Kitchen notes · a little help before you start
Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
Salsa chicken makes a juicy taco filling, with cilantro freshening the shreds before they meet the tortillas. Cool guacamole and sour cream make the toppings especially inviting. Fill yours generously, add pico de gallo and enjoy the saucy chicken in a soft flour tortilla.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 180 min
- Total
- 185 min
- Original yield
- Serves 4
- Ingredients
- 8 listed
Make it part of your week
Recipe categories & planning details
- Meal type
- Main course
- Primary protein
- Chicken
- Cuisine
- Mexican
- Cooking method
- Slow cooker
- Preparation & total time
- Prep: 15 minutes or less · Total: over 60 minutes
- Dish type
- Tacos
A few quick notes
1. Season beneath the salsa
Sprinkle taco seasoning over the chicken breasts in the cooker, then pour the salsa on top before covering.
2. Shred with two forks
Once the covered cooking stage is finished, use two forks to pull the chicken apart before adding cilantro.
3. Divide chicken before topping
Put chicken into the tortillas first, then add pico de gallo, guacamole and sour cream to finish.
Get to know the ingredients
Boneless skinless breasts
Place the boneless skinless breasts into the cooker before their seasoning and salsa, ready for shredding once cooked.
Chopped cilantro leaves
Keep chopped cilantro leaves for stirring into the shredded chicken rather than adding them at the beginning.
Pico de gallo options
Homemade or store-bought pico de gallo are both listed for topping the chicken-filled tortillas at serving.
Let’s make it
Choose your servings, then check things off as you go.
Original recipe: Serves 4. Original quantities shown.
Check ingredients as you prepare them. These checks stay on this page.
How to make it
0 of 3 steps completeMake room for Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
Review ingredients in your pantry before anything is added. Meal plans use your household size; grocery-only additions use the servings selected above.
The last little job
Top and eat immediately
Finish the filled flour tortillas with pico de gallo, guacamole and sour cream, then serve immediately.
A little more help as you go
Choose high or low
The covered chicken stage gives both high and low settings, each with its own cooking range.
The whole salsa jar goes in
Pour the listed salsa jar over the seasoned breasts at the start; it's part of the cooking mixture.
A few questions you might have
Does the chicken need browning first?
The directions put the breasts directly into the cooker with seasoning and salsa, without a browning stage.
When should the sour cream go in?
Keep it for topping the chicken tacos after the filling has been divided between the flour tortillas.
Is cilantro cooked from the start?
Stir it into the shredded chicken after cooking, before dividing the filling between the tortillas.
Do I use flour tortillas?
Flour tortillas are listed for holding the shredded salsa chicken and the pico, guacamole and sour cream toppings.
Are the breasts shredded before slow cooking?
Cook them first under the salsa, then shred with two forks after the covered cooking stage.
Storage & reheating safety
For cooked, perishable leftovers, refrigerate within 2 hours (1 hour above 90°F), using shallow containers for prompt cooling. Keep the refrigerator at 40°F or below, use refrigerated leftovers within 3–4 days, and reheat hot leftovers to 165°F, checked with a food thermometer. Follow any shorter package limit.
These are general safety limits, not a tested storage or freezing recommendation for this particular dish. USDA leftovers guidance · Safe cooking temperatures
Recipe source: dinneratthezoo.com. Ingredient names and quantities may be adapted for the pantry.
Preparation notes follow the recipe shown here.
