This taco chicken bowls recipe is definitely “slow-cooker 101”. It’s probably one of the first recipes that most people learn to make in their slow cooker. In fact, some version of Slow Cooker Taco Chicken Bowls is probably included in that little mini recipe book that comes with the slow cooker when you buy it. BUT, I had to post it because I know there are probably a lot of you who haven’t made it yet and I can’t bear the thought of you missing out.
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Set it and forget it…
Taco Chicken Bowls are great for bachelors, students, or the chronically busy because it’s a “dump and heat” recipe. All you do is dump all of the ingredients together in a pot, and let it cook.
How to Serve Taco Chicken Bowls
Of course, you’ll need to make the rice separate but even if you’re one of those people who can never get rice right, there is still hope. Just stuff the chicken mixture inside of a tortilla with a little cheese and roll it up for a quick burrito, or fold it over in a tortilla and crisp it up in a skillet like a quesadilla. Presto. Easy, delicious, cheap food.
Taco Chicken Bowls are Freezer Friendly
Oh, also, this taco chicken bowls recipe freezes well. Cheese and all. Then just nuke and stir for a couple minutes until hot. Instant freezer meal!
What Size Slow Cooker to Use
I use a 6 quart Hamilton Beach Slow Cooker and this recipe fills it about halfway. I would suggest using a 4-quart or larger slow cooker.
Okay, one more thing. If you for some strange reason need this taco chicken bowls recipe to be even easier or you don’t have a well-stocked spice cabinet, just substitute a packet of taco seasoning for all of the spices and herbs that I used below.
More Slow Cooker Dinners: Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala, Slow Cooker Italian Chicken and Peppers, Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili, and Slow Cooker Beef Stew.
Taco Chicken Bowls
Servings 6 (1 cup chicken mixture, 1 cup rice, plus toppings)Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breasts ($2.60*)
- 1 16oz. jar salsa ($2.15)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1 15oz. can black beans ($0.69)
- 1/2 lb. frozen corn ($0.73)
- 1 Tbsp chili powder ($0.30)
- 1/2 Tbsp ground cumin ($0.15)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.03)
- Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.03)
- 6 cups cooked rice ($0.60)
- 8 oz. shredded cheddar ($2.59)
- 3 green onions, sliced (or fresh cilantro) ($0.23)
Instructions
- Place the chicken breasts in the bottom of a 5 quart or larger slow cooker. Drain the black beans and add them to the slow cooker along with the salsa and corn. Add 1/4 cup water, plus the minced garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne, some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a pepper mill).
- Give the ingredients a brief stir to distribute the spices. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.
- After 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high, carefully remove the lid of the slow cooker. Stir with a fork to shred the chicken (it should be very tender and will shred easily). Taste the chicken mixture and add salt if needed.
- To build the bowls, place one cup of rice in the bottom of a bowl and top with 1 cup of the shredded chicken mixture. Top with a little cheddar cheese and a sprinkle of sliced green onions.
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Equipment
- Slow Cooker
- Measuring Cups Spoons
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!This is definitely one of my favorite meals to keep in the freezer for busy days!
How to Make Slow Cooker Taco Chicken Bowls – Step by Step Photos
Place two large chicken breasts (about 1.5 lbs.) in the bottom of a slow cooker. I always buy my chicken breasts in large packs on sale, then individually wrap and freeze them for later.
Drain one 15oz. can of black beans and add them to the slow cooker along with a 16oz. jar of salsa and 1/2 pound of frozen corn (no need to thaw the corn first–the small kernels thaw quickly once the slow cooker is turned on. Do not, however, use frozen chicken breasts because they may take too long to come up to a safe temperature in the slow cooker.)
I usually just use a generic salsa for this dish, but I like generic salsa just fine. The type of salsa you use will greatly impact the flavor the of the overall dish, so make sure you use one that you like. This time around I found a “fire roasted” generic salsa, so I got that for a little extra smokey flavor. :)
Add 2 cloves minced garlic, 1 Tbsp chili powder (mild), 1/2 Tbsp cumin, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10-15 cranks of a pepper mill).
Add about 1/4 cup of water to help the ingredients combine when you stir. Briefly stir to distribute the spices.
Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on high for four hours or low for eight hours. This is after 4 hours on high–doesn’t look much different!
BUT by this time the chicken is SO tender that just stirring the mixture will make it fall apart. Stir the pot or use two forks to shred the chicken.
When all the chicken is shredded it’s time to eat! You can taste the mixture and add salt if needed (this will depend on the salt content of your beans and salsa. I didn’t add any this time.)
To build the taco chicken bowls, place one cup of cooked rice in the bottom of a bowl and top it with one cup of the chicken mixture. Sprinkle a little shredded cheddar cheese on top followed by a few sliced green onions. Done! How easy is that?
Or you can eat the Taco Chicken Bowls not as a bowl, but as an actual taco. Just stuff the chicken mixture into a tortilla, top with cheese or sour cream, and you’re good to go!
My husband has been learning how to cook new things from scratch while he’s looking for a new job, (his previous specialties were limited to tacos and sweet & sour meatballs) and he is in love with our slow cooker now as much as I am. :-) I passed this recipe along to him to try when he was asking me what he could do with the chicken in our freezer. He made it last night and it was absolutely delicious! A new simple, yummy meal to add to the rotation.
I’ve made this with dry beans a few times and haven’t had too many problems. Though if I add tomato stuff I add it in last after the beans have softened. I also wash and soak them over night.
I wouldn’t suggest using dry beans and cooking them at the same time with the rest of the ingredients, the whole mixture will turn black. Plus, when you cook dry beans you usually want an excess of liquid, which you later remove. If you want to use beans cooked from dry, cook them separately.
But, I usually use six cups of water per pound, which yields about three cans worth of beans.
How much water would you suggest adding if i were to add dry black beans?
Seriously was awesome. EVERYONE ate it asking for more! We only made a couple of changes. My husband has issue with tomatoes so we commonly blend salsa … very well … so I just added it all blended up, it totally worked. Then we changed out the rice for quinoa. GREAT texture! Hubby said he could eat it 2-4x a week and be happy!
Anon – skipping the cayenne won’t mess up the flavor, it will just be less spicy :) I do find that the type of salsa used makes a big difference. If it’s not a tasty salsa to begin with, the end product won’t be so good. That being said, some of my favorite salsas are generic, so it doesn’t have to be an expensive one :)
I’m making this as we speak but I don’t have cayenne pepper, do you think it will mess the taste up?
Wow!! This is so, so good! I think I’ll be renaming it “magic taco bowls” as we were able to keep eating it for three days! It was even better each time and I especially enjoyed eating it cold. I mixed in fresh chopped tomatoes from our garden, guacamole, greek yogurt and cold (leftover) rice—whoa. Can’t wait to make it again, and I am saying this after eating it three nights in a row =)
I don’t have a slow cooker so I improvised and made this on my stove top. They turned out fantastic so now I have a freezer full of meals for the beginning of the semester!
Wow, thanks! I’ve been having a great time poking around your site and everything looks so yummy. I made this one tonight. I had it for dinner as you suggested, and it was fabulous. I’m having some more as a late night snack, on top of some “scoop” style tortilla chips. Still just as good! I plan to try some in a big burrito wrap a la Chipotle next!
Beth,
Thanks for this recipe. I’ve been a fan of your site for two years now, but recently stopped cooking because of a busy new job. This recipe is what I made after cooking again, and it’s wonderful! It’s cheap, delicious, and feeds me for a week. Thank you so much!
Alex
This is SO good omg. I tried it with beef and added pickled banana peppers/jalapenos… mmm. Thanks Beth!
with a squeeze of lime! Yum!
WARNING: This recipe is almost entirely dependent on the type of salsa you use. Or at least, mine was.
I went with Newman’s Own instead of good ol’ Tostitos brand and regretted it deeply. The recipe was delicious but I could tell my choice of salsa greatly altered the flavor. Lesson learned.
I made cilantro lime rice with this and it was divine! My boyfriend and his three helpings strongly agree. All in all, this is a great recipe and I will be using it again very soon.
Made this yesterday and it was very good. I doubled the beans and corn and used peach salsa. I would highly recommend this recipe. This would be great with other meats as well.