Kick up your Taco Tuesday recipe game with these fiery and deeply flavorful Chipotle Chicken Tacos! This easy recipe is fast, filling, and perfect for meal prep. It’s also a breeze to scale up, and you can even make it a little heartier by serving it with sides of Tomato Rice and Quick Seasoned Black Beans. Plus, it’s only a little over a dollar per serving. I’m telling you, this one is clutch!
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What Are Chipotle Chicken Tacos?
The base of this easy taco recipe is pulled chicken that’s been cooked in a fiery chipotle adobo sauce. A chipotle is a jalapeno pepper that’s smoked and dried. It has deep, earthy flavors and a bit of kick. When you buy chipotles in adobo, the adobo refers to the vinegary sauce the chiles are rehydrated in.
While you can eat Chipotle Chicken Tacos as is, I pair them with Pineapple Salsa, which cuts beautifully through the fattiness of the chicken. Keep in mind that you can use this chicken for more than just tacos! Mix pulled Chipotle Chicken into soups, rice, salads, and wraps. Use it as a topping for Nachos or Pizzas. There’s so much you can do with it.
Ingredients For Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Here’s what you’ll need to make Chipotle Chicken Tacos:
- Chicken Thighs: Thighs are the cut of chicken we’re working with because they’re flavorful, fatty, and forgiving. Chicken breasts are more expensive, but they will still work here. I like to add a tablespoon of butter to the mix if I’m working with white meat to help keep it from drying out.
- Garlic and Onion: Aromatics help scent and flavor our chicken. Substitute the garlic with ½ teaspoon of garlic powder and the onion with 1 tablespoon of onion powder or 3 tablespoons of onion flakes.
- Bay Leaf: Adds depth to our braising broth, but feel free to skip it if you don’t have any.
- Chipotles in Adobo: Add a spicy kick and deep smoky flavors to the sauce. If you want something with less kick, sub with our Enchilada Sauce recipe.
- Corn tortillas: Are the base of our taco and hold everything together. Feel free to sub with flour tortillas or even pitas!
- Pineapple Salsa: This tangy, fresh, and slightly sweet salsa pairs beautifully with the smoky and spicy flavors of the saucy chipotle chicken, as well as adding color and texture to the taco.
How To Serve Chipotle Chicken Tacos
This recipe is one of my favorites for a family-style taco night. I load the table with a platter of warm tortillas, a big bowl of pulled chipotle chicken and smaller plates loaded with garnishes like fresh cilantro, radish slices, Sour Cream, Guacamole, and Pineapple Salsa! You can also serve Pico De Gallo or Cowboy Caviar. Make this an even heftier meal with Tomato Rice and Quick Seasoned Black Beans.
How To Store Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Store pulled chicken in an airtight container for up to three days. You can freeze the chicken in an airtight container with a sheet of parchment or plastic directly on the surface of the chicken for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating in a microwave or a pan set over medium heat until steaming.
Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Servings 12 tacosIngredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs ($4.44)
- 4 cloves garlic, divided ($0.32)
- 1 yellow onion, divided ($0.33)
- 1 bay leaf ($0.10)
- 4 peppercorns* ($0.01)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.05)
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.16)
- 2 oz. chipotle peppers in adobo** ($0.49)
- 12 5-inch corn tortillas ($0.72)
Pineapple Salsa (optional)
- 2 cups chopped pineapple (fresh or frozen) ($0.75)
- 1/4 red onion, chopped ($0.17)
- 1 jalapeño ($0.11)
- 1 lime ($0.59)
- 1/4 bunch cilantro (about ¼ cup) ($0.35)
- 1 tsp salt (or to taste) ($0.05)
Instructions
- Add the chicken thighs, 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 of the onion, bay leaf, peppercorns, and salt to a pan, then add water to cover (about 4 cups). Place the pan over medium heat. Cover it, and cook for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is at an internal temperature of 160°F and fork tender.
- Remove the chicken thighs from the broth. Reserve the broth. Shred the chicken with two forks.
- Add oil to a saucepan on medium heat. Dice the remaining ½ onion and add it to the pan. Mince the remaining 2 cloves of garlic and add to the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes, until the onions steam and the garlic is fragrant.
- Once the onions and garlic are fragrant, chop the chipotles in their sauce and add them to the pan. Stir well to incorporate. Then add the pulled chicken and 1/4 cup of the reserved broth. Combine thoroughly and taste. For more heat, mix in more adobo sauce. For saucy pulled chicken, add a touch more of the broth and stir. Once the sauce has thickened to a velvety consistency, take the chicken off the heat.
- To make the pineapple salsa, finely chop the pineapple, onion, jalapeño, and cilantro. Combine the chopped pineapple, onion, juice of one lime, cilantro, and salt to taste.
- Assemble the tacos. Add 1/4 cup of pulled chicken to a corn tortilla and top with pineapple salsa. Serve these babies up and enjoy a weeknight win!
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!
How to Make Chipotle Chicken Tacos – Step by Step Photos
Add 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs, 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 of a yellow onion, 1 bay leaf, 4 peppercorns, and 1 teaspoon salt to a pan and add water to cover (about 4 cups). Place the pan over medium heat. Cover it, and cook for 20 minutes, or until the chicken is at an internal temperature of 160°F and fork tender.
Remove the chicken thighs from the broth. Reserve the broth. Shred the chicken with two forks.
Add oil to a saucepan on medium heat. Dice the remaining half onion and add it to the pan. Mince the remaining 2 cloves of garlic and add to the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes, until the onions steam and the garlic is fragrant.
Once the onions and garlic are fragrant, chop 2 ounces of chipotles in their sauce and add them to the pan. Stir well to incorporate.
Then add the pulled chicken and 1/4 cup of the reserved broth to the skillet. Combine thoroughly and taste. For more heat, mix in more adobo sauce. For saucy pulled chicken, add a touch more of the broth and stir.
Once the sauce has thickened to a velvety consistency, take the chicken off the heat.
This was amazing! So simple! My kiddo inhaled this! Will do again but next time will blend the chipotles and dice the pineapple finer to get more saucey as the author suggested. Maybe add some crema!
I don’t know what’s up the the reviews… I really liked it. I wish I would have added more juice from the Chipotle can though, didn’t think about that. The pineapple salsa was such a good balance for the heat. I served it with cilantro lime rice.
Also FYI, it looks like a few steps are missing from the photo steps.
Made this tonight. 2oz of peppers for 4 thighs was minimal flavor. Came out pretty bland for me. I needed hot sauce, so maybe I’ll double or triple the chipotle quantity for next time.
Just made this yesterday, so good! I made the tomato rice and quick seasoned black beans to go with it, though I subbed out pinto beans for black beans…something about the black bean juice just freaks me out. I like spicy, so I used the whole 7oz can of chipotles in adobo and it turned out great. Another banger from BudgetBytes!
Really didn’t care for this. I thought the pineapple overpowered everything else.
The salsa AND the taco meat were awesome! Together, the flavors were dynamite! My kids thought they were too spicy, so I’ll modify a portion of the meat for them for next time, but there will DEFINITELY be a next time! Thanks for this one; fruit salsa… who knew?!?
So delicious. I used the whole 7oz can of chipotle peppers for extra spicy tacos. I’ll definitely be making this again.
yummm this looks delicious! How do you heat up your corn tortillas?
I like to do it in a really hot skillet, just a few seconds on each side, until they get a few brown spots.
Looks yummy! At what point would you add a tablespoon of butter? (If using chicken breasts)
I would add it into the sauce when you add the pulled chicken back to the pan.