5 Aldi Mexican Foods To Buy And 4 To Avoid

Whether you're looking to stock up on produce items, dairy products, or spicy snacks, Aldi is the ultimate one-stop shop for budget-minded shoppers and those who want a little variety in their grocery run. It's true that Aldi is ever-reliable for those essentials like fruits, vegetables, proteins, pantry staples, and frozen goods, but Aldi also comes in handy when you're looking for prepared foods that fit into a certain culinary theme.

If the culinary theme for your next dinner happens to be Mexican, then your next Aldi run will be plentiful with Mexican finds from all over the store. Of course, as with any grocery store item, so Mexican foods in Aldi's lineup are absolute hits, while others are undeniable misses. As an avid Aldi shopper myself and someone who has tried many of the store's Mexican finds in the past, I felt confident putting together this list of five Aldi Mexican foods to buy and four to avoid. 

Determining which items to include in the "buy" list and those to include in the "avoid" list was relatively easy and intuitive, as those that stood out with particularly exceptional flavors or quality made for easy buy options. On the other hand, those items that stood out for all the wrong reasons, be it lackluster flavor, bad texture, overly-long cook time, or poor value made for (unfortunately) easy candidates for the avoid list.

Chimichangas have a bit of a complicated origin story, and technically, they aren't a strictly Mexican food, but rather an Arizona-born Tex-Mex one. Nonetheless, there's no denying the Mexican influence on a chimichanga, as they very much resemble burritos (if those burritos then got dunked into a deep-fryer). All this is to say that Aldi's beef and cheese chimichangas deserve a rightful spot on this list, not only because of their Mexican cuisine influence, but because they're just downright delicious.

To give my frozen chimichanga the best chance at living up to its full potential, I opted to air fry it, which was definitely a good decision. Not only did the air fryer heat up the beefy, cheesy filling to warm, gooey perfection, but it also really livened up that tortilla on the outside, turning it into a crispy shell that really did seem reminiscent of a deep-fried chimichanga. 

I was also impressed by Aldi's chimichanga in the flavor department, especially when it came to the beef. I was expected ground beef, but the filling actually featured shredded beef, which was surprisingly tender, juicy, and ultra-savory. Pair that with melty cheese and a crisp tortilla, and you've got one delicious lunch or dinner option that fairs surprisingly well for something that was frozen solid mere minutes before.

While I was impressed by Aldi's frozen chimichangas, my enthusiasm was significantly dampened by the store's take on bean and cheese burritos. This isn't my first lackluster rendezvous with an Aldi burrito — I ranked the store's chicken, lime, and cilantro burrito in last place in my frozen chicken burrito ranking, and I'm afraid that this bean and cheese rendition isn't much better.

To be fair, I've never been a huge fan of bean burritos, largely because they're a little too one note in flavor and mushy in texture for my taste. So, this Aldi burrito had those issues to begin with, but a problem that really stood out to me was the tortilla. 

I first microwaved the burrito to warm it up (per package instructions), but then I went rogue and air fried it for a few minutes to help crisp up the tortilla that otherwise would have been incredibly soggy straight from the microwave. The result was an impossibly crispy, almost sharp tortilla that just about crumbled when I sliced the burrito. It tasted more like cardboard than anything else. Pair that with a fine-but-nothing-special bean filling and you've got an incredibly unappealing burrito that just isn't worth the time it takes to heat up (or the freezer space that an eight-pack would take up). 

Sometimes it's worth it to slow cook your own carnitas for an extra special taco Tuesday, and other times, it's more worth it to just pick up a package of Aldi's pork carnitas instead. This prepared food is convenience at its finest — the pork is already fully cooked, so a few minutes in the microwave is all it takes to get the meat warmed up and ready to serve.

If I had to pinpoint an absolute favorite product on this list, it would probably be these carnitas. To start, the flavor is pretty darn good for a prepared food. The carnitas are ultimately pretty neutral, though you can definitely tell that they have a citrusy touch. The generally meaty flavor opens up a world of pairing possibilities, from tacos with an al pastor-inspired pineapple flair or cheesy pork-stuffed enchiladas. I shredded up some of these carnitas and sprinkled them on top of nachos for a simple but delicious dinner (and the meat is so tender that it's super easy to shred and use to your liking). 

Another perk to this Aldi find is that you get quite a bit of bang for your buck. The amount of meat you get in a given container is pretty impressive, and there's no other filler or anything taking up space. I could easily see one container being able to cover dinner for a family of four without a problem.

Chicken fajitas are another type of food that is technically Tex-Mex, but one that certainly draws enough inspiration from Mexican cuisine to belong on this list. Unfortunately, Aldi's chicken fajitas are not one food that should actually belong in your shopping cart. Despite being stocked right next to the successful pork carnitas, the chicken fajitas are just downright disappointing and, frankly, don't even really deserve to be called fajitas.

Let's start with the most obvious issue at play here: There was a laughably small amount of chicken in my container. We're talking maybe five solid strips of meat, and the rest was basically just liquid. Also, the onions and peppers are an essential part of fajitas, and they were nearly impossible to find in this liquidy mess. While I can't say that the flavor of the sauce was necessarily bad, it simply couldn't make up for how disappointing the actual meat and veggies were. As if the lackluster amount of chicken wasn't bad enough, the strips of chicken that were present were incredibly dry (which seems like an impossible feat, considering how much liquid they were submerged in). 

Needless to say, Aldi's chicken fajitas are an absolute avoid in my book. The amount of chicken, onions, and peppers would barely be enough to fill two tortillas, and the texture of the chicken would make for one sad, dry meal.

Taquitos (not to be confused with the similar flauta) make for the perfect little snack or lunch option. In my opinion, frozen taquitos tend to be pretty good — something about their small, tightly-rolled nature with minimal filling makes them good candidates for reheating from frozen. And, after trying Aldi's take on beef taquitos, I can continue to safely say that I've never met a frozen taquito I didn't like.

While many of the frozen items on this list boast flour tortillas, these taquitos have corn tortillas, and I really enjoy how that flavor and texture shines through in the fully heated product. I heated my taquitos in the air fryer for just a few minutes, and it didn't take long at all for them to crisp up. The ends of the taquitos were nice and crunchy, while the filling was nice and savory with the slightest spicy kick. 

These beef taquitos' simplicity is their strongest suit, and while they heat up in a breeze and taste great on their own, they're also relatively neutral vessels for all sorts of pairings. Sour cream, guacamole, hot sauce, or even a chunky salsa like pico de gallo would all pair well with these taquitos, taking an already great snack to something even tastier.

Aldi's family size chicken and cheese enchiladas really aren't messing around with that "family size" description. This was one massive pan of enchiladas, made to serve eight, and packaged in a way where you really can't just heat up a single one — it's either the whole pan or nothing. Unfortunately, heating up the whole pan of enchiladas took a whopping 75 minutes in the oven, an amount of time that just didn't feel worth it for the final product.

I can't deny that these enchiladas looked pretty good by the time I pulled them out of the oven, but once I scooped one onto a plate and dug in, I was disappointed. For starters, the enchilada itself was not very stuffed, so most of my bites just consisted of sauce, cheese, and tortilla with little to no chicken. Also, the texture of the enchilada was all off — it was somehow incredibly dry while simultaneously being soaking wet, so not a great textural combination. Finally, I found the flavor to be a tad bit cilantro heavy for my taste; I don't hate cilantro or have the soap gene, but I also don't want every bite of an enchilada to be overrun by the herb. 

Between a lackluster texture, intense cilantro flavor, and lengthy cook time, I struggled to find anything to like about these enchiladas. I do appreciate that they offer a convenient, ready-to-heat dinner option for big families, but if possible, it really would be worth it to make homemade enchiladas instead.

Mexican street corn, also known as elote, is arguably one of the most delicious foods to ever exist (in my humble opinion, at least). Although actual elote is a handheld, on-the-cob type of snack, the idea of Mexican street corn as a general flavor concept has been translated to various dish types, including pasta salad and good old classic dip — like this street corn dip found right at Aldi.

Considering that this dip has landed on the "buy" list, it's safe to say that it's a delicious take on the beloved street food. Although this dip incorporates ingredients that aren't necessarily found in actual street corn (like sour cream, Neufchâtel cheese, and Monterey Jack cheese), it does so in a way that feels incredibly cohesive and familiar. The dip itself is super creamy with a nice kick of spice — nothing super spicy, but enough to cut through that rich, creamy base a little bit. The corn really is the star of the show and a crucial element, offering fresh and subtly sweet flavor pops throughout the dip.

I sampled this dip with Fritos (because that's all I had on hand), but tortilla chips would work just as well. I could also see this dip working well as a topping for tacos or layered into a quesadilla for an added creamy element.

Another Mexican-inspired dip in Aldi's lineup is the Mexicali dip — one that's ultimately very, very similar to the aforementioned street corn dip. Like the street corn one, this Mexicali dip features a spicy, creamy base, which I did enjoy. But as I was sampling this dip (with Fritos, like the street corn one), I found myself overwhelmed by the one-note creaminess, and it became more apparent than ever just how much heavy lifting the corn did to make the other dip truly stand out.

Now, to be clear, I'm not saying Aldi's Mexicali dip is bad — the creamy, subtly spiced base was tasty, but I found myself tapping out after a few bites. The creaminess was a bit overbearing without any fresh or sweet element to break it up. This one not only paled in comparison to the similar street corn dip, but it's ultimately a dip that I'm not inclined to return to. 

The Mexicali dip lands on the "avoid" list more so because I know there's a better Mexican-inspired dip to recommend from Aldi, and that would be the street corn one. Obviously, if you know that you don't like corn, then sure, the Mexicali dip might be the better option — otherwise, it's really not anything worth getting excited over.

My experience with Aldi frozen burritos has been a little hit or miss, to say the least. However, I'm pleased to end this list on a high note with these veggie fiesta burritos, a frozen Aldi find that I didn't have incredibly high hopes for, but one that actually made a positive impression.

I heated this burrito up like I did the other burrito on this list — first in the microwave to actually warm the filling, then just a couple minutes in the air fryer to ideally un-sog that tortilla. And, right away, it was apparent how much better this tortilla crisped up (instead of turning into a crumbly shell). So, the tortilla alone was a win in my book, but what really stood out about this burrito was the ultra-savory filling. 

There was a nice balance between the corn, rice, and beans, and the flavor was surprisingly pronounced and fresh tasting, with an undeniable savoriness that I very much enjoyed. I also tend to find that frozen veggie burritos can end up a bit more watery than their meaty counterparts, but this one managed to avoid that pitfall, offering up an equally nice texture and flavor profile.

When sampling these Aldi Mexican foods, I tried them over the course of a few days so each item could receive a fair judgment and its rightful time in the spotlight. For those foods that needed to be heated up, I considered both package instructions and the cooking method that I felt would enable to food to taste its best. For example, the burritos called for either microwaving or oven-baking on the packaging, so I (mostly) followed instructions and went with microwaving. I ultimately decided to give the burritos a few minutes in the air fryer as well, to avoid soggy tortillas, and because this is my typical heating method when it comes to frozen burritos. 

As for determining whether or not to recommend a given item, it all came down to the flavor and quality of the product. There was one instance where ease of preparation came into play, and that was with the family size enchiladas. These enchiladas took over an hour to bake in the oven, and I don't think the resulting dish was worth the time. Finally, in the case of the two dips, I did compare the two since they were so similar in ingredients and flavor profiles. Since these two dips would be found right next to each other at a given Aldi location, it felt appropriate to compare them since the average shopper would very likely only want to purchase the better of the two (instead of going home with two very similar dips).