A flaky ring of crescent rolls filled with spicy beef and cheddar cheese then air fried until golden brown. This air fryer taco ring is a delicious alternative to traditional tacos and makes a great meal, snack or appetizer. Add your favourite taco toppings and dig in.
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What is a Taco Ring?
A taco ring has all the flavours of a traditional taco except instead of stuffing the taco meat into a taco shell you use crescent roll dough to make a ring that is filled with spicy beef and cheese and baked or, in this case, air fried.
The end result is a ring of taco filled dough that can be served as a meal, snack or appetizer.
The dough is flaky and soft and goes perfectly with the spicy, cheesy beef filling. You can serve it with all your favourite taco toppings, such as lettuce, tomato, sour cream and salsa.
It is a fun dish to feed a crowd and it is quick and easy to prepare.
Why We Love This Recipe
Simple ingredients – This recipe uses simple, inexpensive ingredients that can be found in any grocery store.
Great meal or appetizer – This recipe works well as a meal, appetizer or snack and we love recipes that can serve multiple purposes.
Easy to customize – This recipe is super easy to customize depending on your preference. You can use ground turkey instead of beef, different cheeses, and serve it with whatever toppings you like. It also means that you don’t need to worry about having exact ingredients in order for the recipe to be delicious.
Ingredients
This recipe makes 2 taco rings. If you only want to make 1 ring you can simply halve the ingredients.
To make this taco ring you will need:
- Refrigerated crescent rolls
- Olive oil
- Lean ground beef – You can use ground chicken or turkey if you prefer.
- Taco Seasoning – Store bought works fine, but I love making my own homemade taco seasoning as it has more flavour and less salt.
- Diced onion – You can use yellow, white or sweet. All work just fine.
- Beef broth – If you don’t have beef broth on hand you can simply use water.
- Shredded cheddar cheese – If you don’t have cheddar, Monterey Jack is a great choice.
Most of the time I recommend shredding your own cheese. However, this is a recipe where pre-shredded cheese will work just fine.
Instructions
Begin by preparing the beef mixture.
Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add the beef and onion and cook until the beef is no longer pink. Drain any fat and return the beef to the pan, then add the taco seasoning and beef broth. Simmer for a few minutes to reduce the liquid then stir in half of the cheese and remove from the heat.
To make the crescent roll ring, place a piece of parchment paper that fits your air fryer basket on the counter.
Unroll and separate one tube of the crescent rolls then place them on the parchment paper with the wide ends (opposite the point) in the middle, slightly overlapping to form a ring. The points will be spread out forming a sun shape.
Pro Tip – If you want to make your taco filling spicier try adding a small can of diced green chillies to the taco meat.
Pro Tip – Do not skip the parchment paper in this recipe. The parchment paper is essential in order to lift the taco ring in and out of the air fryer. If you don’t have parchment paper, a 7 inch pie plate would work instead.
Add half of the taco mixture in a ring around the inner circle, leaving a small edge of dough in the very middle, then top with half of the cheese.
Next, fold the points of the crescent rolls up and over the taco meat. Slightly tuck the dough under the meat and press the crescent roll edges together to seal.
Pre-heat the air fryer to 320°F for 3 minutes, then lift the taco ring into the basket.
Set the air fryer to 320°F and cook for 7-9 minutes until the dough is puffed and golden brown.
Carefully lift the taco ring out of the basket by holding onto the edge of the parchment paper, then slide it onto a plate or serving platter.
Repeat with remaining ingredients to make a second taco ring.
Substitutions and Additions
There are endless ways you can customize these taco rings to suit your needs and preference.
- If you don’t like ground beef, you can use ground turkey or chicken.
- Add some spice by adding a small can of diced green chilies to the filling.
- Change the spice level by using mild or spicy taco seasoning.
- Add half a cup of corn to the filling.
- Add half a cup of black beans to the filling.
- Before adding the beef to the ring add a layer of refried beans.
- Use Monterey Jack or pepper jack cheese instead of cheddar.
Use your imagination and have fun creating your own stuffed taco ring.
How to Serve Taco Rings
These crescent roll taco rings make a great meal as an alternative to traditional tacos. They also work great as an appetizer or snack. They are especially enjoyed at casual get-togethers, birthday parties and game-day.
We like to fill the middle of the ring with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes and sour cream. But if you prefer you can leave the taco rings as they are and serve them with a variety of sides instead so everyone can choose their own toppings. Our favourites are:
- Shredded lettuce
- Diced tomatoes
- Sour cream
- Guacamole
- Salsa
- Shredded cheese
- Diced jalapeño peppers
FAQS
You can store the leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It should keep for about 3 days.
You can reheat leftovers in the microwave or air fryer. To reheat them in the air fryer set the air fryer to 350°F and heat the taco ring for 3-4 minutes until heated through.
More Air Fryer Appetizers
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Printable Recipe
Air Fryer Taco Ring
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 Pound lean ground beef
- 1 Cup diced onion white or yellow
- 3 Tbsps taco seasoning
- ½ Cup beef broth or water
- 2 Cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
- 2 tubes refrigerated crescent rolls 8 count each
Optional Toppings
- shredded lettuce
- diced tomato
- sour cream
- salsa
- guacamole
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat, then add the ground beef and diced onion.
- Cook until the beef is no longer pink, then drain any fat and return the beef to the pan.
- Add the taco seasoning and beef broth and cook 2-3 minutes until slightly thickened and the broth has reduced, then stir in 1 cup of the shredded cheese and remove from the heat.
- Place a piece of parchment paper that fits your air fryer basket on the counter. Open 1 tube of crescent rolls and unroll the dough and separate the triangles.
- Place the crescent roll dough onto the parchment paper with the flat edges, opposite the tips of the triangles, slightly overlapping to form a ring. The dough will form the shape of a sun when you are done.
- Spoon half of the beef mixture around the centre ring, then top with half of the remaining cheese.
- Bring the tips of the crescent roll dough up and over the beef and slightly tuck it under and press the edges together to seal.
- Preheat the air fryer to 320°F for 3 minutes, then lift the ring into the air fryer basket by holding onto the edges of the parchment paper.
- Set the air fryer to 320°F and cook for 7-9 minutes until the dough is puffed and golden brown.
- When the taco ring is fully baked remove carefully lift it out of the basket by holding onto the edges of the parchment paper.
- Slide the taco ring onto a plate or serving platter and top as desired.
- Repeat with remaining ingredients.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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