Perfectly tender, juicy, and flavorful Shredded Chicken Tacos is the perfect weeknight dinner. This shredded chicken recipe features chicken thigh meat, fire-roasted tomatoes, onions, chili pepper, lime, and lots of spices for the best taste. Make it in Instant Pot, Slow Cooker, or on stove-top. Either way you make it, this will be an incredible family taco night.
Shredded Chicken Tacos
Get ready for your house to fill with amazingly savory aroma. This shredded chicken is just just aromatic, though, it’s also wonderfully flavorful and yields unbelievably tender chicken meat. This is our go-to recipe for shredded chicken tacos, and it’s also a perfect chicken for nachos, quesadillas, tostadas, burritos, and so much more!
Taco Tuesday, for far too many people, simply means ground beef, cheese, and simple toppings in a tortilla. While that classic taco recipe is just fine, I like to have just a little bit more fun on my taco Tuesdays! These shredded chicken tacos always hit the spot, whether I make them for a family weeknight dinner or to entertain my dinner guests.
When I think of these tacos, the first word that always comes to mind is “mouthwatering.” It’s not just the intoxicating smell of these tacos that gets your mouth watering, either. The bold flavors of the medley of ingredients is also enough to make you salivate, and the cherry on top of it all is really the tender chicken thigh meat. Trust me – you’ve never had chicken tacos this good before!
Ingredients for Shredded Chicken Tacos
- Chicken Thighs – use boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
- Olive Oil – Avocado oil will also do the trick.
- Chicken Broth – Chicken Stock can also be used!
- Diced Tomatoes – For the ultimate best results, use canned fire roasted diced tomatoes.
- Onion – A yellow or white onion will both get the job done.
- Garlic – Use fresh garlic, not pre-minced, for the best flavor.
- Chili in Adobo Sauce – You’ll only need one of these to pack a punch. However, you can toss in another one if you like it spicy but no more or it will take over the flavors! Also, reserve some of the adobo sauce itself.
- Lime – You’ll need the zest and juice of a fresh lime.
- Sugar – Just a pinch of white granulated sugar is all you need.
- Seasonings – The medley of seasonings that brings this shredded chicken to life is cumin, paprika, cinnamon, dried oregano, salt, and black pepper.
Can I use chicken breast meat?
Yes, of course you can!
The reason I prefer to use chicken thigh meat is because dark meat of poultry is so much juicier, more tender, and much more flavorful. It will make tastier tacos!
How to Make Shredded Chicken in the Instant Pot
Combine all ingredients except for chicken in an Instant Pot and whisk it all together. Then, add in the chicken thighs, gently stirring to coat the meat. Make sure to spread the chicken evenly throughout the Instant Pot.
Close the lid of the Instant Pot and make sure it’s latched. Turn the steam valve to “seal” and set the pressure cooker to cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.
Let the pressure cooker do a natural release for about 10 minutes and then carefully do a quick release.
Take chicken out once it’s cooked and shred it using two forks. Strain the veggies from the juices and add them to the shredded chicken. Add about 1/2 cup of juice back in with the chicken.
As an extra final step, you can crisp cooked shredded chicken like pork carnitas. It will give a great combination of juicy, tender, and crispy textures.
How to Make Shredded Chicken in the Slow Cooker
Combine all ingredients except for chicken in the slow cooker and whisk them together to thoroughly combine.
Add in chicken thighs and gently stir to coat the meat evenly. Make sure to spread the chicken evenly throughout the pot.
Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours or on HIGH for 4 hours.
Take chicken out once it’s cooked and shred it using two forks. Strain veggies from the juices and add veggies to the shredded chicken. Add about 1/2 cup of juice back in with the chicken.
How to make Shredded Chicken on the Stove Top
Combine all of the ingredients except chicken in a bowl and mix well.
Preheat a Dutch oven over medium heat and pour in the vegetable and liquid mixture.
Let the mixture heat through and nestle in chicken until completely coated.
Lower the heat to low and close the lid. Leave a small crack for steam to escape. Cook for approximately 45 minutes, but make sure to stir every 15-20 minutes.
Take chicken out into a bowl and use 2 forks to shred it. Meanwhile, let the liquids and veggies simmer over-medium low heat until some liquids cooks out for another 10-15 minutes.
Add shredded chicken back into the pot and mix with thickened liquids and veggies.
Taco Toppings:
You can do with the standard shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sliced red onion, diced avocados, sour cream, and squeeze of lime. But for extra pops of flavor, serve it with Cotija cheese, sliced jalapeño peppers, pickled onions, pickled jalapeños, and any other flavorful toppings you love.
Other Uses for Shredded Chicken:
There are a bounty of delicious ways you can serve up this shredded chicken! Quesadillas, nachos, taquitos, tostadas, enchiladas, burritos, chimichangas, chicken wraps, sandwiches, paninis, and salads are all perfect platforms for this flavorful chicken.
Spice up your taco Tuesdays with more delicious handheld delights!
Carne Asada Tacos – delicious Carne Asada Tacos filled with steak marinated in an easy, flavorful marinade and topped with homemade pico de gallo and cilantro vinaigrette.
Chipotle Chili Crispy Shrimp Tacos – delicious spicy tacos made with juicy, crispy shrimp, red cabbage slaw, and creamy chipotle chili sauce.
Guacamole Shrimp Tacos – crispy taco shells are packed with tasty seared shrimp, fresh guacamole, and crunchy vegetables.
Blackened Fish Tacos – these tacos are packed with juicy, flaky blackened fish, crunchy slaw, and sweet mango salsa.
Shredded Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
- 2-2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh meat
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 14.5 oz can fire roasted diced tomatoes
- 1 small onion sliced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 chili in adobo sauce diced
- 1 tbsp adobo sauce from the chilis
- 1 lime – zest and juice
- 1 tsp white granulated sugar
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- salt
- black pepper
For Tacos:
- taco tortillas
- red onion
- avocado
- lime wedges
- Cojita cheese
- diced tomatoes
- any other taco toppings you prefer
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- You can use a 3-quart or a 6-quart Instant Pot. Note that the 6-quart pressure cooker will take a few minutes longer to build pressure and release pressure.
- Combine all ingredients except for chicken in an Instant Pot and whisk them together.
- Add in chicken thighs and gently stir to coat the meat evenly. Make sure to spread the chicken evenly throughout the pot.
- Close the lid of Instant Pot and make sure it is latched. Turn the steam valve to “seal” and set the pressure cooker to cook at high pressure for 15 minutes.
- Let the pressure cooker do a natural release for about 10 minutes and then carefully do a quick release. (Make sure to consult your pressure cooker manual for exact buttons and instructions.)
- Take chicken out once it’s cooked and shred it using two forks. Strain veggies from the juices and add veggies to the shredded chicken. Add about 1/2 cup of juice back in with the chicken. (Add more juices if you wish.)
- Tip: you can use these juices leftover from cooking the chicken to make chicken tortilla soup or another soup with similar flavor pallet.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Combine all ingredients except for chicken in the slow cooker and whisk them together.
- Add in chicken thighs and gently stir to coat the meat evenly. Make sure to spread the chicken evenly throughout the pot.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 6 hours or on HIGH for 4 hours.
- Take chicken out once it’s cooked and shred it using two forks. Strain veggies from the juices and add veggies to the shredded chicken. Add about 1/2 cup of juice back in with the chicken.
Stovetop Instructions:
- In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients except chicken and mix well.
- Preheat a Dutch oven over medium heat and pour in the vegetable and liquid mixture.
- Let the mixture heat through and nestle in chicken until completely coated.
- Lower the heat to low and close the lid. (Make sure to leave a small crack if needed, for steam to escape.)
- Cook for about an 45 minutes but make sure to stir every 15-20 minutes.
- Take chicken out into a bowl and use 2 forks to shred it.
- Meanwhile, let the liquids and veggies simmer over-medium low heat until some liquids cooks out. (Another 10-15 minutes.)
- Add shredded chicken back into the pot and mix with thickened liquids and veggies. Take off heat.
To Crisp The Chicken:
- Preheat the skillet (or another cooking pan) over medium-high heat. Add a little bit of oil to grease the bottom of the pan. (You can choose to brown a small portion of chicken or a large one. Whichever amount you choose, select the pan accordingly because you don’t want to overcrowd the meat.)
- Sauté for about a minute and then add some of the cooking broth into the pan, quickly stir and let the juice cook out as the bottom of the meat browns. Stir a couple of times and let a few more pieces get brown.
- Take the chicken out of the pan and serve as tacos or any other way.
Nutrition
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