I mentioned last week that I was joining with a few other bloggers this month on a pantry challenge. My goal was to help clean out and use up some of the food that has been sitting in my freezer and pantry for too long.
This challenge has been good for me. It has made me think a little outside the box and has forced me to get creative.
Last week I planned on serving Mexican Pizzas for dinner. I was sure that I had a few tostada shells in the pantry, but when I went to find them I realized that I did not have any. (Hopefully this pantry challenge will also force me to clean out and organize my pantry so that I know what I have.)
Instead of changing the menu plan, I decided to make due with what I had. I had several packages of corn tortillas that I keep on hand to make quesadillas for lunch. I knew I could easily make these tortillas into a tostada, because basically a tostada shell is just a crisp tortilla.
I knew I could fry the tortillas in oil, but instead of taking the time to fry the shells I decided to bake them in the oven.
I baked them at 400 for about 8-10 minutes, turning them once until they crisped up.
They turned out perfectly. In fact, my husband and kids thought that they tasted better than the store bought ones. They also thought that it was easier to eat the Mexican Pizza because the homemade tostada shells did not fall apart as easily.
I really wish that I had tried this trick before now. Tortilla shells are much cheaper than tostada shells and I almost always have tortillas on hand for things like quesadillas and taquitos. This is definitely something I will be doing again.
Sometimes we need to think outside the box when it comes to cooking. Using what you have and making do with what is on hand not only saves you money, but it often creates new family favorites.
I have quit buying taco shells because my family much prefers the fried corn tortillas! It’s so much cheaper :). I’ll have to try your baked recipe next time!
Btw…I just posted our favorite chicken taco filling that we like to eat on fried tostadas. It’s yummy and super easy!
This is how we ALWAYS do tostadas – much less expensive than the hard shells from the store, and I am inclined to think that it would be healthier, too. The store hard shells have more ingredients and are more processed, whereas the corn tortillas are fresher, less processed, and have fewer ingredients.
I usually spray a little canola oil before putting them in the oven, and do another small spray when I flip them over mid-way through baking. This helps them get nice and crispy and brown.
@Mamie, I guess I am a little late to trying this. It is so easy and really I cannot believe that I did not try it before. 🙂
I make my tostados like this and sometimes even do them in the microwave. I enjoy your blog and gave you an award: https://j-lee-domesticengineerextraordinaire.blogspot.com/2011/07/happy-101-award-and-other-notable-news.html.
I have done the same type of thing when I really wanted chips and salsa. I cut up some corn tortillas and baked them until they were crisp. I also spray a little canola spray to help them along.
Great idea! I also never thought about making a mexican pizza at home! Adding that to the list!
Thanks for this great idea! Can’t wait to try this since I can only eat corn tortillas (have to avoid flour ones) and love that they are baked and not fried!
Lynn I’m curious if you used any oil, like did you spray them?
@Carol, I did not spray them with any oil, but I am sure they would be really good if you did.
Oh.my.goodness! I made these last night and we had leftovers for lunch today. My husband is SOLD! Last night I made beef and bean tostadas (part of my pantry cleanout efforts) and it turned out awesome! Btw…thought you might be interested as it was a super quick fix (especially since you freeze taco meat).
https://crunchyokie.blogspot.com/2011/07/pantry-clean-out-tostadas.html
I tryed making the Tostada’s according to your instructions but they came out way to chewy hard like
wasnt even able to eat it at all