Salsa Chicken – Gluten Free, Dairy Free

This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free!

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This Salsa Chicken is one of my FAVORITE dinner options! It’s super easy to put together and takes almost no prep time at all.

It is also perfect for meal prep! On the weekend I will just make up a big batch of this salsa chicken to enjoy for lunch for up to 4 days.

There are so many different ways you can enjoy it too!

If I make it for meal prep then I will usually have it on a salad and top it with fresh guacamole. It’s delicious!

You can also use it as a filling to make amazing tacos! Serve on corn tortillas or taco shells to keep it gluten free.

My husband also likes to have it on corn tortilla chips to make salsa chicken nachos. There are so many possibilities!

I love that I can make this salsa chicken in my Instant Pot and have it ready in about 30 minutes.

If you don’t have an Instant Pot yet, you NEED one! They are a life saver and make dinner time SO much easier.

This is the Instant Pot I have and it is by far my FAVORITE kitchen appliance!

This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free! #salsachicken #glutenfreerecipes #dairyfree #instantpot #slowcooker

The fact that I can have juicy shredded chicken ready in 30 minutes is still crazy to me!

If you don’t have an Instant Pot yet, this can also be made in your slow cooker. I’ve included directions on how to make this Salsa Chicken both ways below.

So let’s talk about how you make it!

SALSA CHICKEN RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

  • Boneless Chicken Breasts: Fresh or frozen
  • Taco seasoning: I use this homemade taco seasoning recipe
  • Mild salsa: Make sure you know how spicy your salsa is!  I recommend a mild salsa for this recipe especially if you want your kiddos to eat it.☺
  • Cilantro: optional, but delicious!
  • Lime
This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free! #salsachicken #glutenfreerecipes #dairyfree #instantpot #slowcooker

HOW TO MAKE EASY INSTANT POT SALSA CHICKEN:

To make the Salsa Chicken in the Instant Pot:

  1. Add 1/4 cup of the salsa to the bottom of the Instant Pot.
  2. Evenly coat both sides of the chicken breasts with the taco seasoning.  Place chicken breasts on top of the salsa in the Instant Pot.  Pour remaining salsa and lime juice on top of the chicken.
  3. Close the lid on the Instant Pot and make sure you are NOT venting.  Select the poultry setting which should default to 20 minute cook time on the normal mode.  
  4. Allow for a natural release or do a quick release using a towel to make sure you don’t get burned.
  5. Remove the chicken from the Instant Pot and shred with two forks.  Place the chicken back in the Instant Pot and stir to coat in the salsa.
  6. Stir in chopped cilantro and serve in taco shells, on a salad, or even on tortilla chips for nachos!

HOW TO MAKE EASY SLOW COOKER SALSA CHICKEN:

To make in the Slow Cooker:

  1. Add 1/4 cup of the salsa to the bottom of the slow cooker.
  2. Evenly coat both sides of the chicken breasts with the taco seasoning.  Place chicken breasts on top of the salsa in the slow cooker.  Pour remaining salsa and lime juice on top of the chicken.
  3. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
  4. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker and shred with two forks.  Place the chicken back in the slow cooker and stir to coat in the salsa.
  5. Stir in chopped cilantro and serve in taco shells, on a salad, or even on tortilla chips for nachos!
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This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free! #salsachicken #glutenfreerecipes #dairyfree #instantpot #slowcooker

♥ Don’t forget to rate this recipe and leave a comment below if you give this recipe a try! ♥

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This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free! #salsachicken #glutenfreerecipes #dairyfree #instantpot #slowcooker

Salsa Chicken – Gluten Free, Dairy Free

  • Author: Morgan | Just What We Eat
  • Prep Time: 5 min
  • Cook Time: 30 min
  • Total Time: 35 min
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x

Description

This Salsa Chicken is such an easy and flavorful dinner option! It can be made in the Instant Pot or Slow Cooker and is gluten free and dairy free!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 1/22 lbs boneless chicken breast (fresh or frozen)
  • 2 tbsp taco seasoning (I use this homemade taco seasoning recipe)
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 1 cup mild salsa*
  • 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Instructions

To make in the Instant Pot:

  1. Add 1/4 cup of the salsa to the bottom of the Instant Pot.
  2. Evenly coat both sides of the chicken breasts with the taco seasoning.  Place chicken breasts on top of the salsa in the Instant Pot.  Pour remaining salsa and lime juice on top of the chicken.
  3.  Instant Pot     
  4. Stir in chopped cilantro and serve in taco shells, on a salad, or even on tortilla chips for nachos!

To make in the Slow Cooker:

  1. Add 1/4 cup of the salsa to the bottom of the slow cooker.
  2. Evenly coat both sides of the chicken breasts with the taco seasoning.  Place chicken breasts on top of the salsa in the slow cooker.  Pour remaining salsa and lime juice on top of the chicken.
  3. Place the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4 hours.
  4. Stir in chopped cilantro and serve in taco shells, on a salad, or even on tortilla chips for nachos!

Notes

Make sure you know how spicy your salsa is!  I recommend a mild salsa for this recipe especially if you want your kiddos to eat it.☺

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12 Comments

    1. Thank you so much! You absolutely should buy an Instant Pot! They are amazing! I use mine multiple times a week. ☺

  1. Love this recipe, and how simple it is. I appreciate the slow-cooker directions so much, since that is likely how I will prepare the dish. I find I prefer slow cooked meat over the instant pot pressure cooking. Who knew?

  2. Perfect busy weeknight meal, full of flavor and quick to make! We could eat this so many ways, thanks so much for sharing 🙂

  3. I made this very simple recipe in my slow cooker with three chicken breasts (right at 1.5 lbs). It turned out very very well! I will make this again. Very easy and inexpensive

  4. I have a slow cooker and an instant pot. I like them both. I prefer the slow cooker when I have the time. That is what I chose this time. It really was worth the time. My wife sent it to me, she doesn’t cook. Thank you.

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