How Much Taco Stuff Do I Need to Feed 10

Planning a taco bar for graduation parties, showers and other neighborhood get togethers is a fun and economical way to serve your guests a tasty, customizable meal. Here's how I plan a taco bar party, plus my taco bar checklist!

Like anything in life, a party can be as simple or as complicated as you make it. In this post, I'll share my recommendations along with other options so you can customize your party experience.

My style – keep it simple and let the guests enjoy their party time!

The star of your taco party checklist – the meat!

Let's start with batch taco meat. I usually use ground beef seasoned with my homemade taco seasoning. You can also buy it pre-made in bulk at a restaurant or catering store like GFS.

Other meat ideas are pulled pork, pork carnitas, and barbocoa (made with a beef roast). I figure about 15 pounds of meat per 100 people, but that may depend how hungry your guests are and what sides you serve at your party.

You could think about steak too, but that could get pretty pricey depending on this size of your crowd!

Taco meat ideas and recipes:

ground beef taco meat
pulled pork
crockpot Mexican chicken
slow cooker ranch chicken tacos
Slow Cooker Mexican shredded beef
pork carnitas
baked fish tacos
barbocoa
black bean tacos
buffalo shrimp tacos
cheesy chicken quesadillas or ground beef taco quesadillas

Tip: Have your meat cooked, ready to go in a crockpot or slow cooker.

Taco Shells

Okay, moving on to taco shells. Pick one type or several from the list:

hard corn shells
soft shells (corn or flour)
nacho style chips and they can make sheet pan nachos
tostadas

Then, decide on the quantity. Usually you can buy these inexpensively but I'd plan on about 2-3 tacos per guest. If you're feeding teens, go with three!

Some quantities will depend on what other side dishes you're servings as well.

Tip: If you're planning this for a graduation party, consider if there are other parties going on the same day. Usually people won't eat quite as much food if they're "party hopping".

What are some good toppings to put on tacos?

Cheese

Of course, you'll need cheese and lots of it. Mexican blend, cheddar, or whatever you want is fine.

Decide if you want to shred your own (use a food processor for ease) or if you want pre-shredded cheese. I bought ten pounds for our party.

Tip: If you have leftover cheese, you can always freeze it for later!

Salsa

I purchased all mild salsa for our party but you could have a variety of spice levels and varieties like restaurant style salsa, corn salsa, green salsa, mango salsa, simple pico de gallo, etc.

Tip: Label your salsa types for guests so they know what they're getting!

Guacamole

I'm a guacamole lover and I happily make my own for family gatherings. But for a big party, I recommend you purchase several containers of it and open them as you need them.

Remember, you want to enjoy your party, too!

Tortilla Chips

Buy them, put them in a big bowl – BOOM. Done.

Sour Cream

If you invited me to a taco party and didn't have sour cream, I'd be devastated. You need sour cream. The more the merrier in my opinion!

Lettuce

Shredded lettuce is a great way to let guests customize their taco bar experience. They can make a taco salad for themselves or put it on their tacos.

Or, as a delicious alternative you can make this Mexican Chopped Salad!

Diced Onions

This one's totally up to you. I'm an onion lover but it might depend on the crowd! Maybe pick up some Tums, just in case!

Other taco bar ingredients:

Other items to consider are black olives, fresh cilantro, jalapeno peppers.

If you're looking for a soup addition, how about Chicken Tortilla Soup or slow cooker Ranch Chicken Chili? Am I forgetting anything?

Taco Bar Side Dish Recipes:

Instant Pot Mexican Black Beans
Cilantro Lime Brown Rice
Mexican style rice
Mexican Fruit Salad
Plain rice or slow cooker brown rice
Vegetarian Refried Beans
Cowboy Caviar
Hot Taco Dip
Bacon Quesadillas
7 Layer Taco Dip
Nacho Cheese Dip (yes, the kind that comes in a can. It's not gourmet but it is always a hit).
Individual bags of Fritos for "walking tacos" or make walking taco casserole
Mexican Chopped Salad

Here are more sides for tacos, too!

Dessert ideas for your taco bar

Churros
Tres Leches Cake
Regular Cake

Taco Bar Checklist Printable

Grab the taco bar checklist here

The fun thing about tacos is they're fun, they're casual and they're low pressure. Everything can be assembled and made ahead of time at your taco party.

At most, all you'll do is restock ingredients!

Whether you're using these taco bar ideas for a graduation party or as a fun weekend, remember to keep it casual and to keep it fun!

Other taco bar recipes you'll love:

Homemade Taco Seasoning
Hot Taco Dip with Ground Beef
Baja Burgers
Chili Lime Pork Medallions
Green Chili Pork Burritos
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas

Be an amiga and share this with the world, will you???

snydercaude1949.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.thisfarmgirlcooks.com/taco-bar-checklist-how-to-plan-a-taco-bar-party/