{"id":21192,"date":"2017-01-27T02:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-01-27T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/?p=21192"},"modified":"2023-08-30T15:33:14","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T01:33:14","slug":"review-taco-bell-naked-chicken-chalupa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2017\/01\/27\/review-taco-bell-naked-chicken-chalupa\/","title":{"rendered":"REVIEW: Taco Bell Naked Chicken Chalupa"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Taco<\/a><\/p>\n

Well, it was only a matter of time, I suppose: Taco Bell has finally<\/em> taken it\u2019s Naked Chicken Chalupa national.<\/p>\n

For those of you not in the know, the product\u2019s first trial run was in Bakersfield, California, in 2015, with a second go-at-it in Kansas City, Missouri, last year. And while Taco Bell has hit us with a LOT of unusual menu offerings over the years (three words, folks: <\/a>Cap\u2019n Crunch Delights<\/em>) a lot of people on social media thought T.B. was hoaxing \u2018em this time around – I mean, really, a chicken chalupa<\/em>? <\/p>\n

No, it\u2019s not a chalupa with chicken in it. The chicken itself<\/em> is the chalupa. And if the same mad geniuses who brought us the Beefy Fritos Crunch Burritos and Waffle Tacos decided it was nigh time for Americans to eat a giant rolled up chicken patty with lettuce and avocado ranch dressing inside it, then by golly, it\u2019s probably time to for us to eat some giant rolled up chicken patties with lettuce and avocado ranch dressing inside it<\/em>. <\/p>\n

\"Taco<\/a><\/p>\n

Like the Doritos Locos Tacos, each Naked Chicken Chalupa comes with its own snazzy (and sturdy) paper holder. The chicken shell\/patty itself is pretty darn big – about four ounces of rolled up breaded white meat, speckled with some traditional Mexican herbs and spices. There\u2019s definitely some heat to it, but for those of you with tamer tastebuds, it probably won\u2019t torch your tongue that much<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\"Taco<\/a><\/p>\n

On the inside, we\u2019ve got your usual Taco Bell stuffings – chopped lettuce, some diced tomatoes, a sprinkling of shredded cheddar cheese, and a hearty dollop of avocado ranch dressing holding everything together (sorry, those of you who expected a scoop of seasoned ground beef to be in there, too.)<\/p>\n

All in all, it\u2019s a pretty satisfying product that doesn\u2019t taste anywhere near as weird as you\u2019d imagine. In fact, you really don\u2019t even feel<\/em> the missing tortilla or hard shell after a couple of bites, and thankfully, the chicken patty isn\u2019t oily or greasy so you don\u2019t have to worry about poultry juice staining your khakis. <\/p>\n

While Taco Bell\u2019s breaded chicken can\u2019t compete with the grand lions of fast food chicken sandwiches (Chick-fil-A, you have nothing<\/em> to worry about here), the shell does have a very robust flavor and is surprisingly juicy. Nor does it taste terribly salty, which has always been my biggest complaint with the lower-tier fast food chicken patties out there.<\/p>\n

Your mileage may vary on the avocado ranch dressing – I would\u2019ve preferred a spicier chipotle sauce – but believe it or not, this thing doesn\u2019t taste all that much different from your standard chicken taco.<\/p>\n

Huh. Who would\u2019ve thought the absolute strangest<\/em> thing about quite possibly the strangest Taco Bell L-T-O offering ever would be just how peculiarly normal it actually is?<\/p>\n

(Nutrition Facts – 440 calories, 270 calories from fat, 30 grams of fat, 7 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 70 milligrams of cholesterol, 1,090 milligrams of sodium, 22 grams of carbohydrates, 3 grams of dietary fiber, less than 1 gram of sugar and 20 grams of protein..)<\/small><\/p>\n

Purchased Price:<\/b> $2.99
\nSize:<\/b> N\/A
\nRating:<\/b> 7 out of 10
\nPros:<\/b> The chicken shell is big, juicy and flavorful. You can eat it without getting grease on everything within a one-mile radius. The avocado ranch dressing adds a nice little zing.
\nCons:<\/b> It really doesn\u2019t taste that much different from a regular chicken taco. A couple of other in-house dressings probably would\u2019ve been better choices. Staying up all night wondering what would\u2019ve happened if I had asked the manager to put grilled chicken inside my chicken chalupa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Well, it was only a matter of time, I suppose: Taco Bell has finally taken it\u2019s Naked Chicken Chalupa national. For those of you not in the know, the product\u2019s first trial run was in Bakersfield, California, in 2015, with a second go-at-it in Kansas City, Missouri, last year. And while Taco Bell has hit […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1440],"tags":[1477,1519],"class_list":["post-21192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-fast-food","tag-taco-bell"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21187,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2017\/01\/26\/fast-food-news-taco-bell-naked-chicken-chalupa\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":0},"title":"FAST FOOD NEWS: Taco Bell Naked Chicken Chalupa","author":"Marvo","date":"January 26, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Update: We reviewed it! Click here to read our review. Today is the day Taco Bell rolls out nationwide the new Naked Chicken Chalupa that features a crispy chicken as its shell. That shell is made with four ounces of marinated, all white meat chicken that's antibiotic-free. Packed in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Fast Food News"","block_context":{"text":"Fast Food News","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/fast-food-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Taco Bell Naked Chicken Chalupa","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Taco-Bell-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Taco-Bell-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Taco-Bell-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":28930,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2018\/05\/21\/review-taco-bell-wild-naked-chicken-chalupa\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":1},"title":"REVIEW: Taco Bell Wild Naked Chicken Chalupa","author":"Louis","date":"May 21, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Even though the Naked Chicken Chalupa was already a thing, the culinary geniuses at Taco Bell have managed to both recycle and reintroduce the famed poultry pocket with a new spicy sauce to kick off their latest quarter of seasonal eats. Basically Taco Bell\u2019s version of KFC\u2019s million-plus selling Double-Down\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Taco-Bell-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Taco-Bell-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa-2.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Taco-Bell-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa-2.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":28717,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2018\/05\/11\/fast-food-news-taco-bell-wild-naked-chicken-chalupa\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":2},"title":"FAST FOOD NEWS: Taco Bell Wild Naked Chicken Chalupa","author":"Marvo","date":"May 11, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Update: We reviewed it! Click here to read our review. The Naked Chicken Chalupa is back! Well, actually, it's now called the Mild Naked Chicken Chalupa because there needs to be some way to distinguish it from the new Wild Naked Chicken Chalupa. While the original version included lettuce, tomatoes,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Fast Food News"","block_context":{"text":"Fast Food News","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/fast-food-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/TB-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/TB-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/TB-Wild-Naked-Chicken-Chalupa.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":39378,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2019\/09\/12\/fast-food-news-taco-bell-toasted-cheddar-chalupa\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":3},"title":"FAST FOOD NEWS: Taco Bell Toasted Cheddar Chalupa","author":"Marvo","date":"September 12, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Taco Bell, the maker of fine discontinued products, like the Double Decker Taco, Beefy Mini Quesadilla, Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Taco, and Fiery Doritos Locos Tacos, has added a menu item that might make you forget about those -- the Toasted Cheddar Chalupa. The highlight of the new product is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Fast Food News"","block_context":{"text":"Fast Food News","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/fast-food-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/News-Taco-Bell-Toasted-Cheddar-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/News-Taco-Bell-Toasted-Cheddar-Chalupa.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/News-Taco-Bell-Toasted-Cheddar-Chalupa.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/News-Taco-Bell-Toasted-Cheddar-Chalupa.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/News-Taco-Bell-Toasted-Cheddar-Chalupa.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":69103,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2025\/04\/04\/taco-bell-toasted-cheddar-street-chalupa-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":4},"title":"REVIEW: Taco Bell Toasted Cheddar Street Chalupa","author":"Marvo","date":"April 4, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Taco Bell is gonna Taco Bell when it finds something that sticks. When that happens, it attempts to add that thing to every menu item possible. The thing that has stuck for a while now is making cheese literally stick to the exterior of tacos, burritos, fries, regular Chalupas, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tbtoastchestcha1-600x450.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tbtoastchestcha1-600x450.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/tbtoastchestcha1-600x450.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":49586,"url":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/2022\/01\/03\/taco-bell-chipotle-cheddar-chalupa-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":21192,"position":5},"title":"REVIEW: Taco Bell Chipotle Cheddar Chalupa","author":"Holly","date":"January 3, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Taco Bell has always been different in how it approaches new items. Sometimes it takes huge swings with things like the Crispy Chicken Sandwich Taco. Other times, it finds a way to remix a few ingredients and package it as a new item. The Chipotle Cheddar Chalupa falls squarely into\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/tbccc3.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/tbccc3.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/tbccc3.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/tbccc3.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/tbccc3.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21192","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21192"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21192\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21192"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21192"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.theimpulsivebuy.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21192"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}