This slightly spicy Shredded Mexican Chicken is a great recipe to include in your weekly meal prep routine. It comes together in 30 minutes and makes a delicious filling for tacos, quesadillas, burritos and much more!
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Who else loves Mexican food?! It's such an easy option when it comes to meal prep and adding this shredded chicken to your weekly meal prep routine gives you tons of options for later in the week.
This one-pot recipe comes together in 30 minutes, most of which is cooking time so you can easily make this recipe any day of the week.
Contents:
Why you’ll love this recipe
I love this recipe because it's a one-pot deal! Once the chicken is cooked you just get rid of the liquid and put the shredded chicken back in the pot to mix the seasonings. Limited cleanup...who doesn't like that?!
The combination of spices creates a fantastic flavor for this chicken. make this chicken super flavorful. This is definitely a great base for many easy weeknight meals!
This is the perfect recipe to add to your meal prep recipe collection. Read on to learn more about how to make this Pulled Mexican Chicken, or jump straight to the recipe to start cooking!
Recipe Ingredients
This recipe only uses a couple of ingredients, making it easy to throw together at any time. Here's what you'll need:
Boneless, skinless chicken breast: I generally make a pound of this at a time, however, if you are feeding a large crowd you can double the recipe. You'll just need a rather large Dutch oven to accommodate two pounds of chicken.
Beer: You'll need 12 ounces of beer. Ideally an amber ale but you can use your favorite type. Just like when you are cooking with wine, use a beer that you would drink.
Chicken broth: Low-sodium chicken broth is the best option for this recipe.
Lime juice: I prefer to use fresh lime juice, but if necessary you could substitute bottled lime juice. You'll need about a tablespoon, so one lime is enough.
Onion: I generally cook with yellow onions, regular, not sweet onions. You could substitute a white onion if that's what you happen to have.
Spices: ground chipotle pepper, dried cilantro, ground cumin, ground black pepper, sea salt
Pantry staples: chicken broth, garlic clove
Simple step-by-step instructions
Pulling this recipe together is a breeze. Really all it takes is cooking the chicken, shredding it, and adding some seasonings.
Step 1 | Cook the chicken. Put the sliced onions in the Dutch oven and then place the chicken breasts on top. Pour in the beer and chicken broth. You'll want to ensure the chicken is covered with liquid, so if you are using a really large Dutch oven or the chicken breasts are thick, it may be necessary to add a bit more chicken broth.
Step 2 | Shred and season the chicken. Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pan and discard the remaining liquid, onions and garlic. Shred the chicken using two forks and then return the shredded chicken to the pan. Add the rest of the seasonings and mix well.
Meal prep tip: I often make this chicken at the beginning of the week to have something on hand for quick dinners or lunches. It will keep in the refrigerator for about 4 days. You can also freeze it in a zip-top freezer bag.
Variations
- Make it spicier. Add some additional ground chipotle to your preferred level of heat.
- Make it saucy. Stir in some salsa if you want something with a bit more sauce. You can still use the saucier version in just about any Mexican dish or eat it as a meal on its own.
- Make it cheesy: If you want a really simple meal, stir in some grated cheddar or a shredded Mexican cheese blend. Then you can just add some rice and you've got a super quick meal.
Frequently asked questions
While you can shred any type of chicken, I think chicken breasts are the best and easiest option when you are making shredded chicken.
Shredded chicken is great for weekly meal prep. It stores well in both the refrigerator and freezer. For the refrigerator, store it in an airtight container for 3-4 days. For the freezer, store in a ziptop freezer bag for up to 2 months.
Recommended tools
Dutch oven – A good Dutch oven is really a necessity in every kitchen. A 4 ½ to 5 ½ quart size is an excellent place to start for most home cooks. My personal preference is Le Creuset as I like the coated cast iron, however, there are many great brands of Dutch ovens.
Serving Suggestions
This shredded Mexican Chicken is super versatile! Here are a few ideas for using it:
- This Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl is one of my favorite weekday lunch ideas. Pretty much everything that goes into it, including this chicken, can be made ahead of time.
- These Baked Chicken Flautas are a somewhat healthier version of one of my favorite Mexican dishes.
- Grab some tortillas and your favorite toppings to make tacos or quesadillas with this chicken as a base.
- If you want to be super simple you could just serve it on top of this Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice.
More chicken recipes
Love chicken? Check out these reader-favorite recipes:
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Spicy Shredded Mexican Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast
- 2 smashed garlic cloves
- ¾ cup yellow onion, vertically sliced
- 12 ounces beer
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon dried cilantro
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground chipotle pepper
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Cook the chicken. Place chicken through sea salt in a medium dutch oven; bring to a boil. Cover and lower heat to simmer. Cook 20 minutes, until chicken is tender. Remove from pan and let cool slightly. Discard remaining broth etc from boiling.
- Shred and season the chicken. Use two forks to shred the chicken and return to pan. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Cover and keep warm if using immediately or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for later use.
This post was originally published in March 2015 and updated in September 2023 with some new information. No changes have been made to the original recipe.
Emma @ Supper in the Suburbs
You had me at "hips and guacamole with a nice pomegranate margarita" but this exMEmmaican chicken really does look fab. I could see it used in enchilladas, tacos, qusadillas, fajittas...the possibilities are endless 🙂
Tracy | Baking Mischief
I have a ton of Mexican recipes that use pre-cooked chicken, but I've never tried making that chicken with beer. This is such a good idea. I bet the chicken comes out so moist and delicious. Pinning!
Lisa @ garlicandzest.com
This is a great idea! There's so much you can do with it!
Tara@SimpleFood365
What a great flavor combination! This would be great for so many meals. 🙂
Barb
This was fabulous, my hubby & son are excellent cooks and they really loved this. They were surprised because I sometimes make delicious food and other times not so much. I saved this recipe because I will definitely make it again.
Kathryn Rudey
Hi Barb -
So glad to hear you all enjoyed it!
Tasha
Your recipe doesn’t say anything for instructions. “Place chicken through sea salt and boil?” Where’s all the ingredients? Is this a bad AI or typo?
Kathryn Rudey
Hi Tasha. I'm sorry you did not understand the instructions. They say to add the chicken through sea salt, meaning the first six ingredients - chicken, garlic cloves, onion, chicken broth, beer and sea salt - to a dutch oven and then bring to a boil. The remaining ingredients listed in the recipe card are used in step two. I don't use AI to write my recipes.