Enchilada vs Taquito: Difference and Comparison

Mexican cuisine comprises the many mind-blowing dishes and traditions of the country Mexico. The roots of these dishes lie in Mesoamerican cuisine.

And the ingredients and cooking methods start with the primary agricultural communities. Enchiladas, Taquitos, Burrito, Tacos, Chimichangas, and Lasagna are some of the most popular and favourite Mexican dishes. 

Key Takeaways

1. Enchiladas are tortillas filled with meat, cheese, or beans and covered in sauce.
2. Taquitos are rolled-up tortillas filled with meat and fried until crispy.
3. Enchiladas are larger than taquitos and are served covered in sauce, while taquitos are smaller and served as finger food.

Enchilada vs Taquito

Enchilada is a Mexican rolling dish that comprises a corn tortilla rolled around in a filling and covered with a sauce. The filling can contain meat, beans, potatoes, cheese, and vegetables. Taquito is a Mexican dish consisting of a small tortilla containing fillings like meat, chicken, beef and cheese.

An enchilada refers to a Mexican dish that comprises a corn tortilla that is rolled around a filling covered along with a savoury sauce. This Mexican dish can have multiple combinations of fillings.

These include meat, cheese, beans, potatoes, and vegetables. The sauces used in Enchiladas are chilli-based sauces.

Taquito, a Mexican dish spelt “ta’kito” in Spanish, refers to a Mexican dish comprising nothing but a small tortilla rolled up and containing filling. The filling comes in a wide variety of combinations.

The filling consists of various combinations, such as meat, beef, chicken, and cheese.

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	Enchilada	Taquito
Dish	This dish is a type of burrito which is served with a special enchilada sauce inside.	This dish is much like a taco which is smaller and rolled into a cigar shape.
Size	It is larger in comparison with a Taquito.	It is smaller in comparison with an Enchilada.
Cooking method	It is primarily oven-baked.	It is primarily deep-fried.
Sauces	Typically the sauces used are red chili-based sauces.	Typically they do not have any specific sauce.
Cheese	It has a cheese topping.	It has meat and cheese filling. Other combinations are available, too, like beef.

What is Enchilada?

An enchilada is a Mexican dish in which a corn tortilla is rolled around a filling covered with a savoury sauce. This Mexican dish can have multiple combinations of fillings.

These include meat, cheese, beans, potatoes, and vegetables. The sauces used in Enchiladas are chilli-based sauces.

A few examples are salsa Roja, various moles, and chile con queso (cheese-based sauce).

The original Enchiladas, which were mainly a type of street food, were just chilli sauce-dipped corn tortillas. These enchiladas did not have any type of filling.

However, today there are several varieties available with different combinations of filling and sauces, which is the primary distinction. Several adjectives are also used to describe the origin of the Enchiladas. 

Mexico was the origin of the enchiladas (rolling tortillas), which goes back to Aztec times. Enchiladas were also mentioned in the first Mexican cookbook when Mexican cuisine was being memorialized.

 The name of the cookbook is El cocinero Mexicano which was published in 1831. It was also published in another cookbook by Mariano Galvan Rivera.

The name of the book was Diccionario de Cocina, which was published in 1845. Corn tortillas folded around a small fish were traditional of the people living in the lake region of the Valley of Mexico.

What is Taquito?

A taquito is a Mexican dish which, in Spanish, is spelt ta’kito, which means small taco. This Mexican dish is nothing but a small tortilla that is rolled up and contains filling.

The filling comes in a wide variety of combinations. The filling consists of various combinations, such as meat, beef, chicken, and cheese.

This filled tortilla can be deep-fried or crisp-fried. Often the taquitos are topped with sour cream and guacamole.

Generally, for making taquitos, corn tortillas are used. When a taquito is made larger than an ordinary one, it is called flautas and can be made with corn as well as flour tortillas. 

In the preliminary glossary of the New Mexico Spanish of 1917, the small taco or taquito was noted with the word Mexicanism. This term was used in New Mexico.

The taquito now has a modern definition- “a rolled tortilla.” This dish was mentioned in the “Book of stories of Mexican People in the United States,” 1929. The dish was an offering by vendors at the railroad station.

In the Los Angeles School Journal, 1932 issue, taquitos were referred to without any definition. They were also among the first Mexican cuisines to be introduced as frozen food in 1976.

Golden tacos, also known as tacos dorados, are taquitos that are crispy fried.

Main Differences Between Enchilada and Taquito

1. Enchilada as a dish is a type of burrito which is served with a special enchilada sauce inside. Taquito is a dish that is much like a taco which is smaller and rolled into a cigar shape.
2. Enchilada is larger in comparison with Taquito. However, Taquito is smaller in comparison with an enchilada.
3. Enchilada is primarily oven-baked. On the contrary, Taquito is primarily deep-fried. It can also be crisp fried.
4. Enchilada has red chilli-based sauces. A Taquito does not have any specific sauce.
5. Enchilada has a cheese topping. Whereas, Taquito has meat and cheese filling. However, other combinations are also available, like beef.

References

1. http://library.alzahra.ac.ir:8080/site/catalogue/893812
2. https://psr.iscte-iul.pt/index.php/PSR/article/view/540

Last Updated : 10 July, 2023