Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken

This Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken is a delicious and juicy chicken recipe that you can use in your favorite tacos, burritos, or enchiladas. It is easy to throw together on the weekend and keep in the refrigerator for a quick weeknight meal.

I’ve been making this slow cooker Mexican chicken recipe for years. I shared it back in 2011 as one of the first recipes I learned to make ahead of time to have ready for easy healthy dinners.

I’ve made this recipe well over a hundred times and wanted to share some new tips and variations I’ve learned since then.

Also, check out my popular Crock pot Shredded Chicken and Crockpot Buffalo Shredded Chicken recipes. You can see all my ideas and tips for shredded chicken recipes.

Jump to:

• Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
• Ingredients
• How to Make Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
• Supplies
• Cooking tips
• Serving suggestions
• Meal Prep and Freezer Tips
• Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken
• More Chicken Recipes

Ingredients

• Organic boneless skinless chicken breasts. I use three chicken breasts that come to about 1 ½ – 2lbs pounds. You could use boneless chicken thighs too.
• Tomato sauce. I use an organic tomato sauce that doesn’t include any sugar, additives, or preservatives. Make sure to read to the label before purchasing.
• Spices. The spices used in this recipe create a delicious yet straightforward taco seasoning. Sometimes I spice it up with cayenne pepper, smoked paprika, or chipotle peppers. You can also use this homemade taco seasoning.
• Chicken stock. I add chicken stock to keep the chicken covered in liquid so it stays juicy and doesn’t dry out.

How to Make Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Chicken

• In a small bowl, stir together all of the spices. 
• Add the chicken breasts to crockpot and then sprinkle with the seasoning mix.
• Pour the tomato sauce and chicken stock in with the chicken and spices. Mix the ingredients by flipping the chicken breasts a few times.
• Cover and cook for 5-6 hours on low. 
• Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and place it into a glass mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer or two forks, shred the chicken.
• You can shred the chicken in the crockpot, but I like to control the amount of sauce in with the chicken, so I shred it separately in a bowl. 
• Add ½ cup or so of sauce from the slow cooker in with the chicken. The last thing to do is to squeeze lime juice in with the chicken and season with salt.

Cooking tips

• Leave the sugar out to make it whole 30, paleo, and keto. The small amount of sugar balances the tomatoes’ acidity out, but it’s not 100% necessary to the recipe so leave it out if you’re removing sugar from your diet.
• Substitute fire-roasted or chili-flavored diced tomatoes for the tomato sauce. This swap will give it more flavor and texture.
• If you like spice, add a can of diced chilis, some sliced jalapenos, or a couple of chipotle peppers in adobe sauce. You can also use ground chipotle powder in the seasoning.
• Add in a can of black beans or corn. A can of each will add flavor and texture to the shredded chicken.
• Stir in cilantro at the end for fresh flavor.

Use your imagination and stir any of your favorite Mexican-inspired ingredients into this versatile slow cooker Mexican shredded chicken

Serving suggestions

Have a healthy dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes using all of these ideas.

• Quesadillas – our favorite way to use shredded Mexican chicken is to stuff a tortilla with chicken and cheese and then grill it using our grill pan. Serve it with salsa and sour cream!
• Chicken tacos – If you’re bored with ground beef tacos, fill a taco shell with chicken and all your favorite toppings.
• Burrito Bowls – Layer a bowl with rice, chicken, salsa, avocado, sour cream, and more!
• Salads – Switch out the ground beef or turkey for shredded chicken in this delicious dorito taco salad.
• Pizza – Top a pita pizza or homemade pizza with taco sauce and then layer with cheese and chicken. 
• Sheet Pan Nachos – Swap out the ground turkey taco meat for shredded Mexican chicken, and then layer your favorite cheese and nacho ingredients. 
• Stuffed taco sweet potatoes – Bake a sweet potato and fill it with chicken and your favorite Mexican toppings.
• Taco stuffed spaghetti squash – For a low carb Mexican-inspired dinner, mix the chicken in with the spaghetti squash, cheese, taco sauce, and bake until bubbly.
• Creamy Mexican Chicken – Stir cream cheese into the cooked shredded Mexican chicken and use in a burrito or quesadilla.
• Taco Pasta – Use this Mexican chicken in place of ground beef in this tasty creamy taco pasta recipe.
• Mexican lasagna – layer in this flavorful chicken for a spicy Mexican flare.

Meal Prep and Freezer Tips

You can prepare this Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken ahead of time to use in quick healthy dinner recipes during the week.

Store the shredded Mexcican chicken in the fridge for up to 4 days. I like using glass containers over plastic when storing foods because it keeps everything fresh longer.

Another way is to freeze it into recipe ready portions using plastic freezer bags or Souper cubes. This chicken can be frozen up to 6 months.

More Chicken Recipes

• Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
• Sheet pan Chicken Fajitas
• One Pan Chicken and Veggies
• One Pot Chicken and Rice
• Greek Yogurt Chicken Salad

See al of my healthy chicken recipes and healthy slow cooker recipes.

Have you tried this Slow Cooker Mexican shredded chicken? If so, I’d love for you to rate this recipe and leave a comment below. We all learn from each other’s experiences. Also, it would be awesome if you could share a picture on Instagram and tag it #organizeyourselfskinny. I can’t wait to see it!