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30 Minute Chicken Tacos! This is the EASIEST, most flavorful shredded chicken taco recipe! Perfect for a weeknight dinner, or busy day. Only 30 minutes is needed to cook up and shred the chicken.
Homemade Chicken Tacos
I’m pretty sure my love for tacos is apparent on this site. So it’s about time I finally created a chicken taco recipe! The base for this recipe is the chicken taco seasoning. Which is very similar to my regular beef taco seasoning. But I upped the spice, because I feel the chicken needs more flavor, there is nothing worse than bland chicken. So not only are we using chili powder, but a bit of paprika also.
These chicken tacos come together so quick and easy. They are perfect for a weeknight dinner.
How to Make Chicken Tacos
- These chicken tacos start with a quick mixture of the chicken taco seasoning (recipe below of course!)
- Then coat the chicken with the seasoning.
- Sear the chicken in a large skillet with some olive oil.
- Pour in a cup of low or no sodium chicken broth and cover the skillet. This will poach the chicken and cook it, making it easy for us to shred it. It’s very similar to the method I use when I need to shred chicken for any other recipe.
- Once the chicken is cooked, shred it, stir it back into the sauce leftover in the skillet to thoroughly coat the chicken with flavor. And you are all set to make the BEST EVER Chicken Tacos!
Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
Does slow cooking work better with your schedule? You can absolutely make this chicken taco recipe in your slow cooker and it is just as easy.
We will follow the same basic steps. However, add it to the slow cooker instead of using a skillet on the stovetop! Mix up the chicken taco seasoning and coat the chicken breasts. Add the chicken to the slow cooker and add in the 1 cup of chicken stock. Don’t worry, it will be plenty, the chicken will create more juices as it cooks. Let this cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. Shred the chicken, then add back to the slow cooker to stir the chicken into the remaining sauce. This adds more flavor.
Then you are all set to make your chicken tacos!
What is the best chicken for Chicken Tacos?
I prefer to use boneless skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. It’s easy, and the method we are using to cook the chicken makes the chicken juicy. You can substitute with chicken thighs though for a mixture of dark and light meats. The method will stay the same.
What toppings do I use for Chicken Tacos?
The possibilities are endless! Some of my favorites include:
- Guacamole- this recipe is super simple and comes together quickly.
- Pico de Gallo– basically a fresco salsa made with chunks of tomato, onion and jalapeño.
- Homemade Salsa– a blended salsa that is perfect for pouring over any taco recipe!
- Cheese, Sour Cream, pickled jalapeños, diced cilantro, diced tomatoes, and lime juice. Basically anything else you want!
More Taco Recipes:
- Best Ever Ground Beef Taco Recipe
- Slow Cooker Barbacoa
- Slow Cooker Carnitas
- Taco Stuffed Avocados
- Breakfast Tacos
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30 Minute Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
Chicken Taco Seasoning
- 2 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Mexican Chicken
- 1 Chicken taco seasoning ingredients above
- 2 lbs Chicken boneless skinless breasts or thighs
- 1 cup chicken broth low or no sodium
Chicken Tacos
- tortillas
- shredded cheese
- tomato diced
- guacamole
- sour cream
- cilantro diced
Instructions
- In a small bowl combine all of the ingredients to make the chicken taco seasoning. Stir to combine.
- Coat the chicken on both sides with the chicken taco seasoning.
- Drizzle the olive oil and heat in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add the chicken and let it cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Pour in the chicken stock. Cover the skillet and let the chicken cook in the broth for about 15-20 minutes, until the chicken registers 165 degrees internally and is cooked through.
- Remove the chicken from the skillet, shred using a fork, then return to the skillet.
- Stir to coat the chicken in the remaining sauce in the skillet. Let sit and keep warm on low heat for about 3-5 minutes, to get good flavor throughout the chicken.
- Serve warm on tortillas with any additional toppings you would enjoy!
Video
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe is sooo yummy!!! First time making street tacos at home and it was a hit! You’re so awesome!
This recipe was fabulous and I loved how easy it was to prepare! I used butterfly chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs and cooked the breasts whole in my cast iron pan on the stove. I think they stay more moist that way instead of cutting the chicken before cooking I also made regular tacos with cheese, lettuce and tomato on a soft flour tortilla with fresh guacamole and mango pico de gallo from the produce section at the store. This will go in my regular rotation of recipes.
I cannot wait to make this. I love your method of cooking the chicken in a skillet to start and finishing it by poaching it. What a great and quick technique to get homemade shredded chicken in a hurry!!! Thank you
Love this. The big test, of course, is the kids. They raved over these taco’s. Definitely on rotation. Thanks for the recipe!
Looks delicious! Definitely going to try this. How many tacos can be made using the amount in this recipe?
Thanks in advance!