One Swift Lettuce Hack Helps You Enjoy A No-Mess Taco Experience

Let's face it: Tacos are one of the best foods on the planet, and hard-shell tacos add that delicious crunchiness that takes them to the next level. The only problem with hard-shell tacos is if you put too much filling inside or let your taco sit for too long, the shell can easily crack –– causing your taco's contents to spill out all over the place. Luckily, there are a few tried and true ways to prevent hard-shell tacos from falling to pieces. One of the easiest is to take a piece of lettuce and wrap it around the outside of the shell to hold everything together.

This hack works because even if the shell cracks or breaks while you are biting into it, all the taco filling and shell pieces will still be held safely in the lettuce wrap. Plus, many tacos have shredded lettuce on them anyway, so the addition of lettuce on the outside won't detract from that delicious taco flavor. In fact, adding a full leaf of lettuce can even add an extra bit of crunch and make for the ultimate taco Tuesday. This hack works for fresh tacos but is also especially useful for leftover tacos, which can get soggy and are more likely to fall apart.

Whether or not a certain kind of lettuce will be good for wrapping around a hard-shell taco depends on two factors: How strong the lettuce is and its flavor. In general, if you've used a certain lettuce to make a wrap before, it should work well as a hard-shell taco protector. Iceberg lettuce is a good choice if you are looking for something conveniently found in stores with a light flavor and delicious crunch. When compared to other forms of lettuce, iceberg is lower in calories; However, it also has fewer beneficial nutrients.

More nutritional lettuce options that are strong enough to hold a taco and also taste great include romaine, butter lettuce, and green leaf lettuce. Butter lettuce is both flexible and strong, making it one of the top choices to use in wraps. It also has slightly more nutritional value than iceberg lettuce. However, it is sometimes hard to find in a grocery store. Romaine and green leaf lettuce are also good options because they contain more nutrients and vitamins than iceberg and are easier to find than butter lettuce. 

If you like lettuce but don't necessarily want to wrap it around the outside of your taco, one great option is to add a lettuce leaf as the first ingredient inside the taco. This way, the lettuce forms a boat for the taco filling that prevents any of the juices from the taco meat, salsa, or guacamole from seeping into the taco shell and weakening it. With this trick, your tacos will still look like a classic taco from the outside instead of a healthy lettuce wrap, which can be nice if you are making tacos for a crowd or kids who are picky eaters. 

If you are not a big fan of lettuce in general, then another useful method for preventing your hard-shell taco from falling apart is to add the cheese first. When you use shredded cheese as the bottom layer in your taco and then pile the other hot ingredients on top, the cheese will melt and form a glue that helps hold everything together. You can even add the cheese to the inside of the shells and then bake them for a few minutes in the oven. Baking the shells before serving will not only make them stronger and more crack-resistant, but will also perfectly melt the cheese to create your extra layer of shell support.