Easy Chicken Tinga Recipe

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Bursting with chili and adobo flavors, sweetened with agave syrup, and simmered to perfection, this chicken tinga recipe is inspired by the traditional Mexican dish. Ready to enjoy in under an hour, it’s a tasty topping for tacos, tostadas, salads, and more.

Ingredients Needed

Chicken breasts: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts are easily shredded and cook up evenly on the stovetop. I prefer using chicken breasts in this recipe, but feel free to sub for boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
Seasonings: A combination of garlic powder, salt, and pepper add flavor.
Chicken broth: What the chicken simmers in which creates ultra tender, melt-in-your mouth shredded chicken.
Tomatoes: It’s not chicken tinga without tomatoes! Quarter them and simmer with the chicken for ultimate flavor infusion.
Garlic and yellow onion: For flavor.
Canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce: The base of the chicken tinga sauce and what gives this recipe that classic flavor.
Agave syrup: Offsets the spice and adds a welcome sweetness to the sauce. Instead of agave, honey works just as well.

How to Make This Chicken Tinga Recipe

Prep the chicken breasts with spices and sear in a large skillet for 3-4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Set aside.

Deglaze the same skillet with a splash of chicken broth and scrape any brown bits away. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes, followed by the garlic and quartered tomatoes. Sauté for another 3-4 minutes until the tomatoes are aromatic and slightly tender.

Place the seared chicken breasts back into the same skillet and nestle them into the tomato and onion mixture. Pour in the remaining chicken broth and bring it all to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat, cover the pan, and let simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken from the skillet.

Transfer the tomatoes to a plate or cutting board and carefully remove (and discard) the skins. Place the peeled tomatoes into a high-speed blender along with the onions (use a slotted spoon to transfer). Add 1⁄4 cup of the cooking liquid from the skillet, as well as the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, agave, and ¼ cup of water. Blend until completely smooth – this might take a minute or two, but it’s worth it to get that perfect consistency!

Discard any excess liquid that is in the skillet and add the cooked chicken back into the pan. Use two forks to shred – it should be incredibly easy to pull it apart. Pour the sauce and remaining water over the chicken and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium/high heat. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes (this can simmer longer, you may need to occasionally add a splash of water to keep things saucy).

The serving options are truly endless – something I love about this recipe! Try this chicken tinga as a filling or topping in any of your favorite Mexican recipes.

try it!

Chicken Tinga Tacos

Serve this chicken tinga on our delicious chicken tinga tacos.

Tips for the Best Tinga

Homemade chicken tinga is wildly versatile and goes well in tacos, over nachos, in burrito bowls, on tostadas or salads, or even mixed into an egg scramble.

Tinga toppings: diced avocado, avocado crema (like in these sheet pan tacos), salsa verde, fresh guacamole, cotija cheese, pickled onions, cilantro, lime crema, crushed tortilla chips, pickled jalapeños, sour cream… you get the idea!

This is a wonderful meal-prep option for busy weeks! Once the chicken tinga has completely cooled, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days. Or, store in individual containers for easy lunches on-the-go.

Do you recommend a specific brand of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce?

I love using these La Morena canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce – they provide that classic tinga flavor. If you can’t find this specific brand, any canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce will do.

How can I make chicken tinga less spicy or adjust the heat level?

This recipe is totally customizable to your preferences! For less spicy tinga, add more agave. For spicier sauce, add more chipotle peppers. If you find it’s too spicy when it’s time to serve, mix in a dollop of Greek yogurt or cream to cut the spice.

Season the chicken breasts with garlic powder, salt, and pepper and set aside.
Heat a large pot over medium/high heat. Add olive oil. When the olive oil is fragrant and hot, add the chicken breasts and sear them on each side for 3-4 minutes or until golden brown. Remove the chicken breasts and set aside.
Deglaze the pot with 2 tablespoons of chicken broth. Scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to remove any brown bits.
Add the onion to the pot and sauté for 2 minutes and then add the garlic and the quartered tomatoes. Sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes.
Next add the chicken breasts back into the pot and pour the rest of the chicken broth into the pot. Stir the mixture and bring to a boil.
Turn the heat to low and cover. Simmer all the ingredients together for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, remove the chicken breasts from the pot and set them aside to cool.
Remove the tomatoes from the pot and then carefully remove the tomato skins from the tomatoes. You can use a fork so you don’t burn yourself. Discard the tomato skins and transfer the tomatoes into a high speed blender.
Use a slotted spoon to remove the onions from the pot and place them in the blender, too. Add 1⁄4 cup of the cooking liquid from the pot, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, honey, and ¼ cup of water to the blender. Blend on high until completely smooth. Taste the sauce, it will be spicy. If you would like it spicier, add ⅓ cup more of chipotle peppers. If you would like it less spicy add 1-2 tablespoons more of sweetener. Blend the sauce again and set aside.
Discard any excess liquid that is in the pot and place the chicken back into the pot. Shred the chicken with two forks.
Pour the sauce from the blender over the chicken and stir to combine. Add the last ¼ cup of water to the sauce and bring the mixture to a boil over medium/high heat.
Turn the heat to low and allow the mixture to simmer and cook down for 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and serve in tacos, over nachos, or in a burrito bowl.

Spiciness: Traditional chicken tinga is spicy and so is this recipe! If you do not like spice, add a little more agave and serve with crema or Greek yogurt.

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”9S36SVBE” upload-date=”2022-04-15T00:00:00.000Z” name=”Chicken Tinga Recipe” description=”This chicken tinga recipe is packed with amazing chili and adobo flavors, and ready to enjoy in under an hour. Serve on tacos, tostadas, salads and more!”]

Calories: 201 kcal, Carbohydrates: 9 g, Protein: 26 g, Fat: 6 g, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 5 g