Taco Bell Crunchwrap Turns 20: The Fast-Food Gimmick That Became an Unlikely Muse for Chefs
Introduced by Taco Bell as a special on June 22, 2005, the Crunchwrap Supreme wildly outperformed company expectations, becoming the fastest-selling menu item in the fast-food chain’s history. Twenty years later, it is as much a novelty food as a playful framework for chefs. They reinterpret its nostalgic layers — ground beef, nacho cheese, a tostada shell, lettuce, tomato and sour cream enrobed by a 12-inch flour tortilla — with ingredients that are deeply personal.
At Cariñito, a pop-up taqueria in Manhattan, the owners David Verástegui and Joaquin de la Torre stuff Sichuan-spiced ground beef into a miniature Crunchywrap. At Kim Jong Grillin in Portland, Ore., the “Chopped” competitor Han Ly Hwang folds bulgogi and pickled banchan into a Munchwrap Extreme.
The chefs Oliver Poilevey and Marcos Ascencio bathe their Chingón Crunchwrap in buttermilk crema and chile de arbol salsa at Taqueria Chingón in Chicago. And Ali Elreda, the owner of Fatima’s Grill, fills his Crunch Wrap with chicken shawarma and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos at six locations of the restaurant across the country.
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| by Anonymous | reply 10 | June 24, 2025 2:56 AM
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Fat whores, rejoice I say!
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | June 23, 2025 8:52 PM
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I've never had one. Is it like a quesadilla?
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | June 23, 2025 8:57 PM
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R3, it's a very carb-y quesadilla. There's too much tortilla and the crunchwrap is unbalanced.
When you wrap a large flour tortilla around the other ingredients, the folds on one side - and they are folded into the center, not in half like a quesadilla - create as many as 3 layers of tortilla on the folded side. When you add in the tostada and the flour tortilla on the opposite side of the wrap, you have 5 layers of tortilla-tostada, making for a bready experience. This is something that would probably taste better made at home with more filling.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | June 23, 2025 9:42 PM
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A distinctly American abomination. Like deep-fried Snickers bars, this is food for people who fail to consider the consequences of their decisions.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | June 23, 2025 11:01 PM
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The Dollar Tree Dinners lady worked at Taco Bell years ago and recreates some of the recipes.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | June 24, 2025 12:05 AM
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R4 agree completely. Always found it overhyped and never ordered it after the first time. Way way too much tortilla.
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | June 24, 2025 12:17 AM
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Native Foods has a meat free version they call the Munchwrap, and it's really good. They do the substitute crumbles in there.
I worked at Taco Bell years ago, wish I had whatever the little hot griddle they had to put burritos or various wraps into to cook them or brown them a bit. A frying pan is too much and I've tried to recreate it on sandwich makers which sort of works.
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | June 24, 2025 12:18 AM
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I used to love Taco Bell. I haven't eaten their food since the pink slime scandal.
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | June 24, 2025 2:45 AM
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