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overhead shot of beer chicken taco salad with cilantro vinaigrette in a white bowl on gray background
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5 from 3 votes

Crock Pot Beer Chicken Taco Salad With Cilantro Vinaigrette

This creative taco salad has slow cooked beer chicken and a tangy cilantro vinaigrette. It's an easy, fresh and delicious dinner! Perfect for those days when you don't want to turn on your oven.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time4 hours
Total Time4 hours 20 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 4
Calories: 317kcal

Ingredients

Beer Chicken (see *notes)

  • 1 lb chicken breasts (roughly 2 chicken breasts; boneless thighs work as well)
  • 6 oz beer (I recommend a light beer)
  • 0.5 teaspoon chili powder
  • 4.3 oz can of green chiles
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Cilantro Vinaigrette

  • ½ cup cilantro leaves (loosely packed)
  • ¼ cup white wine vinegar
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1 clove garlic (minced)
  • 2 teaspoons lime juice
  • 3 tablespoons honey (maple syrup or brown sugar may be swapped)
  • ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Taco Salad

  • 4 cups romaine lettuce
  • 2 cups tortilla chips (or strips)
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes (halved)
  • 1 cup cheese (shredded)
  • 1 cup black beans
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1-2 avocados (cubed)
  • jalapeno slices (optional)
  • salsa (optional)
  • red onion (minced; optional)

Instructions

Beer Chicken

  • Place the chicken breasts, beer, chili powder, green chiles, salt and pepper into a small (2.5 quart) slow cooker. Stir to combine.
  • Cook on low 3-4 hours.
  • Transfer the chicken to a bowl and shred with two forks or a hand mixer.
  • Toss with cooking liquid and enjoy!

Cilantro Vinaigrette

  • Combine all ingredients in a blender, food processor, or cup of an immersion blender.
  • Blend until smooth.

Taco Salad

  • Toss the vegetables and chicken with the cilantro vinaigrette.
  • Serve with nachos, sour cream, guacamole and/or salsa.

Video

Notes

*You will need a small (2.5 quart) slow cooker to cook a single pound of chicken; otherwise I'd advise doubling the recipe and cooking in a 6 quart slow cooker
  • leftover chicken may be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
Meal Prep Tips
  1. Ingredient prep- You can prep the vinaigrette, chicken, lettuce, cheese, corn and black beans up to 4 days ahead, to make putting it all together super easy.
  2. For jar salads- layer in a 1 quart jar in the following order: vinaigrette, chicken, corn, black beans, cheese, cherry tomatoes, romaine. Keep tortilla chips separate. Shake out into a bowl, toss it all up in the dressing and enjoy. Keeps for up to 4 days before serving.
 
 

Nutrition

Serving: 1/4 batch | Calories: 317kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 588mg | Potassium: 523mg | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 800IU | Vitamin C: 26.6mg | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.8mg