour cream, cilantro, and sliced radishes.

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Flautas, which are typically served as appetizers, are easier to serve when made in advance. There are two options for prepping the flautas in advance: You can roast, shred, and store the beef and then prepare the flautas day-of, cutting the cook time down to just 20 minutes — or you can make the recipe in its entirety and air fry or bake the flautas back to warm and crispy just before serving.

When roasting the beef in advance, you can store the cooked beef for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. To then make the flautas, simply heat up the oil, roll the tortillas around the beef, and fry. There is no need to heat the beef before frying, as the frying oil will warm it through. To make the flautas entirely in advance, follow the recipe as written, then remove the toothpicks from the flautas, store them in an airtight container or bag in the refrigerator, and bake or air fry the flautas just before serving. This method, which takes just 3 minutes in the air fryer and 10 minutes in the oven, will dry the beef out slightly, but it is the better method to use if you want to avoid a greasy-smelling kitchen just before guests arrive.

While the flautas themselves are delicious, crispy, savory rolls of flavor, the best way to really enjoy them is with plenty of toppings. Like a taco, you can serve the flautas with anything, adding more crunchy vegetables or even squeezing on some hot sauce. If cilantro and radishes aren't your thing, you can make the flautas more classic with shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, and chopped white onion. You can also top with sliced jalapeños, crumbled cotija, pickled red onions, homemade salsa, or a freshly made guacamole.

Flautas, because of their crispy exterior and dippable nature, also work well with a variety of sauces, which can be drizzled on top or served alongside. To spice up the crema, add a squeeze of lime juice and a spoonful of chipotles in Adobo sauce. Blend avocados and cilantro with crema and lime to make a refreshing avocado cream. Keep it simple and serve with store-bought salsa, which can be spooned over the crispy shells or served by the side for dipping.

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