Updated 2020! Taco Bell is a massive Mexican fast food franchise with more than 7000 locations worldwide. It is a U.S. company, but they also have restaurants in Canada, Australia, Europe, Asia, and beyond. They only have one main allergen database, that we could find. It is possible that menu items and allergens may differ across the countries. Many years ago, Taco Bell introduced “Fresco Style,” which means no cheese, sour cream, or sauce – a great option for dairy-free diners and anyone watching their calories!
Almost any menu item at Taco Bell can be made dairy-free with substitutions. Our list below includes items that are dairy-free as is, dairy-free with one substitution, and the core ingredients to help you build your own!
No Dairy (Milk-Based) Ingredients (see disclaimer below)
Menu Items
- Breakfast – Hashbrown, Potato Bites, Breakfast Soft Tacos (no cheese), Grilled Breakfast Burritos (no cheese)
- Burritos & Tacos – Fresco Bean Burrito, Fresco Chicken Burrito Supreme, Fresco Steak Burrito Supreme, Fresco Beef Crunchy Taco, Fresco Beef Soft Taco, Fresco Shredded Chicken Soft Taco, Fresco Steak Soft Taco, Rolled Chicken Tacos (no cheese sauce)
- Specialty – Mexican Pizza (no cheese), Spicy Tostada (no cheese)
- Sides – Beans & Rice, Chips & Guacamole, Chips & Pico de Gallo, Seasoned Rice, Seasoned Fries (no cheese sauce)
- Sweets – Cinnamon Twists
- Freezes (regional) – Baja Birthday, Mtn Dew Baja Blast, Strawberry Skittles, Mtn Dew, Beach Berry, Berry Sangria, Lemonade, Margarita, Orange Cream Pop, Pepsi, Pina Colada, Red Cherry
Components to Help Customize Your Order
- Wraps & Shells – Chalupa Shell, Double Chalupa, Flour Tortilla, Gordita Flatbread, Mexican Pizza Shell, Red Strips, Taco Salad Shell, Taco Shell, Tostada Shell
- Proteins – Bacon, Black Beans, Eggs, Fire Grilled Chicken, Refried Beans, Sausage Crumbles, Sausage Patty, Seasoned Beef, Shredded Chicken, Marinated Grilled Steak
- Vegetable Toppings – Cilantro, Iceburg Lettuce, Jalapenos, Onions, Romaine Lettuce, Tomatoes
- Sauces – Diablo Border Sauce, Fire Border Sauce, Hot Border Sauce, Mild Border Sauce, Breakfast Salsa, Creamy Chipotle Sauce, Green Chile Sauce (regional), Green Tomatillo Sauce (regional), Pico de Gallo, Mexican Pizza Sauce, Guacamole, Red Sauce
Other Allergen Notes
- Peanuts, tree nuts, fish, and shellfish are not used in Taco Bell’s regular menu items, but they may be produced in common manufacturing facilities with these ingredients.
- Their proteins (meats and beans) seem to be made without top allergens, except that the Seasoned Beef contains soy lecithin and the Refried Beans are made with soybean oil.
- Their Chips, Taco Shell, and Tostada Shell are made without wheat.
Vegan Menu Items
To make menu items vegan, you do need to customize them, but some are quite simple. For example, you can order a Bean Burrito “Fresco Style.” Taco Bell also provides this list of certified vegan sides and menu ingredients.
- Beans & Rice – Black Beans, Refried Beans, Seasoned Rice
- Wraps & Shells – Flour Tortilla, Gordita Flatbread, Red Strips, Taco Shell, Tostada Shell
- Vegetable Toppings – Cilantro, Iceburg Lettuce, Romaine Lettuce, Jalapenos, Onions, Tomatoes
- Sauces – Diablo Sauce, Hot Sauce, Mild Sauce, Green Chile Sauce (regional), Green Tomatillo Sauce (regional), Pico de Gallo, Mexican Pizza Sauce, Guacamole, Red Sauce, Salsa del Sol, Fire Roasted Salsa
More Details from Taco Bell
Allergen Disclaimer from Taco Bell: Like most restaurants, we prepare and serve products containing egg, milk, soy, wheat or other allergens. The Food Allergy & Sensitivity information on this site is based on standard product formulations and is current as of the last update. While a particular ingredient may not contain these allergens, our products may be prepared on the same equipment and in the same kitchen area as those that do. We cannot guarantee that cross contact with allergens will not occur.
Restaurant Website: www.tacobell.com
Allergen Information: www.tacobell.com/food/nutrition/allergen-info
Last Updated: January 5, 2020
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A lot of options!
Surprising amount of options that are dairy free.
10 Comments
The Creamy Chipotle sauce is made with buttermilk….
I waited to respond on this until we did a full update on this post, which we just did! According to Taco Bell, the in-restaurant Creamy Chipotle Sauce does not contain dairy, but it does contain egg (which is not a milk product). Here are the ingredients for the Creamy Chipotle Sauce: CSoybean oil, water, vinegar, cage-free egg yolk, 2% or less of chili peppers, chipotle peppers, salt, sugar, roasted garlic, natural flavor, natural smoke flavor, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika extract (C), xanthan gum, propylene glycol alginate, sodium benzoate (P), potassium sorbate (P), calcium disodium edta (PF), citric acid, potassium chloride, maltodextrin.
I think you are referring to the bottle Creamy Chipotle Sauce by Taco Bell that you can buy in grocery stores. It DOES contain dairy and is a completely different recipe from the one they use in their restaurants.
I hope that helps!
Just as a heads up, Taco Bell’s beef has lactic acid in it, which is a form of milk. So please if you have dairy sensitivity DO NOT order any beef products! The chicken is perfectly ok, but the beef has lactic acid in it. Below, I have pasted the ingredients in Taco Bell’s beef from their website.
To the editors of this website: Please update this page with this information. This is a great source of information, and I want to make sure that everyone is aware of the presence of lactic acid in Taco Bell’s beef.
Seasoned Beef
Beef, water, seasoning [cellulose, chili pepper, maltodextrin, salt, oats (contains wheat), soy lecithin, spices, tomato powder, sugar, onion powder, citric acid, natural flavors (including smoke flavor), torula yeast, cocoa, disodium inosinate & guanylate, dextrose, lactic acid, modified corn starch], salt, sodium phosphates. Contains: Soy, Wheat
Link: https://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/ingredients
Hi Jeff, fortunately, lactic acid is rarely, if ever, derived from dairy. And in this case Taco Bell is confirming that it is not derived from dairy. Though the name is confusing, lactic acid is usually fermented form other carbohydrates and isn’t dairy itself. You can see this post we have on dairy ingredients for more information -> https://www.godairyfree.org/dairy-free-grocery-shopping-guide/dairy-ingredient-list-2
I have issues with Lactic acid due to the fact there is usually some of the protein left in there. There is no way to be 100% sure it isn’t dairy based lactic acid. I avoid lactic acid because many times even the suppliers don’t have a clue and take their best guess.
All manufacturers should have information on the source of each ingredient, and this includes lactic acid. Lactic acid is produced from the fermentation of carbohydrates – usually glucose or sucrose. It is rarely produced from galactose, and is never produced from milk protein. There is no way to be sure that any food is 100% safe from potential cross-contamination. It simply exists at some level. But if it is confirmed to be from another source, then the lactic acid would not have any relation to dairy.
Just wondering if the chalupa is dairy free? My son wants to try it..who has a dairy allergy. I don’t see it listed on your allergy site. Thank you..
If it isn’t on this list, then it wasn’t listed as dairy-free as dairy-free at our time of review.
We just left the Taco Bell in Wilsonville, Oregon. Ordered a tostado woth fresa sauce and reiterated ” no cheese”! Guess what–it came with the fresca sauce, topped with cheese.
You can easily order almost anything without dairy, provided you know what is in it. The kids working there have no idea, but I have always had a positive experience once I explain my allergy. I check ingredients beforehand and know what to tell them to leave out. They have always been very diligent and usually walk back to the prep line to be sure its prepared right.
Also, watch out for the avacado ranch dressing, it isn’t listed on the cashier’s screen for every item that actually contains it. They usually have the two separate so you can still get the yummy avacado. Anything that lists “ranch dressing” is on their keyboard as “avacado ranch”, it really helps them if you know that.
I’ve been to several locations across the south and always felt safe with the food I received.