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Weeknight-style Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Avocado Jalapeño Crema. Chicken thighs seasoned up with smoky chipotle peppers and enchilada sauce, then mixed with cheese, stuffed into tortillas, and oven-baked. Each tinga taco is crunchy on the outside, but spicy and cheesy inside. Serve with a creamy, salty, honey-lime avocado crema sauce, and a mix of your favorite toppings. These come together easily and are so delicious. The perfect crispy taco that everyone loves!
It’s definitely no secret that we love Mexican food, especially tacos. Honestly, anything Mexican is a go for my family. Spicy, cheese, lots of flavors, avocado, and cilantro. These are some of our favorite flavors/foods.
I have told the childhood taco story here one too many times, so we’ll skip that today. But if you’re new, basically I grew up on my dad’s crispy, cheesy hard shell tacos.
His were very basic, but to this day my brothers still request them. Hard not to love any kind of taco, you know?
But today we have a chicken tinga tacos recipe, one of my very favorite flavors. If you’re not familiar with Chicken Tinga, it’s a Mexican dish consisting of shredded chicken in a tomato-based chipotle sauce with sliced onions. Like a lot of popular Mexican dishes, it’s pretty simple. The flavors from the chipotle peppers are KEY and what’s most traditional with any Tinga dish.
I’ve done a few variations now, but this is probably the most traditional. Well kind of, I use a shortcut in the sauce to save a little time!
The quick details
They are easy you guys. I want to start out by saying you can make these in either the crockpot, instant pot, or on the stove. We all love options when it comes to dinner, so use whichever method suits you best! They will all give you the same outcome.
For the crockpot, just add all the ingredients for the chicken right into the crockpot. So the onions, chipotle, enchilada sauce, and the seasonings. Let it all slow cook, then shred the meat. Done.
The very same with the instant pot, except the cooking time is much, much shorter (just 8 minutes).
And for the stove-top, there is slightly more involved, but it’s still easy. Just cook the chicken in a skillet until seared. Add the onion, then everything else. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through. Then shred the chicken and that’s that.
For the crispy shells
Instead of using store-bought taco shells, I like to take corn tortillas and stuff them with the chicken tinga and cheese. I throw them into the oven to bake until the tortillas are crispy.
This method is my favorite and I use it every time I make tacos for my family. We love the crispy oven “fried” shells and melty cheese. It’s the best when some of the cheese melts out onto the pan and gets crispy too. Delicious.
And finally the crema
Do you all remember the creamy jalapeño sauce I made with my Cuban quesadillas? Well, that sauce uses pickled jalapeños. Ever since making those I’ve been using pickled jalapeños in everything.
For this crema, I whipped avocado in a food processor with the jalapeños and lots of cilantro. I added garlic and a little honey to balance the heat, and then some fresh lime juice and sea salt.
It is so creamy, and the pickled jalapeños give the best taste. Spicy, but not SPICY. Serve up the crema on each taco, then add whatever other toppings you love most. I always recommend a pineapple salsa or mango salsa. I love a good fruity salsa.
Looking for more simple, Mexican recipes? Here are a few favorites:
Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tortilla Soup with Salty Lime Chips
Cauliflower Al Pastor Quesadillas with Lime Smashed Avocado
Mushroom Al Pastor Tacos with Garlic Lime Special Sauce
Healthier Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme
Crispy Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch
Lastly, if you make these Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Avocado Jalapeño Crema, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Jalapeño Avocado Crema
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 517 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 3/4 cup red enchilada sauce
- 2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 12-16 corn tortillas, warmed
- 1/2 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
- 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- shredded lettuce and pickled onions, for serving
Crema
- 2 large avocados, halved
- 1/4-1/2 cup pickled jalapeños
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
- 1-2 teaspoons honey
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 2 limes (juice from)
- flaky salt
Instructions
Crockpot
- 1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the chicken, onion, enchilada sauce, chipotle, oregano, cumin, and salt. Cover and cook on LOW for 4-5 hours or on HIGH for 2-3 hours.2. When finished cooking, shred the meat and toss with the sauce. Preheat the oven to 425° F.3. Warm the tortillas for 30 seconds to 1 minute in the microwave, until pliable. On a baking sheet, rub the tortillas with olive oil. Lay each tortilla flat and then layer evenly with cheese and chicken. Fold the other half of the tortilla over the filling, gently pushing to adhere (see above photo). Transfer to the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp. 4. Meanwhile, make the Avocado Crema. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt.5. Serve the tacos topped with avocado, lettuce, limes, and any other desired toppings.
Instant Pot
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F.2. In the bowl of your instant pot, combine the chicken, onion, enchilada sauce, chipotle, oregano, cumin, and salt. Seal the lid and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Once done cooking, release the steam. 3. Follow the directions as directed above for steps 2-5.
Stove-top
- 1. Preheat the oven to 425° F.2. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. When the oil shimmers, add the chicken. Cook until 2-3 minutes, then flip and add the onion. Cook another 3-5 minutes, until fragrant. Add the enchilada sauce, chipotle, oregano, cumin, and salt, and 1/3 cup water. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce has thickened and the chicken cooked through, about 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat.3. Warm the tortillas for 30 seconds to 1 minute in the microwave, until pliable. On a baking sheet, rub the tortillas with olive oil. Lay each flat and then layer evenly with cheese and chicken. Fold the other half of the tortilla over the filling, gently pushing to adhere (see above photo). Transfer to the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes, then flip and cook another 5 minutes more, or until the cheese has melted and the tortillas are crisp. 4. Meanwhile, make the Avocado Crema. Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy. Season with salt.5. Serve the tacos topped with avocado, lettuce, limes, and any other desired toppings.
I have made these several times and they are delicious! (I use the crockpot.) I am making them again this week so I came over to the site to make sure I have all the ingredients.
My husband got your new cookbook for me for Christmas and I LOVE it!! I make at least one of your recipes every week.
Hey Monica,
Thanks for making this recipe so often, love to hear it is always enjoyed. Awww, so glad you are enjoying the cookbook:) Happy New Year!!🎆 xxT
We love this recipe at my house! I use mini tortillas and add some refried beans…my toddler loves them.
Do you think these would freeze well? I’m building up a stock of freezer meals for after I give birth, and it seems like these would be easy to make ahead and pop into the air fryer as needed. What do you think?
Hi Allison,
Love to hear this recipe is always enjoyed by your family! Sure, I bet that would work nicely for you! Congrats on your new addition:) xx
I love these and have made them twice but how in the world do you keep the tortillas from splitting!!? I’ve tried 2 different brands and it’s happened both times. I warm them up, don’t overfill them and rub them with olive oil. They’re still awesome but frustrated by the splitting
Hi Alyssa,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Sorry about the splitting! I like to use Whole Foods 365 brand tortillas and usually have success with those, but splitting can happen:) xT
I don’t have a microwave is there another way to warm up the tortillas?
Hi Frances,
Yes, you can warm on low in the oven. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Warm them with a wet paper towel on top 🙂
What if the crema is too thick!? (Love this recipe btw!)
Thanks so much, Adrienne!! To thin the crema you can add some cold water or more lime juice. I hope this helps! xT
Made this for dinner and it was DELISH!! Hubby loved it too making sure to tell me to add it to our rotation haha.
Hey Aly,
Awesome! Thanks so much for trying this recipe and your comment! Love to hear that it was enjoyed! Have a great weekend! xT
Have this ever been substituted with a chuck roast instead of chicken?
Hi Sabryna,
I have not, but I bet that would work well for you! You might like this recipe:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/chipotle-pot-roast-tacos/
I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I can’t stop making these. The chicken tinga recipe is so good!
Hi Nina,
Happy 4th of July! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it was enjoyed! xx
Love this, first time was salty to me, but didn’t stop me from enjoying them! I just adjust the salt from now on; also could be dependent on the enchilada sauce I buy. I didn’t love the crema, but unfortunately I don’t like cilantro or cumin, so I omit those things and still love this recipe. They never come out as pretty and put together as hers, maybe with practice haha.
Hey Alexis,
Love to hear this! Thanks so much for trying this dish and your feedback! So glad it was enjoyed:) x