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shredded chicken tacos recipe

Easy Shredded Chicken Tacos Recipe with Green Salsa

This shredded chicken tacos recipe is nutritious and super delicious! Both the chicken and salsa are easily cooked on the stove and ready in 30 minutes! Plus this recipe has a secret trick using the leftover chicken juice so that nothing goes to waste!
Prep Time:10 minutes
Cook Time:30 minutes
Total Time:40 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: shredded chicken tacos recipe
Servings: 4

Ingredients

Shredded Chicken

  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 cup water can be adjusted depending on pan being used
  • half an onion cut into thirds
  • salt

Green Salsa

  • 7 tomatillos husks peeled
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 2 large jalapenos
  • 1 cup water
  • half an onion cut into thirds
  • ¼ cup cilantro
  • salt

Tacos Garnish

  • 1 pack corn tortillas
  • chopped cilantro
  • diced onion
  • sliced avocado
  • lime wedges

Instructions

Shredded Chicken

  • In a medium size sauce pan, put the chicken breast, garlic, onion, cup of water, and salt to taste. Cover and boil over medium heat for 30 minutes, or until chicken is cooked. Note: The cup of water can be adjusted depending on size of pan. Ensure the chicken breast is submerged in the water.
  • Once the chicken is cooked, remove the chicken and some of the garlic to a large bowl. Shred the chicken with the garlic while hot using two forks. See note below.

Green Salsa

  • In another medium size stock pan, put the tomatillos, garlic cloves, onion, jalapenos, cup of water, and salt to taste. Cover and boil over medium heat for 20 minutes.
  • Once the ingredients for the salsa is done boiling, remove the stems from the jalapenos and tomatillos. See note below.
  • Transfer the boiled ingredients to a blender with a ladle. Try not to get too much of the water when transferring. Add the cilantro and salt to taste and blend until smooth.
  • Bring the salsa to room temperature before serving.

Assemble the Tacos

  • In a griddle, heat the corn tortillas. For added flavor, drizzle some olive oil on the griddle prior to adding the corn tortillas.
  • Add the shredded chicken, diced onion, chopped cilantro, and sliced avocado to the tortilla. Top with a drizzle of the green salsa and a squirt of the lime juice. Enjoy!

Notes

  1. Don't throw away the leftover chicken juice from the pot! The chicken juice can be saved to be used on rice or to flavor vegetables. See Sam’s Pro Tips for this Shredded Chicken Tacos Recipe for further discussion.
  2. After the ingredients for the salsa is done boiling, I use a ladle to transfer the jalapenos and the tomatillos to a cutting board so that I can cut the stems off. Do this step one by one, so you can preserve the juice without getting most of it on your cutting board.