Weekends are for baking and cooking… well, sort of. Except for the fact that I’m pretty much still refusing to use my stove or oven unless I absolutely have to. It’s just too damn hot here right now! That being said, I was in the mood for some blueberry pancakes this morning.
What’s a girl to do?
Instant pot (or any electric pressure cooker) to the rescue! These Blueberry Pancake Bites are whipped up quickly and cook right in the instant pot in all of 10 minutes. The end result is a magical cross between a pancake and a muffin that is as delicious as it is portable.
Homemade great shredded beef nachos or burritos with almost no work. Just follow these easy step by step photo instructions.
Editor’s Note: Originally Published December 26, 2012. Update with expanded information and options along with refreshed photos.
This crock pot Mexican shredded beef will deliver some of the best Mexican you can find. A moist and flavorful shredded Mexican beef that is perfect for nachos, tacos, burritos or enchiladas.
Start with a small chuck roast in a small crock pot. Add some broth, spices and cook until fall-apart tender.
My Rating
A solid 4. Use this for a little fancier Mexican spread.
Pro Tips: Recipe Notes for Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Beef
The Beef
A cheaper cut like a chuck roast that is well-marbled is a good place to start. You could use a leaner piece of meat, and the last step of adding some braising fluid back in will help a lot but not quite the same.
Your beef roast needs to be nicely trimmed, so you don’t have to pick out uneatable things. And it has to have good marbling to be tender.
A nicely marbled top round roast or an eye of round would be nice. But I prefer a chuck roast which will always be fall-apart tender.
Modifications
This is a “do it as you want” recipe. Add jalapeno or change the spices, double it, do it in a bigger crock pot or cook it in a Dutch oven.
This is “cooking for two” so I used a 2 1/2 pound roast in a 3.5 qt slow cooker. That makes about eight servings. This recipe can be doubled into a larger crock pot easily.
Other Crock Pot Tex-Mex Recipes
Crock Pot Chicken and Black Beans
Simple Crock Pot Chicken Nachos
Tex-Mex Crock Pot Chicken With Easy Mexican Rice
Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Pork from Butt
Start with an approx 2 1/2 pound roast.
Cut into quarters. This will give more surface area to be flavored and help to place in the crock pot. If there are big chunks of fat, remove them.
In a smaller crock pot (this is 3.5 qt) add one can beef broth, chili powder, cumin, 1 small onion chopped, tomato paste, salt, garlic powder, and pepper. Submerge the meat in the liquid. Add a little more broth or water if you need to cover the meat.
Cook on low for 4 hours. Remove the meat from the pot. Shred and remove any fat. Remove the braising liquid from the crock pot and set aside.
Place shredded beef back in the crock pot and add about 1 cup of braising fluid back to the beef.
Set the slow cooker on warm until needed for serving.
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Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Beef
Homemade great shredded beef tacos, nachos or burritos with almost no work. Just follow these easy step by step photo instructions.
Start with a 2-3 pound beef roast. Cut into quarters. This will give more surface area to be flavored and help to place in the crock pot. If there are big chunks of fat, remove them.
In a smaller crock pot (i used 3.5 qt) add 1-14 oz can beef broth, 2 tablespoon chili powder, 2 teaspoon cumin, 1 small onion chopped, 3 oz tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Submerge the meat in the liquid.
Cook on low for 4 hours. Remove the meat from the pot. Shred and remove any fat. Remove the braising liquid from the crock pot and set aside.
Place shredded beef back in the crock pot and add about 1 cup of braising fluid back to the beef. Be a little light on the liquid and add more if needed.
Set the slow cooker on warm until needed for serving.
Make it Perfect First Time and Every TimeDon’t miss out, check the full post above. Almost every recipe includes easy step by step photo instructions so you can visualize yourself cooking this recipe along with helpful tips and options.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
A nicely marbled top round roast or an eye of round would be nice. But I prefer a chuck roast which will always be fall-apart tender.
Decease the sodium but using low sodium broth and cutting the salt.
Do not add too much fluid back into the shredded beef. It is much easier to add more than take it out.
Good refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen for 3-4 months.
Add a minced jalapeno or change up the spices for your taste.
Nutrition Facts
Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Beef
Amount Per Serving (4 ozs)
Calories 231Calories from Fat 117
% Daily Value*
Fat 13g20%
Saturated Fat 6g30%
Cholesterol 78mg26%
Sodium 592mg25%
Potassium 656mg19%
Carbohydrates 5g2%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 24g48%
Vitamin A 795IU16%
Vitamin C 5mg6%
Calcium 38mg4%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Have a question or something not clear? Ask in the comments.
Do you want more recipes from 101 Cooking for Two? Sign up for the newsletter and get all posts delivered straight to your inbox!
Nutrition is for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.
All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
If you like this recipe or find it useful, the pleasure of a nice 4 or 5 rating would be greatly appreciated.
Make great crock pot chicken tacos or nachos with only a few minutes of work. Just follow these easy step by step photo instructions.
Editor’s Note: Originally Published September 13, 2015. Republished with expanded options and updated photos.
Excellent Mexican is always in demand at my house. But I prefer to cook once and eat several times, so this recipe produces enough for four servings. It is easy to double and does store well.
There are many versions of crock pot chicken tacos. Some use just dry spices, commercial taco mix, or salsa. All are good I’m sure, but I don’t want shredded chicken with a little add on taste, I want to taste the whole thing.
My Rating
A great crock pot recipe is gold in most kitchens. The five rating might be a little generous, but we loved it.
Pro Tips: Recipe Notes for Crock Pot Chicken Taco/Nachos
I wanted this to come out spicy and not too wet. The chicken would release some moisture so only one can of Rotel, some dry spices, and the leave the top ajar for the last hour or so to dry out some more.
Rotel vs. Salsa
Actually, for this recipe, I have used both with excellent results. While not exactly the same thing and I wouldn’t use straight Rotel as a chip dip, just use a salsa you love, and you will love the results.
If it is a spicy salsa, you will need to dial back the spices a bit.
The Crock Pot
I used my 3 1/2 qt crock pot. A larger crock pot would work and can make a double ore ddd triple recipe. If you double the recipe, you should use a bigger pot.
Other Crock Pot Tex-Mex Recipes
Crock Pot Chicken and Black Beans
Tex-Mex Crock Pot Chicken With Easy Mexican Rice
Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Pork from Butt
Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Beef
Start with two medium-size skinless boneless chicken breasts. These can be fresh or thawed of frozen.
In a smaller crock pot, mix 10 oz of Rotel (or salsa) with chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Nestle the chicken breast into the crock pot and spread the mixture over the breasts.
Cook on low for 5 hours. About 4 hours into the cooking, remove the chicken breasts and shred.
Mix the chicken back into the liquid. Leave the top of the crock pot ajar to allow moisture to vent and finish the 5 hours total cooking time.
Serve in tacos or spread over nacho chips and top as desired.
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Crock Pot Chicken Tacos / Nachos
Make great crock pot chicken tacos or nachos with only a few minutes of work. Just follow these easy step by step photo instructions.
Prep Time5mins
Cook Time5hrs
Total Time5hrs5mins
Author: Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
Course : Main Course
Cuisine : Mexican
Keyword : Chicken Nachos, Crock Pot Nachos, Nachos
Servings/Adjust Amount: 4
4
Ingredients
2skinless boneless chicken breasts – medium size
10ozRoTel – or Salsa
1tablespoonchili powder
1/2teaspooncumin
1/2teaspoongarlic powder
1/2teaspoononion powder
1/2teaspoonsalt
1/4teaspoonpepper
Instructions
Start with two medium size skinless boneless chicken breasts. These can be fresh or thawed if frozen.
In a smaller crock pot, mix one 10 oz can of Rotel (or salsa) with one tablespoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Mix well.
Nestle the chicken breast into the crock pot and spread the mixture over the breasts.
Cook on low for 5 hours. About 4 hours into the cooking, remove the chicken breasts and shred.
Mix the chicken back into the liquid. Leave the top of the crock pot ajar to allow moisture to vent and finish the 5 hours total cooking time.
Serve as tacos or spread over nacho chips and top as desired.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips:
You can use chicken thighs for this.
If using salsa, use mild or if using spicier, adjust the other spices down some.
Good refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen for 3-4 months.
I used my 3 1/2 qt crock pot. You may use a bigger crock pot which would be good if doubling or tripling this recipe.
Nutrition analysis is for meat/Rotel only and doesn’t include chips or toppings.
Nutrition Facts
Crock Pot Chicken Tacos / Nachos
Amount Per Serving
Calories 85Calories from Fat 18
% Daily Value*
Fat 2g3%
Saturated Fat 1g5%
Cholesterol 36mg12%
Sodium 397mg17%
Potassium 381mg11%
Carbohydrates 4g1%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 2g2%
Protein 13g26%
Vitamin A 693IU14%
Vitamin C 7mg8%
Calcium 31mg3%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Have a question or something not clear? Ask in the comments.
Do you want more recipes from 101 Cooking for Two? Sign up for the newsletter and get all posts delivered straight to your inbox!
Nutrition is for one serving. Number of servings is stated above and is my estimate of normal serving size for this recipe.
All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
If you like this recipe or find it useful, the pleasure of a nice 4 or 5 rating would be greatly appreciated.
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