Chicken Tinga Tacos with Cilantro Ranch Slaw

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by Charlotte Hancey

I have a delicious new recipe for y’all that is going to spice up your Taco Tuesdays! Chicken Tinga is a Mexican dish made with shredded chicken in a sauce made mostly from tomatoes and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. It is my new favorite chicken taco recipe for sure! It is slightly spicy but I am a wimp with spice and love it. My girls who are even bigger wimps loved it! The slaw is super flavorful and cools off the spice of the chicken perfectly. The dressing that goes on it is SO good that we use it as a dip. Like, just give me a straw! It is THAT good! Make sure to check the notes below for tips on using up the extra meat and dressing because this makes a lot! If you need to feed a crowd, this will be a sure winner! (Sponsored post for Lee’s Marketplace)

*Items on sale at Lee’s Marketplace from July 16-22: chicken breasts, Hidden Valley dressing mix, mayonnaise, limes, chipotle peppers, onions, cumin (Badia brand), tortillas, black pepper

Chicken Tinga Tacos with Cilantro Ranch Slaw

  • Servings: 8+
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

For the chicken:
4-5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon oregano
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 (14 oz each) cans fire roasted diced tomatoes
1-2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
½ large yellow onion, cut into large chunks
5 large cloves garlic

For the slaw:
1 bag (14 oz) classic coleslaw
1 packet Hidden Vallen Ranch Dressing mix
1 cup mayonnaise (light is ok)
½ cup buttermilk
1 bunch fresh cilantro
½ large jalapeno, seeded
2 tomatillos, husked and cut into fourths
1 large clove garlic
1 lime, juiced

For serving:
Flour or corn tortillas
Avocado slices

Directions

Place chicken breasts in slow cooker. Sprinkle garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper on top. In a food processor or blender, add tomatoes, chipotle peppers, onion, and garlic. Blend until smooth. Pour over chicken and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Add back to sauce and stir to combine. Keep warm.

In a food processor or blender, add ranch dressing mix, mayo, buttermilk, cilantro, jalapeno, tomatillos, garlic and lime juice. Blend until smooth. Add coleslaw mix to a medium-sized bowl then add 1 cup of the dressing. Toss to combine. Reserve extra dressing.
Place chicken in tortillas and top with slaw. Optional: garnish with avocado, cilantro, and/or extra dressing.

***Note: This makes A LOT of chicken but I prefer to make a large amount of taco meat and freeze the leftovers. Cook once eat twice (or more)! Also, the dressing makes a lot too, so if you are feeding a crowd, use 2-3 bags of slaw mix and you’ll use all of the dressing. All of the meat could feed at least 12 people.

Published by

Charlotte Hancey

4 thoughts on “Chicken Tinga Tacos with Cilantro Ranch Slaw”

  1. This recipe is SO good! My hubby ate 5 tacos and I ate 3. 😳 My 9-year old actually tried the slaw because the dressing was so tasty (he doesn’t do any raw vegetables of any kind for any reason). The slaw dressing would be good on a flip-flop. I live in Texas, so I eat a lot and make a lot of Tex-Mex dishes. This one takes the cake!

      1. Everyone needs to make these tacos. They are so easy to make and so yummy! The sauce for the coleslaw is so good and great to dip tortilla chips in. I don’t do very spicy foods and this wasn’t bad at all. I will definitely be making this again!

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