Low-Carb Taco Shells Are Only 3 Ingredients Away. Here's How It Works

Whether you eat low-carb or follow the keto diet, which specifically prioritizes the consumption of fat, having solid alternatives for all your favorite carb-heavy foods is crucial. Besides using ground chicken to make a low-carb pizza crust that's too good to ignore, secure a bag of pork rinds to prepare tortillas for your next taco night. Believe it or not, you can make tasty and pliable low-carb tortillas with just eggs, crumbled pork rinds, and a small amount of fat like butter.

To make these alternative tortillas, break down your pork rinds until they turn to crumbs. You can do this with a resealable plastic bag and rolling pin or with a high-speed blender or food processor. Once you combine your crushed pork rinds with a raw egg and some butter, simply fry the mixture into flattened mounds over your stove until you have a neat stack of malleable tortillas.

Eating fried pork skins or chicharrones has been a longstanding practice in Mexican food culture for over 100 years. However, the difference between pork rinds and chicharonnes is that the latter often includes residual meat and fat from the frying process besides skin. Conversely, since pork rinds are solely pig skins that have been processed into puffy snacks, they can easily be crushed into a powdery substance that mirrors flour. Fortunately, there are many different ways to prepare low-carb pork rind tortillas to exclusively fit your dietary needs.

To give your tortillas a richer flavor, instead of butter, use sour cream, cream cheese, or shredded cheese. Though, keep in mind, while pork rinds are generally high in protein and gluten-free, pork rind tortillas easily contain over 50% of their calories from fat. That said, to make tortillas that are slightly lower in fat, you can use an alternative ingredient like 2% Greek yogurt instead of cream cheese or sour cream. Especially if you're more interested in following a low-carb lifestyle instead of the Keto diet, you can reduce the fat content of these tortillas in a few different ways.

For example, instead of extra butter or cooking oil, use water to add moisture to your batter. To increase the amount of protein per serving, reduce the amount of crushed pork rinds and instead, add more eggs. You can also use egg whites for a high-protein, low-fat substitute. Pork rind tortillas that contain more eggs are extra delicious in the morning and pair well with breakfast meats like turkey bacon and chicken sausage.

Whether you're making tortillas de chicharron quesadillas with melty cheese or stuffing your next batch with seasoned protein and five-ingredient pico de gallo, make these tortillas extra thin for a true tortilla-like texture. With enough pork rinds, you can easily flatten this low-carb dough between two pieces of wax paper or use a spoon to spread out the mixture evenly in your frying pan.