All the flavor of a Chicken Enchilada but with the ease of a Crock Pot and wrapped in a taco. These Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos are our new favorite taco night dinner!
It has been a brutal winter. Between my job and kids in daycare, it feels like I'm always battling something. So when I was finally feeling normal enough again for real food, I (and the baby) wanted it all. Enchiladas. Tacos. Cheese. Chicken. Being the hungry preggo I am, made it all: Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos to the rescue!
This recipe is seriously SO easy, thanks to our trusty Crock Pot! It has all of the flavors we love of Chicken Enchiladas, but then wrapped up in a delightful taco!
Ingredients Needed
For the Chicken, it couldn't get much easier.
- Chicken - We prefer boneless chicken breasts, but you could also use boneless thighs, too!
- Enchilada Sauce - Have you made your own from scratch, yet?
- Cilantro - Fresh is best!
- Black Olives - Sliced.
- Cheddar Cheese - Shredded sharp or mild.
And done! Then it's just what you need for your favorite Tacos!
- Corn or Flour Tortillas - Have you made your own from scratch yet?
- Fresh Pico de Gallo From Scratch
- Fresh Spinach Guacamole
Tip: Make a big batch of Enchilada Sauce and freeze it, so when you're ready for some of these tacos, you can just pull the sauce out of the freezer.
Step-by-Step Instructions
One of the best parts of this recipe, it is SO easy to make.
First step: Add the salted chicken, enchilada sauce, and cilantro to a Crock Pot / slow cooker and let cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hrs on low.
Truly, is there anything better than a meal that you can just set it and forget it! Plus it'll make your house smell amazing when we got home after coming home from work!
Tip: One of my favorite parts of this recipe is that this is a Crock Pot meal that you don't have to worry about it drying out because of the enchilada sauce, so if it's in there for longer like 10 hours, no problem. It will still be delicious!
Second Step: Shred the chicken breasts in the enchilada sauce and then top it with the cheddar cheese, sliced black olives, and let cook for another 10-20 minutes on low in the Crock Pot to melt and boom, done!
All the deliciousness of chicken enchiladas, ready for some tacos!
Serve It With
- Homemade Corn Tortillas
- Homemade Flour Tortillas
- Fresh Pico de Gallo
- Fresh Spinach Guacamole
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Mexican Corn Ribs
Not in the mood for tacos? (Not sure how that's ever a thing!) We also love to serve this over salads or with a side of rice and beans.
It's also great to feed a crowd and as the protein for a taco bar party!
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos!
Ingredients
- 4 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts 2-3 lbs
- 2 cups Enchilada Sauce
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, minced
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt to season the chicken
- 12 oz sliced black olives
- 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (mild or sharp)
- more fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Add chicken breasts to the Crock Pot and season with salt. Pour over you Homemade (or favorite) Enchilada Sauce. Cook on low for 6-8 hrs or high for 3-4 hrs.
- Shred chicken and mix well with sauce in Crock Pot. Sprinkle in 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese and 1/2 the olives and mix. Top with the remaining cheddar cheese and olives. Turn Crock Pot to high and cook for another 10-20 minutes or until the cheese is all melted. Top with fresh cilantro.
- Serve with your favorite taco shell and toppings. Or over salads or rice!
Very good but very messy for tacos. I used nearly 3 pounds of chicken and a little less than 2 cups of enchilada sauce. The plan for our party tonight was these tacos. Disaster. So runny & messy. Thank goodness for leftovers. I will add cream cheese to the chicken sauce and layer over corn tortillas tomorrow for lunch. Next time I will use less enchilada sauce.
How many does this recipe serve?
Hi Lisa! It's made with 4 chicken breasts so usually it'll make at least 8-10 good sized tacos, maybe more dependent upon the size of the chicken.
Very mouth watering. I used too much enchilada sauce because we put it in a taco shell, and it was extremely messy, but wonderful flavor. I also had a helping w/o the taco shell. Tasted great. We topped it with tomatoes avocados and sour cream for me and hot sauce for my husband. Thanks, will use it again.
So glad you liked it!! I love it on salads, too!
All looks great, but I need to know how much sugar and carb are in thess recipes.
I am a diabete so I need to know the nutrition is in these great recipes thank you!!
It's recipes like these that make me realize that I need to use my crockpot more often! What a fantastic and flavorful dinner, and a great way to combine two of my favorites (tacos and enchiladas) into one. I'm always looking for convenient ways to cook chicken with a busy schedule and this is definitely going into our rotation!
WOW!! Do I ever like enchiladas, especially using chicken. But doing it in the crockpot is such a time saver plus the whole bit of cleaning up. This would be a great recipe to make ahead and have for a gathering.
Nothing beats a great comforting crock pot meal! I tried this and used your homemade enchilada sauce.... ...wowzers! I will never buy store-bought again, it made such a crazy difference on the flavor. The chicken was so tender and Im looking forward to having the leftovers today!
I really love my slow cooker. It's nothing fancy but it makes life so much easier. Your recipe is right up my alley, saving this to make this week. We love enchiladas and yours sounds easy and healthy. Thanks for sharing this recipe, this is going to make my life easier and for that I am thankful!
I love these crockpot enchiladas! I mean, slow cookers are basically made to cook up meat in sauce for shredding and this is a great rendition. I'm glad you're feeling better and that you and the baby got to enjoy some yummy Mexican food. 🙂 Sadly no cilantro for me though. No one else in the house will eat it.
That sucks so much! I've been on that boiled chicken, yogurt, bland diet before and it's so awful. After a couple of days, it's pure torture watching TV and people eat. This is certainly the best "I can eat real food again" meal, it looks delicious!
This is my kind of meal - almost no prep and tons of delicious flavour! I am super impressed by you making homemade and from-scratch sauce while pregnant. I was so sick the whole pregnancy I survived pretty much on subway sandwiches and bread. It was brutal. And yes, cilantro makes everything tastes better (if only my husband liked cilantro)
Oh goodness you poor mama! I cannot believe the winter you had... AND being pregnant! Phew. Glad you are on the up and up now.
This recipe looks absolutely amazing. It combines three of my favorites..chicken, tacos, and enchiladas. I will definitely be making this. Thanks!
This winter was BRUTAL. I don't work in a hospital, but I do work in a school, and wow-- so many germs!! I'm thankful for sunshine and spring. And this crockpot meal looks SO EASY- I love tacos and enchiladas!
This sounds DELICIOUS. We love Mexican food here, and serve it often. This is perfect to feed a crowd at a party, birthday or any get together. If you can cook it in the slow cooker even better. LOVE LOVE this...and we will be trying it for a family dinner soon. It will be perfect with the homemade tortillas.
This is amazing. My whole family loves it and my daughter asked if we could eat it every day haha. It will definitely be on the weekly roster for sure
I need to bring my slow cooker back up from the basement! This is perfect for the weekend - I haven't had chicken enchiladas in so long! Love that it can be made in the slow cooker so I don't have to actively cook it!
Seriously enchilada as a taco with all these delicious flavors will send me in heaven! I must try your recipe a.s.a.p., the family will just love it! Will add all the goodies!
I don't have a crockpot but I keep seeing recipes with it everywhere! Maybe it's time I get my hands on one, especially if it helps making dishes that look and sound as delicious as this one.. I looooove a good taco, I could eat this everyday!
As a native Texan living in New Jersey....you had me at Enchilada. Throw in Crock Pot, and you had me hook and sinker. And your homemade enchilada sauce looks divine. I can only imagine how tender and flavorful the chicken is. My husband and I can hardly wait to give this recipe a go. I'm pretty sure this will stay in the rotation. Thanks for the awesome recipe and helping my homesick cravings for good (and not-too-difficult) Tex-Mex!
I haven't been a preggo in a LONG time, but I totally remember the hunger pangs that all but demanded a buffet table's worth of food. Your easy enchiladas would be just the thing for that kind of "hungry". Since my husband is a big fan of anything Mexican-inspired, I can't wait to serve this to him this week -- with all his favorite condiments! Thank you for the dinner inspiration!