How to Eat Tostadas to (Satisfy Your Mexican Food Cravings)
I was super confused the first time I was given a Mexican tostada to eat. I must have looked SO DUMB! You see, I grew up in southern California and a lot of my friends were Mexican or of Mexican descent. I thought to myself, “Can anyone tell me why there isn’t a fork and knife available? You do know I am going to make a HUGE mess, right? These things are piled so high! They’re huge!” Eventually, I did learn how to eat tostadas. In this article, I will tell you how to do just that.
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My First Experience Eating a Mexican Tostada
Why did they have to serve me first?
All kidding aside, it’s super OK to not know how to eat tostadas if you’ve never had one before and if you’ve never seen anyone eat one.
Do you want to know what happened when I asked my friend for a fork?
Well, my friend laughed at me.
No, she didn’t laugh to be mean (trust me… she’s a good friend). She laughed because it never occurred to her that something so simple (to her) would be super not-so-obvious to someone who is not Mexican.
Luckily, she explained that I won’t need a fork.
A Tostada is Like a Flat Taco
Tostadas are both the hard, crispy flat tortilla and the meal.
The tostada meal is like a flat taco.
[In other words, ingredients are placed on top of the tostada (hard tortilla). Also, this meal is called a tostada. So, tostada can refer to the hard, crispy tortilla and the meal.]
I hope I didn’t confuse you.
You can make tostadas (hard crispy flat tortillas) at home or buy them at your local grocery store.
[They are normally found in the Hispanic food section].
Of course, you’ll find the best variety at a Mexican food market!
Oh! AND you can find them at your local Aldi grocery store! I found mine at the Hispanic food section!
However, if you can’t find tostadas near you, you can again make them at home or purchase them on Amazon.
The unfortunate thing about buying them online, however, is that there is a chance that they will arrive at your home broken. Just keep that in mind.
Now, to make your own homemade tostada shells, you’ll just need to either fry corn tortillas or brush some oil on each side of a tortilla and heat it up in a 375-degree oven for about 5 minutes on each side until it is hard and crispy but you’ll need to make sure it doesn’t burn. Also, if it’s still soft in the middle, it may not be ready yet.
[To be honest, though, my Mexican friends’ moms always bought the pre-made ones from the grocery store. It’s up to you whether you want to make your own].
What Makes Tostadas So Hard to Eat?
Their crispy base makes it hard for the tostada to stay together. They’re super fragile and break SO easily resulting in everything on top of the tostada falling and rolling down onto your plate.
Also, people with smaller hands may have a harder time holding the tostada (even with two hands)!
However, eating tostadas doesn’t have to be difficult!
The fact is… it’s going to be messy!! And that’s OK! This is how you are supposed to eat tostadas 😉
Step-by-Step Guide for How to Eat Tostadas
- Stare down the tostada and admire its beauty.
- Salivate (just kidding).
- Strategize the best way for you to grab the tostada with both hands without touching the food on top.
- Pinch two opposite sides of the tostada and make sure to grip it just hard enough to not let the tostada slip from your hands (not too hard… you don’t want it to break).
- Bring the tostada closer to your mouth.
- Hold your breath and suck in your gut (just kidding).
- If the food on top is piled too high, use your lips and teeth to grab the top part of your tostada ingredients and eat them. Or, you can use a fork to lessen the load on top. (My Mexican friends never gave me a fork. Instead, we used broken tostada pieces – similar to how you would use chips to scoop salsa).
- Next, tilt your head slightly and aim for the bottom bit of food just on top of the tostada.
- Take a bite.
- Move the tostada away from your mouth.
- Chew.
- Swallow your food.
- Bring the tostada back closer to your mouth.
- Use your lips, teeth, and the tip of your tongue to bring the food at the very top of the tostada into your mouth. Bite, chew, and swallow that.
- Repeat steps 5-14.
- Finally, now you can use broken tostada pieces to scoop up any remaining food left on your plate.
- Belch (NO! Do NOT do this).
Do you need a visual? Ok, here is a video of someone eating a tostada (might be a little different from the steps I outlined above):
[Start at the 8:00 mark].
What Ingredients Do You Put on a Tostada?
There are SO many different toppings you can put on a tostada!
Just like tacos, there is normally a protein base, vegetables (normally lettuce and tomatoes), and cream or Mexican cheese.
You can basically put anything you want on it as long as it’s not too heavy so that the tostada breaks before you have the chance to put it in your mouth.
My personal favorite way how to eat tostadas is like this:
- Spread refried beans (or mashed beans) on the tostada.
- Place shredded chicken on top of the beans.
- Put some chopped lettuce, tomatoes, and avocado on top of the chicken.
- Get out your tub of sour cream or Mexican cream (even better) and put a dab or two on top of the lettuce and tomatoes.
- Top it all off with some crumbled cotija cheese.
- Optional: I’m not too good with hot spicy sauces, but you can add typical Mexican hot sauces like Valentina, Tapatío, or Cholula.
Popular Mexican Cheese Options
In case you are not already aware, here are some popular Mexican cheeses that you can add to your Mexican tostadas:
- Queso Cotija: This is like Mexican-style parmesan cheese. It’s salty and very crumbly. This kind of cheese is SUPER popular for Mexican street corn (elote).
- Queso Fresco: Soft, creamy cheese (this can be sliced or crumbled). Tastes salty.
- Queso Blanco: Similar to mozzarella cheese. It’s easiest to slice this cheese (it holds its shape even when it’s warmed).
- Queso Panela: This is a semi-soft cheese and is similar to halloumi.
- Queso Oaxaca: This is a semi-soft cheese that is good melting cheese (maybe not the best for tostadas, but still super yummy).
Now that you know how to eat tostadas, let me tell you about some popular Mexican tostadas.
Chicken Tinga Tostadas
For you crazy people who like spicy food, here is just one example of a spicy tostada.
[Ok, maybe you’re not crazy. Maybe I just never got used to eating spicy food, haha].
So, you know how I’ve said before I can’t handle spicy food? Well, tinga is spicy, but you don’t have to make it so spicy if you don’t want to. I actually enjoy tinga with TONS of sour cream to tame down the spiciness.
Also, I would say chicken tinga tostadas are probably one of the most popular kinds of tostadas out there (maybe because I had it so much when I lived in California).
AND it’s SUPER, SUPER, SUPER easy to make! You’ve definitely gotta try this Mexican dish if you’ve never had it before.
Anyway, so what is tinga?
Tinga is basically a spicy stewed chicken dish.
It’s made with shredded chicken, tomatoes (or tomato sauce), onions, and chipotle peppers (you can use this ingredient to make SO many other Mexican dishes, like chicken tortilla soup and other spicy Mexican meals).
Here, let me show you how to make tinga tostadas with this short YouTube video:
See how easy? Mexican tinga is such an easy recipe to make. I highly recommend you try it!
Again, if you don’t like spicy food, you can add only 1 or 2 chipotle peppers and top your tostada off with more cream (like I do, tee hee).
FYI: You can also use tinga on tacos, enchiladas, and other dishes, too.
Picadillo Tostadas
So, what is picadillo?
Let me start off by telling you that picadillo is a very common dish not only in Mexico but in many Latin American countries.
In Costa Rica, for example, we like to use Salsa Lizano in our picadillo. Mexican households have their own version that is particular to flavors that are common in Mexican cuisine.
Picadillo is basically ground meat cooked with several other ingredients (like vegetables, spices, herbs, and sauces).
Similar to tinga, picadillo is a SUPER DUPER easy dish to make. You can use it on tostadas, in tortillas (like a taco), or on top of rice.
Also, what makes picadillo so easy is that you can use as many or as few ingredients as you want.
For example, sometimes I just use ground turkey, onions, garlic, potatoes, and Salsa Lizano. Other times I like to add peas and carrots or olives. It’s all up to you!
Here’s just one example of how to make a Mexican picadillo for tostadas.
Take a look!
As you can see, this recipe developer is using picadillo for tacos (she even makes her own flour tortillas). Just know that you can just place the picadillo on top of a tostada when it’s done; you don’t have to make your own taco shells.
Jaiba Tostadas (or Tostadas de Jaiba)
Another popular way to eat tostadas is with jaiba, which is also known as ceviche de jaiba.
This dish is similar to ceviche but with imitation crab instead of fish.
You can think of jaiba like an imitation crab dish.
[Jaiba is SOOO delicious].
Tostadas are ALWAYS involved whenever I eat jaiba.
You can pile on the jaiba on top of the tostada, or you can even eat the jaiba out of a small bowl by breaking off pieces of tostadas to use like chips to scoop up the jaiba.
[This can make eating tostadas a little bit easier if you like].
To help you understand the concept of jaiba, here is a video of people making jaiba with tostadas:
FAQs How to Eat Tostadas
Here are some frequently asked questions about how to eat Mexican tostadas.
What is the point of a tostada?
So, the idea behind the tostada is to be able to use tortillas that may otherwise not taste fresh.
These stale tortillas can be fried or baked (the literal translation of tostada is “toasted”) to a hard crispiness. The tortillas can, therefore, still be used as a tasty alternative to tortillas that may otherwise not have that fresh taste anymore.
Also, tostadas can be used to dip in sauces and stews, like pozole, as an extra way to enjoy the flavor of the sauce or stew as the tostada soaks up the liquid and gives flavor to the tostada.
Do I heat up tostadas?
Similar to regular corn chips, packaged tostadas normally do not need to be heated before eating (check the package directions).
It is possible to reheat homemade tostadas in the oven, but you do run the risk of burning them (just keep this in mind). Just turn the oven on to about 375 degrees Fahrenheit for about 3 minutes or so. Keep an eye on it so that it doesn’t burn!
Is tostadas healthy to eat?
Baking homemade tostadas is healthier than frying them.
Also, making your own homemade tortillas for tostadas is an even healthier option because it can help lead to a healthier lifestyle.
How is that possible?
Well, the reason for this is that people who cook from home often eat healthier and they eat fewer calories, too (Johns Hopkins Center for a Liveable Future). So, the more you cook your own food, the healthier you probably are.
Now, you have to be mindful of the ingredients you place on top of your tostada. For example, oily pulled pork tostadas may not be as healthy as potato tostadas.
Are tostadas the same as tortillas?
Tostadas are basically regular tortillas that are baked or fried to a crispy chip.
So, yes, they are basically the same thing except for the texture.
Final Thoughts on How to Eat Tostadas
Eating tostadas does not have to be a difficult task and, yes, it can be a little messy (which is totally OK).
You eat tostadas with your hands, so there is actually a HUGE chance that things will get messy!
The important thing is to enjoy the food and enjoy the food-eating process.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention!
Mexican tostadas are fun and easy to make for your next Cinco de Mayo food party menu! You should seriously consider it 😉
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
