Chicken Tinga Tacos are one of the most flavor packed and delicious chicken tacos! Tender chicken simmered in an irresistible smokey tomato sauce, topped with red onions, cotija cheese, and cilantro. These are the perfect Taco Tuesday meal!

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Chicken Tinga Tacos Recipe
We are huge fans of tacos! Everything from the tortillas, to the flavor packed proteins, and all of the irresistible toppings are simply the best. We love a good Taco Tuesday dinner but we can really have tacos every day of the week we love them that much.
What are Chicken Tinga Tacos?
Chicken Tinga is a traditional Mexican shredded chicken in a tomato based sauce. The sauce is packed with flavor from chipotle peppers in adobo, onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and chili flakes. The chicken is simmered stove top with lots of seasonings and then shredded. Traditionally served with cotija cheese, red onions, and cilantro they are some of the most delicious tacos you will ever have!
What to Serve with Chicken Tinga Tacos
- Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad
- Cilantro Lime Rice (Chipotle Copycat)
- Black Beans (Chipotle Copycat)
- Corn Salsa (Chipotle Copycat)
What is in Chicken Tinga Tacos?
- Chicken Breast - boneless skinless chicken breast is simmered stove top in a savory broth and then shredded into bite sized pieces. You can use bone in chicken breast and adjust the cooking time accordingly and then shred the chicken.
- Tomatoes - the sauce is tomato based and you can use any variety of fresh tomato. You can use canned tomatoes but I do recommend fresh tomatoes.
- Onion & Garlic - cooked in the sauce.
- Chipotle Peppers in Adobo - these flavor packed peppers add a rich smokey flavor to the sauce and also a bit of spice!
- Spices - cumin, Mexican Oregano (or oregano), chili powder, chili flakes, and salt
- Tortillas (not pictured) - you can use flour or corn tortillas to serve your tacos
How to Make Chicken Tinga Tacos
Full Printable Recipe at Bottom of Page
Prepare the Chicken Tinga
- Cut the tomatoes into large wedges and place in a blender.
- In a large pot add the chicken, onion, chipotle peppers in adobo, garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, chili powder and chili flakes. Add enough water to cover the chicken (about 2-3 cups). On medium heat bring the pot to a boil.
- Use a spoon or skimmer to remove and fat that cooks out of the chicken. Simmer for about 13-15 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside on a cutting board or in a bowl.
- Transfer 2 cups of the broth from the pot to the blender.
- Use a slotted spoon or strainer to remove all of the onions, garlic, and chipotle peppers in adobo from the broth and add them to the blender.
- Purée the sauce until smooth.
- Use two forks to shred the chicken into bite sized pieces and transfer to a large skillet or frying pan. Pour the tomato sauce over the chicken and bring to a simmer on medium heat.
- Simmer the chicken and sauce for about 8-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and reduced. Season to taste with salt.
Serve the Tacos
- To serve the tacos, heat up the flour or corn tortillas according to package directions.
- Serve the tacos with a platter of toppings including diced red onion, crumbled cotija or feta cheese, and chopped cilantro. Serve and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Chicken Tinga Tacos
- Chicken – for the quickest recipe to make the chicken tinga use boneless skinless chicken breast. It will cook quicker than bone in. If you would like to use bone in chicken breast adjust the cooking time accordingly and be sure to remove all skin and bones when shredding the chicken.
- Toppings - this recipe includes the most common toppings but you can get creative and use any toppings you like. For example, avocado, sliced jalapenos, hot sauce, black olives, hot peppers, and more. Use your favorite toppings and setup a topping station and have your guests assemble their own tostada!
- More Ways to Serve - if you have leftover chicken tinga you can serve it as tostadas, in a burrito, or as a burrito rice bowl. The chicken is so flavorful and can be served a variety of ways. It's also great as a topping for nachos!
FAQs Chicken Tinga Tacos
To reheat, microwave the chicken for 1-2 minute and then assemble the tacos.
We recommend only assembling the tacos as you eat them. Assembled tacos do not store well in the fridge as the chicken needs to be reheated but the toppings are not microwave friendly. The taco shell will also become slightly soggy if they are assembled and stored in the fridge.
You can prepare the chicken tinga and all of the toppings ahead of time and store them in the fridge in separate containers. Just before serving reheat the chicken then serve and assemble your tacos.
Yes! These are a high protein meal, for the healthiest recipe use corn tortillas which are lower in calorie than flour tortillas.
For a gluten free recipe ensure to use corn tortillas or gluten free flour tortillas.
Looking for More Taco Recipes?
Enjoy!
- Sab
Chicken Tinga Tacos
Ingredients
Chicken Tinga
- 8 tomatoes (roma or variety of choice)
- 3-4 medium chicken breast (boneless skinless, approximately 2 pounds)
- 1 medium onion (peeled and quartered)
- 1 can chipotle peppers in adobo (6-7 ounce can)
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon Mexican oregano (or regular dried oregano)
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon chili flakes
- 2-3 cups water
Tacos
- 12 tortillas (corn or flour)
- ½ cup cotija cheese (crumbled)
- ½ medium red onion (finely diced)
- Cilantro (or parsley, for garnish (optional))
Instructions
Prepare the Chicken Tinga
- Cut the tomatoes into large wedges and place in a blender.
- In a large pot add the chicken, onion, chipotle peppers in adobo, garlic, salt, oregano, cumin, chili powder and chili flakes. Add enough water to cover the chicken (about 2-3 cups). On medium heat bring the pot to a boil.
- Use a spoon or skimmer to remove and fat that cooks out of the chicken. Simmer for about 13-15 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside on a cutting board or in a bowl.
- Transfer 2 cups of the broth from the pot to the blender.
- Use a slotted spoon or strainer to remove all of the onions, garlic, and chipotle peppers in adobo from the broth and add them to the blender.
- Purée the sauce until smooth.
- Use two forks to shred the chicken into bite sized pieces and transfer to a large skillet or frying pan. Pour the tomato sauce over the chicken and bring to a simmer on medium heat.
- Simmer the chicken and sauce for about 8-10 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and reduced. Season to taste with salt.
Serve the Tacos
- To serve the tacos, heat up the flour or corn tortillas according to package directions.
- Serve the tacos with a platter of toppings including diced red onion, crumbled cotija or feta cheese, and chopped cilantro. Serve and enjoy!
Tony says
Amazing recipe!