The easiest recipe for Crockpot Chicken Tacos! Let your slow cooker do the work for dinner tonight and enjoy delicious shredded chicken tacos!
When you want an easy, yummy dinner but don’t have time to cook – these Crockpot Chicken Tacos are the solution!
Rather than grilling or pan searing chicken, let your crockpot do all the work! These Shredded Chicken Tacos are full of flavor and great with tortillas, in a salad, or even plain over rice!
Making Chicken Tacos in the crockpot can save you tons of time and can easily feed a crowd with little to no work!
If you love easy,healthy crockpot meals, try these Crockpot Chicken Fajitas and Salsa Verde Chicken next!
why we love this recipe
- Easy to make – This is such an easy recipe because you just layer the ingredients in your slow cooker, shred the chicken, and enjoy!
- Simple Ingredients – You probably already have everything you need to make these crockpot chicken tacos in your fridge and pantry!
- Great for meal prep – These shredded chicken tacos are such a healthy addition to your weekly meal prep because they are so versatile and reheat very well! See our favorite ways to eat this shredded chicken below.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
To make chicken tacos in crockpot, you’ll need:
- chicken breasts – you can also use chicken thighs
- chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder
- salsa – any jarred salsa will work, I like one that has no added sugar!
- limes
- chicken broth
This is our favorite crockpot for these shredded chicken tacos.
SUBSTITUTIONS FOR SHREDDED CHICKEN TACOS
Chicken Breasts: You can substitute with boneless chicken thighs or chicken tenders.
Spices: You can substitute taco seasoning for the spices! It’s super easy and cheap to make yourself! We like this taco seasoning if you’re looking for a store-bought brand. It has no preservatives, and it’s delicious!
Salsa: You can use red or green salsa, but I prefer red. If you prefer green salsa, try this Chicken Salsa Verde.
Lime: In a pinch, you can use lime juice, but fresh squeezed limes are so much better!
Broth: Broth and stock are the same thing! You can use any broth or stock interchangeably. Beef Broth, Chicken Broth, or vegetable broth all work interchangeably. I always use low or no salt broth.
Taco Seasoning Substitute
We always make our own taco seasoning! It’s super easy and cheap to make yourself We like this taco seasoning if you’re looking for a store-bought brand. It has no preservatives, and it’s delicious! We use it in everything from Taco Pasta to Taco Stuffed Peppers!
Chicken Breast or Thighs – Which is Better for Slow Cooking?
You can use chicken breasts or chicken thighs in this recipe – it’s totally up to you! Chicken thighs have a little bit more fat, so they become super tender in the crockpot.
Chicken breasts also become very tender in the crockpot. Both chicken breasts and chicken thighs will soak up the salsa/broth in this recipe and be full of flavor – so it’s totally personal preference on which cut you use.
Chicken thighs are higher in fat, so they might be a little greasier!
How to Make Healthy Crockpot Chicken Tacos
- Place chicken breasts in your crockpot.
- Sprinkle the spices over the chicken.
- Place salsa and lime juice on top of the chicken.
- Add chicken broth, cover, and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken from the crockpot and shred it with 2 forks.
- Return the chicken to juices from the bottom of the crockpot and mix well before serving.
Making Chicken Tacos in a Crockpot – Tips for Success
It’s so easy to make chicken tacos in your crockpot. Here are our top 3 tips for making sure they come out perfect!
- Cook the chicken on low, not high – Yes, if you’re in a pinch you can set your crockpot to high, but we really recommend cooking on low! Cooking on low can help your chicken get fall apart tender while cooking on high could give you dry chicken.
- Make sure the chicken is covered in salsa/broth– Most of the chicken should be submerged in the crockpot while it’s cooking. This will help the chicken get tender!
- Return the chicken to the pot after shredding– You’ll want to add your shredded chicken back to the pot after cooking so it can soak up all the juices/flavor!
Easy Ways to Shred Chicken
Pro Tip for shredding chicken: Shred it in your stand mixer! This is so much easier than shredding with 2 forks. Just place cooked chicken breasts in your stand mixer and use the paddle attachment on low. Your chicken will be shredded in no time!
How to Serve Chicken Tacos:
These chicken tacos are really versatile. We like them on tortillas with a little bit of guacamole or corn salsa.
You can also serve them in bowls with cooked rice (like our cilantro lime rice), salsa and veggies (I did this for meal prep the other day and it was great!)
They’re delicious with cheese, onions, or your other favorite taco toppings on top!
Storing Leftover Taco Meat
Storing: Crockpot chicken taco meat will last in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Freezing Cooked Shredded Chicken
Freezing: You can freeze this recipe for up to 3 months. We like these containers for freezing! You can also place the chicken in ziploc bags and freeze flat.
If you need more freezer friendly recipes check out our Fill Your Freezer Ebook with 22 easy freezer meals!
Reheating: You can reheat this recipe in the microwave, toaster oven or on the stove. We recommend heating in a pan on the stove top with a little bit of olive oil!
Healthy Chicken Tacos Recipe FAQ
Chicken breasts and chicken thighs both shred well. Chicken thighs are a little bit fattier so they may be more tender.
Chicken tacos are healthy! Chicken is high in protein and low in fat compared to beef tacos. You can add veggies to chicken tacos to make them a complete meal!
The key to keeping shredded chicken taco meat moist is to store it in the juices it is cooked in. Make sure not to discard the salsa/broth while shredding the chicken. Store it all together in a container.
Other healthy crockpot recipes:
Love your crockpot? Check out these 40+ Healthy Crockpot Recipes. Click here to grab our free healthy crockpot cookbook.
Crockpot Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
- 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 cup salsa you can use red or green salsa, but I prefer red
- Juice of 2 limes – optional
- 1/2 cup chicken broth low or no salt or water
Instructions
- Place your chicken breasts in your crockpot insert. Cover the chicken with seasonings. Place salsa on top of chicken. Sprinkle lime juice on top (optional)
- Add chicken broth to the crockpot insert. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours (recommended!) or high for 3-4 hours. We don’t recommend cooking on high, chicken breasts are better cooked low and slow!
- Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the crockpot and shred with 2 forks on a cutting board or you can use a stand mixer or hand mixer (don’t use a hand mixer directly in your crockpot as it can chip the enamel).
- Return the chicken to the crockpot insert to soak up the juices.
- Serve with your favorite taco toppings.
Sue Kos says
Made this one as well. Loved it and delicious for leftovers!
Berni says
YES!! Finally found a chicken crockpot recipe that my picky 11 yr old will actually ask for. Minimial ingredients with big flavor. Extras warm up great as well.
Kathy Anet says
Super easy to make and tastes delicious! The chicken comes out so tender and juicy in the crock pot. I love that it’s easy to customize with different toppings so you don’t get too tired of the same thing if eating it multiple days like I do.
Valerie shields says
Tried the crockpot chicken tacos tonight, never had it before. My husband and I was pleasantly surprised. DELICIOUS, will be making it from now on. Thanks for the recipe.
Danielle says
This recipe has been my go-to for taco night lately! It has been so easy for dinners and my kids will eat it too. I will say I’m very picky with crockpot chicken but I can eat this all the time and I also used the leftovers for enchilada filling and I bet it would be great in quesadillas too! The chicken is very versatile and can be enjoyed in a few different meals. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
WafflesTheDog says
Great idea to use as enchilada filling!K
Kim says
Legit so easy and so delicious! Leftovers did not stand a chance, I’ll need to make a double batch next time. Had it as a taco and a rice bowl and I cant decide which I like more. Took me less than ten minutes to throw in the slow cooker too, which is amazing with an impossibly busy schedule. New favorite, which is saying a lot because I’m not really a chicken person! Great way to help get in all my protein.
Theoncereluctantchef says
This is a great recipe for a day when you want minimal food prep with satisfying results. While these don’t exactly blaze with flavor, they also don’t have the fat content that would bring that proverbial flame. If you’re looking for something satisfying but low calorie (which I was), these are a great choice. I will probably make again and experiment with going a bit heavier on the spices.