Crock Pot Mexican Chicken
There’s no salsa required to make the juiciest, most flavorful Crock Pot Mexican Chicken! Use the shredded chicken to make tacos, burritos, enchiladas, and more.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
✔ Hands Off Recipe: The chicken and seasonings take 10 minutes to prep, then it’s as easy as turning on your Crock Pot and walking away!
✔ No Salsa: So many Mexican chicken recipes call for store-bought salsa, but I don’t always have that on hand! This easy Crock Pot recipe is made primarily with chicken and spices, so it’s easy to whip up using what you’ve got.
✔ Incredibly Versatile: The boldly flavored shredded chicken can be used in burrito bowls, tacos, enchiladas, or any dish that you think would pair well with the shredded chicken.
About This Recipe
Shredded Mexican chicken is so easy to cook in a Crock Pot, and it’s a great basic recipe to have on hand in your freezer for using in burritos, quesadillas, soft tacos, soups, and more.
Really, you can put this Mexican pulled chicken in any recipe that you want to have a little Mexican or Tex-Mex flair!
Since the chicken is assemble and cooked directly in the Crock Pot, there’s minimal cleanup afterwards and the hands-on prep couldn’t be simpler! Just 10 minutes of measuring out a few spices, juicing a lime or two, and chopping some cilantro. Easy!
The Key Ingredients
I purposely made this shredded chicken recipe without salsa because the flavor and texture can vary wildly from brand to brand, and I don’t always have jarred salsa in the fridge.
Check your pantry before heading to the grocery store; I bet you have most of these spices on hand already!
- Spices — The chicken is infused with bold Mexican flavor using a combination of cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and coriander.
- Chicken — Use roughly 2.5 pounds of boneless skinless chicken breasts (usually 4 large breasts).
- Chicken Broth — Can be swapped with water or vegetable broth if you’re out of chicken broth.
- Lime Juice — I have a few tricks for juicing limes that help me get the most juice out of them.
- Cilantro — Chop the cilantro and then pack it into the measuring cup.
- Onion — Use whatever variety you have on hand.
- Jalapeño — Remove the seeds if you don’t want spicy shredded chicken.
For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.
How to Make Shredded Mexican Chicken in a Crockpot
- Season the chicken. Place the chicken breasts in the Crock Pot before sprinkling the spice blend all over.
- Add the remaining ingredients. Pour the broth into the Crock Pot, then squeeze the lime juice over the chicken. Arrange the cilantro, onion, and jalapeño over top of the chicken.
- Cook on low for 3 to 5 hours. You’re looking for the chicken to be super tender and cooked through.
- Shred the chicken. There are lots of ways to shred chicken, so do whatever is easiest for you.
- Strain the juices at the bottom of the Crock Pot. Save all of the liquid, but discard the cooked jalapeño, cilantro, and onion. Then return the chicken to the Crock Pot and toss to coat in its juices.
The above is simply a quick summary of this recipe. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.
Storage and Freezing Instructions
The shredded chicken will last up to 5 days in the fridge or 2 months in the freezer. Make sure to cover the chicken with its juices so it doesn’t dry out!
If freezing, I recommend portioning the chicken into smaller servings so you can thaw the exact amount you need later on (1- to 2-cup portions are what works best for my family).
Ways to Use This Shredded Mexican Chicken
You can add this flavorful shredded chicken to any Mexican or Tex-Mex recipe that calls for cooked chicken! (If the original recipe calls for ground chicken or chopped chicken, you shouldn’t have any issues using this as a substitute.)
- Chicken Enchiladas with Homemade Chile Gravy
- Black Bean, Sweet Potato and Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Creamy Green Chicken Enchiladas
- Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Chili
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Crispy Baked Wonton Chicken Taquitos
- Sheet Pan Nachos
- Chicken Tacos with Corn and Tomato Salsa
- Shredded Chicken Tacos
- Taco Salad
More Mexican-Inspired Chicken Recipes
There are so many easy and delicious Mexican recipes that call for chicken. Some favorites include:
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Shredded Crock Pot Mexican Chicken Recipe
Crock Pot Mexican Chicken is the perfect shredded chicken recipe for your next Mexican recipe. Packed with flavor and super tender thanks to hours in the crock pot, this recipe is sure to please!
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 teaspoons Ground Cumin
- 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 3/4 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon Coriander
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (about 2.5 pounds)
- 1/3 cup Chicken Broth (or water)
- 2 Limes
- 1/3 cup cilantro leaves, packed
- 1 large Onion, cut into wedges
- 1 Jalapeño, sliced (leave the seeds in for more spice)
- optional garnish: sliced Green Onion and chopped Cilantro
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, coriander, salt and black pepper. Stir until well mixed.
- Place the chicken inside the insert of your Crock Pot. Sprinkle the top of the chicken breasts with half of the seasoning. Then, flip the chicken and sprinkle the other side with the remaining seasoning mixture.
- Add the chicken broth or water to the Crock Pot.
- Squeeze the juice from the limes over the top of the seasoned chicken.
- Add the cilantro leaves, onion wedges, and jalapeño slices to the Crock Pot, arranging them in and around the seasoned chicken breasts.
- Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender.
- Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred, and place in a bowl. Set aside. (Here's how to shred chicken.)
- Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer, reserving the liquid and discarding the solids.
- Add all of the juices back to the shredded chicken. Stir to distribute them all over the meat.
- Garnish, if desired, with chopped cilantro and sliced green onions.
Notes
To make this recipe in an Instant Pot: Follow the instructions in my Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Tacos recipe.
Doubling this recipe: This recipe is easily doubled, or even tripled, if you have a larger Crock Pot. The cook time should remain the same, but if the chicken isn’t fall-apart tender after 5 hours just give it a little more time.
Where is the Original Recipe? For those Asking about the "Original" Recipe (pre 2017) here is the original recipe. A commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/3 cup chicken broth
- 1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
- 2 limes
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 122Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 512mgCarbohydrates: 6gFiber: 2gSugar: 2gProtein: 19g
Darrin Mitzel says
After trying a few different crock pot chicken recipes, this one is the one I’ll go back to again and again. The flavors in this are perfect! Chicken came out very tender and juicy! It was perfect for our large family gathering. Thanks so much for sharing this great recipe.
Katie says
So glad to hear you love it! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Adrienne says
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! This recipe is heaven sent! I omitted the jalapeno, onion, & coriander just because I didn’t have them on hand but my husband LOVED IT! This is a big deal for my extra-picky eater! He even made suggestions on ways we could incorporate the chicken into other dishes! This is a miracle in our household. The fact that all I had to do was mix some spices and drop it in the crockpot is a bonus!
Katie says
So glad you liked it! Thank you for stopping by and letting me know. I appreciate each and every comment. Happy New Year!
Nicole says
Do you leave the lime slices in the pot to cook with the chicken after squeezing the juice over it?
Katie says
I do sometimes, and sometimes I don’t – it just depends on how much lime you want in the flavor. Either way is great though!
Michele says
Did this recipe change? I thought I was crazy looking for the one where you heat up a paste first but I think it’d this one still..
Katie says
Yes, I did edit the recipe to reflect the way that I’ve been making it for the last few years. If you like, you can sauce the onion and add the seasonings and then the broth to it (what you are referring to about heating up a paste first) like the old recipe stated.
Katie says
here is the original recipe. I recent commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
Jessi says
Greetings! I am on the hunt for a delish Mexican chicken recip for my little family! I want lots of flavor and this one seems to be just what I’m looking for!
But I have a question on discarding the solids… I was thinking about adding a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes, and a can of drained and rinsed black beans, maybe a can of diced green chilis and omitting the broth (since the diced tomatoes have liquid)… by adding these things to the crock pot, I really wouldn’t want to discard the solids! I just wanted to see what you thought about this. Is that discarding step really imperative?
Katie says
You can discard them if you like or not, totally up to you. I probably wouldn’t add the beans until the end, however. The tomatoes and the green chiles are fine to add at the beginning.
Kimberly Bender says
Hi! Really interested on trying this recipe but I only have an instant pot onstead of slow cooker. Is there specific instructions for this alternative route? All I have read so far is to cook it on high pressure for 30-45 minutes.
Katie says
I have not written specific instructions for the Instant Pot yet (on my to-do list as I get that question a lot!). Make sure you add the required liquid for your instant pot. I haven’t experimented with it much yet, but high pressure for 30-45 minutes sounds like it would be about right. I believe someone else a few comments back left there info on trying it in the instant pot.
Karen says
I cook this recipe more than any other recipe for my family. I have made this chicken and used it in homemade enchiladas, taquitos or just served inside tortillas with mexican cheese and condiments. I get more requests to share this recipe than anything else I make. It is fabulous!
Katie says
I love hearing this! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 It is one of our favorites too, especially for enchiladas!
Emily says
I loved your original recipe so much! We literally make it all the time. I was sad though you changed it to using onion powder and garlic powder – it’s just not the same. I have had several friends who’ve asked for the recipe, but since you’ve changed, I just can’t pass them along. Hopefully you consider reposting your original! Would love to share!
Katie says
Apologies for the late reply to this. I updated it to make it a tad easier to make as well as to reflect how I have been making it the last couple of years since it was a very old recipe. In the future I will make sure to include the original recipe along with any updates that I’ve made. I’m sorry that I neglected to do that. I appreciate you stopping by.
Margo says
Hi! Just found this recipe and I’m looking forward to making it today for my family. In reading the comments I see several ladies have mentioned the original recipe. Is there a way that you can post the original recipe as well. I would love to make them both (not at the same time) to see which one my family and I will like the most.
Thanks, Margo
Katie says
Sorry for the delayed reply, I thought I already responded but now I don’t see it anywhere. Unfortunately I made the dumb mistake of editing the original recipe with the updates and not saving both to this post, so I don’t have record of the original (since I don’t make it that way anymore). Unless someone else printed it off and has a hard copy somewhere, I am unable to provide those details. Lesson learned thought! Now, I just make notes in the recipe to include any information about changes that I’ve made and keep the original info as well. Sorry for the inconvenience!
Jinna says
Use the Wayback Machine and you can recover the old recipe version. http://web.archive.org/web/20160116223117/http://www.goodlifeeats.com:80/crock-pot-mexican-chicken
Katie says
wow, thank you so much for that!
Becky says
Emily, do you have the original recipe by chance?
Katie says
here is the original recipe. A recent commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
Faith says
Hi! I’d also love to have the original recipe to compare. Me and my husband have been making this for a couple years I think and we love it! We’ve found that it tastes best with Monterey Jack cheese or queso fresco and soft corn tortillas. We don’t add anything but quac, cheese and lettuce because we love the flavors from the chicken so much! I just recently tried it in my instant pot and I feel like it wasn’t as flavorful. I’m thinking maybe because you have to add at least 18 oz of liquid for the instant pot per the user manual. Any suggestions on how to balance that out? Thanks!
Katie says
I haven’t tested it in the Instant Pot yet, but that is on my to-do list. I agree about the issue of adding enough liquid diluting the flavor. I’ll update this post with IP instructions once I’ve tested that out.
Faith says
Thanks so much!
Katie says
here is the original recipe. A recent commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
Snowfl8ke says
I made this tonight in the instant pot and it was great. I followed the recipe exactly for prep and ingredients. Cooked it on high pressure for 28 minutes, then did a quick release. I pulled the chicken out of the pot, shredded it and put it back in the pot into the liquid. Then I cooked it for 15 more minutes on the slow cooker function, to help the chicken absorb more liquid. Yummy.
Katie says
Awesome! Thanks for sharing!
Jen says
Hi, where’s the original version of the recipe? I’ve made it for years and don’t want to make this version with onion wedges and onion and garlic powder. Please post the original also, it’s unbeatable. Thanks!
Katie says
Feel free to simply omit those items if you don’t care for them.
Debbie says
Agreed! The original was worth the work of a few extra steps for much better layers of flavor. I don’t recall it exactly, but I saute the onion, then garlic, then seasonings, then use chicken broth to deglaze the pan. Chicken breasts go into the crock pot with salt, pepper, cilantro and lime juice (jalapeno, too, but our kids won’t eat it spicy!). Onion mixture goes on top, then additional broth if you want it juicy. Onion powder and garlic powder were not in the original, but the other seasoning amounts seem about right to me.
Katie says
here is the original recipe. A recent commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
Katie says
here is the original recipe. A recent commenter on this post was able to help me locate an archive of it.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/4 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup (packed) cilantro leaves, chopped
2 limes
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the oil in a medium sized sauté pan. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, paprika and garlic and sauté two more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the chicken broth making sure to scrape up any browned bits. Turn off and set aside.
Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper. Add to crock pot. Squeeze the lime on top, add the cilantro, jalapeno, and pour the onion and garlic mixture over top.
Cook on low for 3-5 hours, or until cooked through (different crock-pots cook at varying heats) and tender. Remove chicken breasts from the crock pot, shred and place in a bowl. Scoop out the onions and add to the chicken. Depending on the amount of juices produced, you may want to add some or all of the juice back to the shredded chicken.
Coley | Coley Cooks says
This looks fabulous! I’ve been craving tons of Mexican food lately with the warmer weather. And your photos are stunning!
Jen says
You must have updated and left some things out – the 1/2 teaspoon of coriander is missing. Don’t leave it out – it makes it extra tasty.
Katie says
You’re right – I was working on editing the recipe to include some new photos and reformat the recipe instructions and deleted that line by mistake. I did however make a few updates to the recipe while I was at it.
Michele says
I have made this about 5 times so far. It is my go to recipe. I love it! I use it for soup, enchiladas, tacos, etc. Its great for many recipes. Easy and tasty. Thank you.
Michele says
I forgot to say I do add chicken broth to the slow cooker as well so it is more moist and the juices are added to the chicken if I freeze it.
Katie Goodman says
Glad you liked it!
Wendy says
I really wanted to love this recipe because it was so easy to make and the reviews were so good.
I followed the recipe exactly as written but doubled everything because I had a large group coming. I did not double the jalepeno because had kids in the crowd and I wasn’t sure how spicy it would be. The chicken was very bland tasting which was a mystery to me given the amount of spices used. I double checked that I wasn’t missing anything and in fact everything was in there. Is it possible that using less jalepeno changed the entire taste of the chicken?
I welcome your thoughts on this and would be willing to try it again if jalepeno is the make or break ingredient in this recipe.
Katie Goodman says
I definitely wouldn’t skimp on the jalapeño. If you deseed the jalapeño you’ll get the flavor of the pepper without so much heat. I always deseed my jalapeños because I don’t like things too hot. Another option, is to use poblano peppers which also have a great flavor but are less spicy than jalapeños. Chili powders also come in varying flavors and spice levels, so I definitely recommend adjusting the seasonings to your personal taste. After the chicken cooks and you shred the meat, you can put it back in all of the juices from the slow cooker to soak up additional flavor, if you still feel that it needs more, then I recommend adding additional seasonings at that time to your personal taste.