Slow cooked with homemade roasted salsa verde, Chicken Tomatillo Tacos are a great dinner for busy schedules.Roasted Tomatillo Salsa adapted from Tyler Florence, Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos Inspired by Serious Eats
1-½poundstomatillos, husked, rinsed, and cut in half
1mediumwhite onion, peeled and cut into large chunks
4garlic cloves, unpeeled
2jalapeño peppers, halved and seeded*
1tablespoonvegetable or olive oil
2teaspoonsground cumin
1teaspoonkosher salt
½cupcilantro leaves
1tablespoonfresh lime juice
Chicken and Tacos
2-½poundsboneless, skinless chicken thighs
kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper
12corn tortillas
toppings, such as including lime wedges, thinly-sliced red onion, sliced avocado, and sour cream
Instructions
Make the Roasted Tomatillo Salsa
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F with rack in the center position. If desired, line a baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup. Toss tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapeño peppers with olive oil on the baking sheet. Flip tomatillos and jalapeños so they are cut-side down. Roast until tomatillos are browned and onions and jalapeños are soft about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly and squeeze the roasted garlic from the cloves, discarding the skins.
Transfer roasted tomatillo mixture, including any juices that have accumulated on the baking sheet, to a blender or food processor. Add cumin, salt, cilantro, and lime juice, and pulse until the salsa is combined and is to your preferred consistency (I prefer leaving mine a little on the chunky side).
Make the chicken and serve
Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Place in the slow cooker and toss with 1 cup roasted tomatillo salsa, reserving the rest for garnishing the tacos (or eating with chips!). Cover and cook on low for 4 hours, until chicken is tender.
Remove thighs from the slow cooker and shred, using two forks, or the paddle attachment on your stand mixer. Cover to keep warm.
Transfer cooking liquid to a small saucepan (or place your slow cooker insert directly on the stove, if your specific model allows this), and simmer over medium heat until reduced to ¾ to 1 cup, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Toss shredded chicken with enough sauce to coat, re-warming the chicken as needed if it has cooled.
While the sauce is reducing, warm corn tortillas in a dry skillet until lightly-browned. To serve, fill each taco with shredded chicken and top with a squeeze of fresh lime juice, a dollop of the reserved tomatillo salsa, sour cream, red onion, and avocado.
Notes
*Seeding the jalapeños will produce a mild salsa. For a spicier version, skip the seeding, or use a hotter pepper variety to your preferred heat level, such as serranos.