30+ Mexican Recipes Perfect for Cinco de Mayo

The tastiest Mexican recipes for Cinco De Mayo! From every taco recipe you can imagine to the best guacamole, zesty salsas, and a few ice-cold margaritas—this list has everything you need for your next Mexican fiesta!

Why You’ll Love These Cinco De Mayo Recipes

As a Southern California native and Mexican food fanatic, Cinco de Mayo is by far my favorite foodie holiday. But interestingly, it’s not actually Mexican Independence Day (as some believe). Instead, it commemorates the Mexican army’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. While it’s not widely celebrated in Mexico, it has become a vibrant celebration of Mexican heritage and culture here in the U.S.—and there’s no better way to honor that than with incredible Mexican recipes. Here’s what you’ll find in my list: 

• Delicious Mexican appetizers. Learn how to perfect the classics, like guacamole and a variety of salsas.
• Foolproof meats and seafood. Whether you’re making carnitas, carne asada, or more, it’s all about the right seasonings and marinades. 
• Drinks and cocktails with a spin. Choose from a refreshing selection of margaritas and other festive drinks!

Essential Mexican Salsas and Dips

A table full of salsas and dips is a non-negotiable for the best fiestas. They’re perfect for dipping, dolloping, and creating layers of flavor.

Best Ever Guacamole: I’m not lying when I say this is the best guacamole recipe you’ll ever have. It’s perfectly creamy, chunky, and full of the freshest ingredients. 

Pico De Gallo: The classic chunky salsa is essential to any Mexican dish. And homemade tastes a million times better than store-bought!

Black Bean Dip: This creamy black bean dip is chunky yet creamy, packed with earthy, spiced Mexican flavors, and a party appetizer everyone will love.

Best Salsa Recipe: This smooth restaurant-style salsa is perfect for drizzling on almost everything!

Avocado Salsa: If you can’t decide between guacamole or salsa, combine the flavors to make this insanely delicious avocado salsa. 

Mango Salsa: Come mango season, this fruit-forward salsa is a given. It’s sweet and fresh with a little kick, and will complement any Mexican seafood dish.

Chipotle Sauce: Made with chipotles in adobo sauce, it’s creamy, smoky, and perfect for adding a little heat to your meals. 

Lime Crema: A refreshing, zesty sauce that’s perfectly creamy and tangy. This is my favorite for dolloping onto tacos!

The Best Mexican Chicken, Beef, and Pork Recipes

These are your must-make staple Mexican recipes. Just click below and learn the best way to cook beef (carne asada and barbacoa), pork (carnitas), and chicken (cilantro lime chicken) with mouthwatering results. Once you master these recipes, you can create dozens of other recipes on this list.

Carne Asada: This tried-and-true recipe will have people coming back for seconds thanks to my easy and fresh carne asada marinade reminiscent of my travels to Mexico!

Carnitas: If you’re a pork lover like me, this recipe cooks up the most juicy, tender, and crispy carnitas. Guaranteed to be a crowd favorite.

Birria: This rich and spicy stewy slow-cooked beef has become a huge fan favorite! Don’t forget to turn the shredded beef into these deliciously cheesy quesabirria tacos (which I’ll show below),

Barbacoa: This spicy, shredded beef that’s fall-apart tender is incredibly easy to make in a slow cooker or Crockpot.

Cilantro Lime Chicken: Not only is it really easy to make, but the chicken marinade packs an irresistible punch of flavor with fresh cilantro, zesty lime juice, garlic, bold spices, and a touch of honey. 

Flavorful Mexican Taco Recipes

It’s not a fiesta without the ultimate taco spread! Now that you know how to whip up the meat basics listed above, these tacos are a cinch with warmed-up tortillas and a few other fresh ingredients. Here are a few ideas for taco night.

Carne Asada Tacos: You can never go wrong with carne asada tacos! Just dice up your steak into small pieces and top your tacos with guacamole, cilantro, onions, and cotija cheese for the final touch. 

Carnitas Tacos: Tacos made with meltingly tender pork, cilantro, chopped red onions, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice are my favorite!

Birria Tacos: Oh boy, are these tacos mouthwatering! They’re like mini quesadillas with melty Oaxacan cheese, shredded birria, onions, and cilantro. Then, you’ll dip them in a rich and spiced consomme.

Shrimp Tacos: For a Baja take on tacos, these shrimp tacos are my favorite with a special cilantro lime bacon slaw and a drizzle of lime crema! And if fish tacos are more your thing, add grilled Alaskan wild cod into the mix. It’s the perfect summer taco! 

Barbacoa Tacos: Layer juicy barbacoa into quick and easy tacos with onions, cilantro, and lime juice. 

Best Fajita Recipes

Sizzling skillet fajitas are incredibly easy to make with my homemade fajita seasoning or marinades and can be served in many delicious ways. Just don’t forget to prep a few sides (rice, guacamole, salsa, cheese) and tortillas to complete the spread!

Chicken Fajitas: Nothing beats this colorful pan bursting with flavors from perfectly seared chicken breasts, bell peppers, onion, and fresh lime juice. 

Shrimp Fajitas: Bell peppers and onion are sautéed in a hot skillet, then tossed with jumbo shrimp and a fresh squeeze of lime juice for the best fajita night meal.

Steak Fajitas: Come grilling season, these steak fajitas are sure to be a summertime ritual.

Crowd-Pleasing Mexican Appetizers and Sides

If you’re planning a big party with many mouths to feed, throwing some appetizers and sides into the mix is always smart! These recipes are fun, fresh, and extra tasty.  

Ceviche: Serve up the classic ceviche recipe (above) or fun twists, like citrus shrimp ceviche or mango halibut ceviche, in individual glasses along with tortilla chips for scooping.

Elote: Give grilled corn on the cob a Mexican twist with elote! This classic dish slathers grilled corn with limey mayo and lime juice, then finishes with a generous sprinkle of cotija cheese, chili powder, and cilantro.

Ultimate Nachos: When can you ever go wrong with a sheet pan overflowing with loaded nachos?

Carnitas Nachos: If you made a batch of my carnitas, shred some up to make these extra-tasty sheet pan nachos!

Carne Asada Fries: While this is more of an American appetizer, these loaded fries sure are tasty! Golden fries are topped with carne asada pieces, cheese, guacamole, and sour cream.

Taco Stuffed Zucchini Boats: Enjoy your favorite taco flavors in stuffed zucchini boats! It’s light, fresh, easy to make, and served on a platter great.

Quick and Easy Mexican Recipes

If you need some quick “throw-together” recipe ideas with ingredients you have on hand, these simple options have just the right amount of Mexican flair. 

Taco Soup: Enjoy the best taco flavors in one warming soup! Plus, this recipe comes easy with pantry staples you might already have.

Black Bean Soup: Grab a few extra cans of black beans to make this easy soup layered with spicy and savory flavors.

Barbacoa Burrito Bowl: With leftover barbacoa (or any meat really) you can create Chipotle-copycat burrito bowls! Just add cilantro lime rice (or Mexican rice), beans, corn, salsa, and fresh guacamole or avocado.

Carnitas Stuffed Poblano Peppers: Turn your batch of carnitas into these crazy good stuffed poblano peppers.

Huevos Rancheros: For a tasty breakfast, or breakfast-for-dinner situation, huevos rancheros can be made in just 10 minutes! 

Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles: For a light, refreshing, low-carb meal, zucchini noodles are mixed with chicken and pico de gallo.

The Best Margarita RecipeS

There’s nothing like a chilled margarita to amp up a fiesta! And if you’ve got more than a handful of people, these recipes can easily be tripled or quadrupled to make a large pitcher. Bottoms up, my friends! 

Classic Margarita: You can never go wrong with this classic version. It’s easy, timeless, and will certainly get the party started. 

Mango Margarita: With sweet, juicy mangos, this fruity blend will surely be a summer favorite. 

Strawberry Margarita: While there are many ways to make a frozen margarita, this strawberry version is always a win! 

Refreshing Mexican Non-Alcoholic Drinks

For my non-alcoholic drinkers, these delicious Mexican drinks are always thirst quenchers on sweltering days! 

The Best Horchata: Who doesn’t love horchata? It’s creamy, cinnamon-y, refreshing, and perfect for serving in a pitcher. 

Agua Fresca: Turn in-season fruit from the farmer’s market into the most refreshing, all-natural fruit juice. 

Recipe roundup originally posted April 2020, but updated with new recipes.