Cafe Rio Chicken Tacos

Cafe Rio Chicken Tacos start with the perfectly spiced and shredded chicken that you love, tossed with the fresh produce of lettuce and tomatoes, sprinkled with cheese, and folded into a soft tortilla. Enjoy that delicious Cafe Rio flavor without leaving home or paying for delivery! 

Cafe Rio Chicken Tacos you can make at home! I will admit it, I’m a Cafe Rio addict.  I rarely go more than a week without eating at one of the two. All their entrees are so full of exciting flavors that they keep me coming back for more.

Since I eat there so frequently I thought maybe it’s time to create another copycat recipe. One of my favorite things to get there is the shredded chicken salad or shredded chicken tacos, so here is my version of that chicken.

Cafe Rio Chicken Tacos

This chicken is SO easy to make! If you haven’t noticed, I love my slow cooker. You simply toss in a few ingredients along with some spices, and then allow it to cook low and slow all day while the flavors meld together and voila! It almost seems too good to be true, doesn’t it? It does all the hard work for you.

This Shredded Chicken recipe is not only to be used as a taco filling but also for burritos, enchiladas, salads, quesadillas, taquitos, etc. So, if you don’t use it all the first night you make it you can use the leftover chicken to make a different entree the next night, bonus! This is the perfect recipe to use for meal prep.

I hope you love this amazing shredded chicken that is so incredibly tender and filled with the perfect blend of flavors and spices. May it be your go-to chicken filling for many of your favorite Mexican dishes! Enjoy!

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe

Chicken Tacos (Cafe Rio Shredded Chicken Copycat Recipe)

Deliciously bright and flavorful well seasoned chicken taco mixture made in the slow cooker that's perfectly tender.

Servings: 7

Prep10 minutes minutes

Cook5 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Ready in: 5 hours hours 30 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 2.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast halves
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup Zesty Italian Salad dressing
• 1 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper , optional (adjust according to desired heat preference or omit)

Instructions

• Place chicken breast halves in the slow cooker. In a mixing bowl whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour mixture over chicken in slow cooker, cover slow cooker with lid. 
• Cook chicken on low heat 4 to 5 hours. Shred chicken, then cook shredded chicken in broth in slow cooker an additional 20 minutes on low. Drain broth from chicken. 
• Serve warm in tacos, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, taquitos etc. Note: for taco filling ideas and how to cook corn tortilla shells see this post here.

Nutrition Facts

Chicken Tacos (Cafe Rio Shredded Chicken Copycat Recipe)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 206 Calories from Fat 45

% Daily Value*

Fat 5g8%

Saturated Fat 1g6%

Cholesterol 104mg35%

Sodium 585mg25%

Potassium 654mg19%

Carbohydrates 3g1%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 35g70%

Vitamin A 603IU12%

Vitamin C 3mg4%

Calcium 17mg2%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition values are estimates only. See full disclaimer here.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Tex-Mex

Keyword: Cafe Rio Chicken, Cafe Rio Tacos

Author: Jaclyn