Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken is tender, juicy, and cooked slowly to give you an explosion of flavor. This Mexican chicken recipe is a great base to use for tacos, enchiladas, nachos, burritos, salads, or just serve it over rice.
Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
This crockpot Mexican chicken is one of those recipes you just need in your life.
It has all sorts of uses and the sky is the limit! With the help of our handy dandy crockpot, you can make this Mexican chicken recipe with minimal effort!!
Just dump everything in, walk away and you will come back to succulent chicken waiting to be shredded and used for all kinds of recipes!
A few other great taco recipes you may like are my Homemade Ground Beef Taco Meat, Easy Taco Soup, and Chile Con Queso Mac and Cheese.
Why You’ll Love This Mexican Chicken Recipe
- Incredible flavor
- Set it and forget
- 5 minute prep
- Easy to double or triple
- Family friendly
- Can be made ahead of time
How To Make Mexican Crockpot Chicken
Step 1: Add ingredients to the slow cooker
Add the chicken breasts to the bottom of the slow cooker, then top with garlic, onions, salsa, green chilies, and seasonings.
Step 2: Cook
Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
Step 3: Shred and Serve
Shred the chicken directly in the slow cooker or remove it to shred. Take 2 forks or some meat claws and shred to the desired texture. Let sit in the juice for 15-20 minutes, serve, and enjoy!
Crockpot Mexican Chicken Tips
- Shred right in the crockpot. I just shred the chicken right in the crockpot because I don’t like to dirty extra dishes! 🙂 It saves a step and cleanup is even easier.
- Use the liquid in the slow cooker. That liquid is what makes this Mexican chicken recipe so darn good. So it’s important after you shred it to add it back to the juices. Plus, it keeps the crockpot Mexican chicken extra juicy.
- Don’t cook on high. I know it’s tempting if you are in a hurry to cook the chicken on high, but it will become dry or mushy.
- Adjust the seasonings. Feel free to use whatever seasonings and spices you enjoy.
- Add lime wedges and cilantro. For garnishing and an added burst of flavor, serve with fresh lime wedges and chopped cilantro.
FAQs
This Mexican crockpot chicken will last up to 4 days in the fridge or 3 months in the freezer. Be sure to let it cool down all the way, then place it in a sealed container. Place in the fridge or freezer and warm up before serving.
I find the easiest way to heat up this slow cooker Mexican shredded chicken is by placing it in a pan on the stovetop with some chicken broth or some salsa. The amount you add is going to depend on how much chicken you are reheating. I recommend starting with 1/4 cup and adding more if needed. The broth and salsa will both work to prevent the chicken from drying out. Cook it over low heat until it’s hot all the way through.
Ways To Use Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
- Tacos: serve slow cooker Mexican chicken in hard or soft shells, corn or flour, and top with all your favorite toppings. We like soft shells the best and we like both flour and corn. We usually top this with avocado, tomato, shredded lettuce, shredded cheddar, and sour cream. But pico de gallo and guacamole would be great too.
- Enchiladas: this is a great base for enchilada recipes because there is so much flavor going on with the meat. Just toss it with your favorite brand of enchilada sauce and you are ready to assemble your fabulous enchiladas!
- Burritos, Taco soup, Enchilada soup, and it’s great in quesadillas!! I feel quesadillas are my life saver sometimes!! I love it when I have some of this meat leftover in the fridge when I don’t know what to make for supper. Sometimes I will even add a can of pinto, black, or refried beans to the chicken if I need to stretch it a little further. Then just add to some tortillas and toast until golden in a skillet. We top these like we do our tacos.
- You can also serve this Mexican crockpot chicken over plain white or brown rice or better yet cilantro lime rice or Spanish rice. So good and so many options!!
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Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 large boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup (236ml) of your favorite salsa
- 1 (4 oz) (113g) can diced green chilies
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in the bottom of your slow cooker. Top with all of the remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours. I don’t recommend cooking this on high or for longer than 6 hours as the chicken can overcook and become dry or mushy.
- You may remove the chicken from the crock pot or leave it in and shred it in there. Use as much or as little juice as you desire. I like to use all of the juice and cook the shredded chicken in the juice for about 15-20 minutes so it can soak up more flavor. If there is a lot of liquid drain some off.
- Serve or use as desired.
Video
Notes
- The onion powder and garlic powder are optional but add more flavor.
- FREEZER FRIENDLY: Freeze in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight and use as desired.
Making this tonight for my family and putting them in corn tortillas and frying them. I can’t wait. My daughter makes this all the time and it’s so good. Thank you
Thank you very much and love the idea of using corn tortillas and frying them!! Thanks for sharing!
WOW!! This was really great! I used cooked, shredded rotisserie chicken instead of chicken breasts and only cooked it on low for a couple hours. I also added some water since i didn’t have any chicken broth. My family loved it! I will definitely make it again!!
Thank you very much!! I am so glad you liked it!!
I made this and we (me, husband and mom) loved it! I cannot wait to have this again!
The chicken breasts were smaller and only took a few hours to cook. Only did 1/2 the chili powder, family have me the green light to put the full amount of chili powder next time. Will try with green chillies later. Easing the family into a little more spicy 😉.
YAY! So glad you liked the chicken! My kids don’t like things very spicy either but my husband does. So he usually doctors his with red pepper flakes or cayenne and a lot of it, lol.
How spicy is this recipe?
Not very spicy. If you like spicier use a hotter salsa and add in cayenne. Let me know how you like it!
I’m not a spicy food person so thought I’d check. We loved it! So much better than a previous recipe I’ve tried! Thank you 🙂
Thank you so much!! So glad you liked it!! And thanks for sharing!
Can you use taco seasoning instead of the spices?
You sure can! Hope you enjoy!
Chicken make its own juice or do you add water somewhere?
The chicken will make its own liquid. Let me know how you like it!
What kind of onion do you recommend?
You can use either white or brown. Let me know how you like it!
Hi there, could this recipe be doubled in the crockpot? And if so, would that change the cooking time? Having a holiday craft day, and would love to make this.
Yes, it can be doubled. Just make sure you are using a 6 qt or larger slow cooker. The cooking time really shouldn’t change. Thanks and let me know how it turns out!!
I doubled this and it turned out great. 6 hours on low was the perfect cook time. Everyone returned for seconds! A keeper for sure.
That’s great!! So glad everyone enjoyed it!! And thanks for letting me know!
Can this be made in an instant pot?
I haven’t made it in the instant pot but I feel it would be a great recipe for it!! My guess would be 10 minutes High Pressure with a 5 minute natural release.
I am a food blogger like you and I must say that this recipe is amazing!!! I have not tried to make my own recipe for slow cooker shredded Mexican chicken yet because I love this one so much. My family and friends love it too. 🙂
Well thank you very much! I am so glad you liked it and thanks for sharing!!
Can chicken thighs be used in place of the chicken breasts? If so, do you recommend any adjustments?
Yes, they can and no changes needed. Hope you enjoy!
Absolutely love this recipe! I made this chicken and used it for burrito bowls and my family loved it too!!
I am so glad you liked it and we love using this for burrito bowls too!! 🙂
Tried this today and it was really good..had to add extra salsa to mine
Thank you, I am so glad you liked it! And thanks for sharing!!!
I whipped this up for “Taco Tuesday” the last time I visited my daughter and her family. All four of my grandsons devoured this delicious chicken. I’m heading there again, and it’s on the menu! Thank you for providing this wonderful recipe.
Ahhh, thank you so much!! And thank you for sharing it made my day! 🙂
I think I just heard my tummy growl. lol! Must print the recipe.
Lol, let me know how you like it!
Hi Malinda! I’m hoping to make this for my upcoming baby shower, and was wondering if you could recommend making this in an electric roaster instead of a crock-pot so I’m able to make more at once. Thank you!
Sure thing!! Just set to 200 degrees for “LOW” setting and 250 degrees for “HIGH” setting. Let me know how you like it and congrats, I’m honored you will be using one of my recipes for your shower!! 🙂
Made this today for the hubby and it was delicious! Cooked for about 4.5 hours in the slow cooker and was worried it wouldn’t be long enough to pull apart but it was perfect. Will be going into the regular dinner rotation. Thanks for sharing.
I am so glad you liked it!! Thank you!!
What is the serving size?
How many ounces of chicken breasts do you use? They can vary greatly. Thanks!
Mine was probably around 6 ounces for a single breast. Thanks and let me know how you like it!
Did you do 4.5 hrs on High ? Frozen chicken ? Thanks !
Hi! Sorry I didn’t respond sooner. Unless I post frozen chicken it will always be thawed. And it was cooked on low. I don’t recommend cooking on high as it will dry out the chicken.