Buzz
Keeping tacos upright can be tricky. If you don't prepare properly, you'll likely find yourself scooping up falling fillings with your fingers. But the goal is always to start with a neat taco, standing tall. Skip the hassle of chasing loose ingredients by using a cupcake liner to hold your taco in place.
There are a few clever methods to keep tacos standing, like using an egg carton or turning a muffin pan upside down. These are useful for serving multiple tacos at once, but they can be too bulky for individual use. You still have to transfer the taco to your plate, and if you pause between bites, the taco is likely to topple over, spilling its contents. Not the most appealing sight.
You could buy specialized taco holders, such as a dinosaur-shaped one or a melamine holder, but if you need one for each taco lover in your household, you'll end up with a cluttered cabinet filled with bulky holders. As Alton Brown wisely puts it, these items are 'uni-taskers,' and I simply don’t have room for that kind of clutter in my kitchen.
To keep your tacos standing tall and perfectly folded, simply use cupcake liners. Their unique pleating supports the taco’s shape while the round base offers stability. The weight of the taco secures it within the liner, applying just the right amount of pressure to keep the edges from opening. Plus, cupcake liners come in packs of 24 to 150, making them great for taco nights with guests, and still enough for dessert afterward. You can even lift the taco with the liner to catch any loose fillings and either return them to the taco or enjoy them directly.
I’ve discovered that paper cupcake liners are perfect for crunchy tacos since the hard shells hold their shape with a little side support. However, paper doesn’t have the strength to support soft tortillas. Not to worry: foil cupcake liners work much better for these, offering the necessary sturdiness. For extra-heavy tacos, double up the liners. Reynolds sells packs with both foil and paper liners—originally meant for baking cupcakes, but ideal for tacos. Use the paper ones for crunchy tacos, then swap in the foil ones for your soft taco nights. Your tacos will never fall over again.
