My family always enjoys taco night, whether it’s turkey tacos, shrimp tacos, pork tacos, or these super easy crock pot chicken tacos. The chicken filling can be used in a variety of Mexican dishes including burritos, nachos, enchiladas and more!
Taco night is always a big hit at our house! I mix it up with baked beef tacos, Korean BBQ tacos, Baja fish tacos, you name it I’ve probably made it. These slow cooker chicken tacos are one of our very favorite taco recipes, and they couldn’t be any simpler to make. Need more taco inspiration? Check out my list of 10 chicken taco recipes!
How do you make slow cooker chicken tacos?
This recipe starts with boneless chicken breasts, which are sprinkled with taco seasoning, then covered in salsa. The chicken goes into the crock pot to cook until tender. The final step is to shred your chicken and stir in a little chopped cilantro. From there, you can pile your chicken into warm tortillas and add your favorite taco toppings.
Tips for crock pot chicken tacos
If you’re using a taco seasoning that doesn’t contain salt, you’ll want to add a little salt to your chicken. I like to use a salsa that’s not super chunky, only because my picky eaters don’t like to see the chunks of onion and pepper that are sometimes in a thicker salsa. While I typically use boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe, thighs will also work just fine. Corn or flour tortillas both taste great with the chicken filling, it’s just a matter of personal preference. I like to toast my tortillas over a flame on my gas stove top to get charred edges.
Slow cooker chicken taco variations
While this recipe is delicious as-is, sometimes I add other ingredients to the mix to change things up a bit.
No chicken on hand? Use cooked ground beef, beef stew meat or a pork roast instead. Try salsa verde instead of the traditional red salsa for a different flavor. Like spicy food? Add 1-2 minced canned chipotle peppers to the mix. You can add veggies into the crock pot along with the chicken such as onions or diced bell peppers.
What can you add to tacos?
While I typically add guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo to my tacos, there are so many different toppings you can add to amp up the flavor.
Shredded cheese Lettuce Sliced olives Pickled jalapenos Roasted corn Red onion Shredded cabbage
What I love best about this recipe is that it’s just so easy to make! If you have chicken, taco seasoning and a jar of salsa, you can whip up the most tender and flavorful taco filling in no time at all. These crock pot chicken tacos are on my regular dinner menu rotation, and they’re always a hit.
More mexican favorites
Mexican Pizza Mexican Fruit Salad Pork Carnitas Mexican Pinto Beans and Rice Pico de Gallo
This post was originally published on October 22, 2017 and was updated on December 13, 2019 with new content.