Oh good grief.
I have been making slow cooker shredded chicken for years. And I have been making homemade salsa for years and years and years. But it was not until this year that the lightbulb finally decided to click on, I realized that chicken and salsa were a ridiculously obvious match made in crockpot heaven.
Brilliant or obvious? You decide.
Either way, if you love Mexican shredded chicken, this one falls in the must-try category. Why?
It only requires 2 ingredients. It takes less than 2 minutes to prep. And then once your slow cooker has worked its magic, it takes less than 2 minutes to shred. And then this wonderfully seasoned, simple, juicy, flavorful chicken is yours “2” enjoy on countless dishes. (Couldn’t resist.)
Here’s the how “2”. (Ok, somebody help me.)
Sorry, I still can’t get over the fact that it took me until I was 30 to think of this. Moving on…
To make this salsa chicken, just pop some raw chicken in a slow cooker. (I didn’t want to mess with bones, so went with chicken breasts for easy shredding.) Then cover it with lots of your favorite salsa. (I used the restaurant-style salsa that I posted yesterday.) Season it with some extra salt and pepper, give it a stir, and then let your slow cooker do its thing.
After about 4 hours (or all day long while you’re at work), pop off that lid, and the chicken should fall apart into shredded, juicy, salsa-y perfection.
I popped half of mine into some tortillas along with avocado to make these simple chicken soft tacos. But the salsa chicken would work perfectly on just about any other Mexican chicken dish you can imagine — quesadillas, taquitos, salads, chimichangas, you name it.
The key is just to use really good salsa, since the seasonings in the salsa are obviously what will flavor the chicken. Remember, too, that the chicken will release plenty of its own juices during cooking. So don’t be afraid to use some salsa with an extra “kick”, since the intensity of its flavor will get watered down slightly while cooking. I also recommend seasoning the meat with extra salt and pepper before cooking. (And if you like heat, feel free to throw in an extra jalapeno too.)
I mean seriously. Shredded Mexi chicken could not get any easier. You’ve gotta try it.
2-Ingredient Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 lbs total)*
- 2 cups favorite salsa
- salt and pepper
- (optional: fresh lime wedges for serving)
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in a slow cooker and cover with salsa. Toss until the chicken is covered.
- Cover and cook on high for 4 hours (or low for 6-8 hours), or until the chicken shreds easily with a fork. Shred the chicken in the slow cooker and toss with the remaining salsa and juices until well-mixed. Serve immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. (This chicken also freezes well.)
- *You can really use just about any cut of chicken for this recipe. For easy shredding though (so that you don’t have to mess with bones), I recommend boneless chicken breasts or thighs. This should be about 2 lbs of chicken total.
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Hi Ali,
Thank you for this recipe! My husband and I caught the bug that was going around during the Holidays, and neither of us had the energy to cook or even to get food to go. I could manage putting chicken and salsa in the slow cooker, though, and it was good–almost like having someone take care of us, it was that easy!
I’m looking forward to trying more of your recipes!
I am 84 and I love to cook. most recipes come from internet or cooking shows on tv.
I saw your recipe for 2 ingredients meal. only two? That would not taste very good
‘BOY WAS I WRONG’ That ended up as my number breast recipe, by far.
I like to change most recipes but not this one, but only had one breast on hand so added
some pork ribs. Ribs were outstanding.
my rate 10 stars out of 5 stars.
thanks for the idea.
Jerome Darol
If I wanted to make this in the oven instead of slow cooker, what temperature and how long would you reccomend? Thanks!
I love making this. It is so easy and the results are wonderful. For variety, I add a small can of mushrooms and sometimes small black olives. My 99 year old father loves this over mashed potatoes. The second day, I take the left overs and add chicken broth and make soup. I never throw any of this away!
Sounds delicious!
Hello! I’m making this for a party tomorrow and would like to double it (4 lbs chicken) in a large crock pot. Would it still cook for 4-hours or should I increase cook time?
Hello Samantha! How large is your crockpot? We used a 6-qt one for this. Just make sure yours is large enough! If you cook it on high, it will probably take a bit longer than 4 hours, since it’s much more meat. We’d recommend setting the timer for 4 hours, and then checking the internal temp of the chicken afterwards. You want it to be 165 degrees. We hope this helps!
If cooking for four hours, do you use the low or high setting on your crock-pot, and do you use the same setting for the whole cook time?
Hi Moll — if cooking for four hours, you want to use the high setting for the whole cook time. We hope you enjoy!
Excited about making this tonight! This is a dumb question but when you say slow cooker are you referring to a “crock pot”? Lol thanks!
Yes, a crock pot! :) We hope you enjoy!
I used boneless skinless thighs, sliced onion, sweet peppers and mango & lime salsa, salt & pepper
Awesome, we hope you enjoyed it! :)
In the oven:
Preheat to 350°F. Place the chicken breasts in a single layer on the bottom of an 8×8 casserole dish. If you are going to use a packet of taco seasoning, sprinkle it on the breasts, otherwise season with salt and pepper. Then, layer on the salsa (cover the breasts as best you can). Bake for 1 hour or until the internal temperature of the chicken is at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you do not plan to shred the breast, you could sprinkle shredded cheese on top 5 minutes before they’re done cooking.
Hi there,
I loooove this recipe ! I was wondering if I could half it (since it’s only me!) or if I could freeze the rest of the chicken?
Thank you! love your site :)
Hi Sasha! You could do half the recipe if you have a smaller slow cooker (4-qt), or you could just freeze the rest of the chicken if you do the full amount. We hope you enjoy! :)
If you half the recipe and use the 4 quart do you keep the cook time the same?
Who doesn’t just love recipes like this. This is unforgettable, impossible to mess up too! I used a mango peach salsa and threw in an adobe chili pepper… Soo looking forward to eating this tonight!
Thanks, Alicia — we hope you love it, and that mango peach salsa you added sounds amazing! :)