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Chicken Tinga is a flavor-packed Mexican dinner made with juicy, shredded chicken, tomato puree, and chipotle peppers. Prepared in the Instant Pot, this chicken stew is a breeze to put together and serve!
Use it to make classic tacos, or switch things up with chicken birria tacos or slow cooker chicken tacos for an equally delicious twist.
Today, I’m coming to you with this homemade chicken tinga recipe, and I promise you’ll fall in love with it. This dish features juicy shredded chicken, sautéed onions, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and tomatoes. The sauce that forms this meal is the component that sealed the deal for me—it’s a little spicy, perfectly seasoned, and tastes amazing in a taco or over rice!
In my opinion, this is the best chicken tinga ever, and it has become a family favorite in our house, especially on our favorite holiday, aka Taco Tuesdays! It’s also the perfect dish to whip up after a busy soccer practice, filling everyone’s bellies with its delicious, comforting flavors. Traditionally, chicken tinga is served on a tostada with a layer of refried beans and topped with avocado slices, crumbled cheese, Mexican crema, and salsa.
Why I Love This Chicken Tinga Recipe
- Flexible: Chicken tinga is just the right fit for tostadas de tinga, tacos, burritos, enchiladas, or any Mexican delicacy you choose.
- Tasty: The DIY tinga sauce is a breeze to prepare and packs a punch in flavor!
- Quick: This Mexican-inspired recipe is ready in under an hour, making it easy to enjoy a delicious meal without spending all day in the kitchen.
- Nutritious: My chicken tinga recipe is made with fresh produce, and the complete dish complements fresh toppings like lettuce, cilantro, and avocado.
What is Chicken Tinga?
Chicken tinga is a traditional Mexican dish with shredded chicken, tomatoes (tomato purée), chipotle peppers or chilis in adobo sauce, and onions. It’s flavored with several seasonings such as dried oregano and cayenne, which elevate its savory elements and add a little heat. Chicken tinga is essentially a stew on its own, but you can serve it in tacos too, or on a tostada!
Ingredients You’ll Need
This instant pot chicken tinga uses simple ingredients, such as white meat chicken, seasonings, and tomato puree, making it easy to create this flavorful dish right at home.
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts: Both chicken breasts and chicken thighs work well here. If you use a different cut, adjust the cooking time and check with a meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature of the cooked chicken reaches 165˚F.
- Olive Oil: Any cooking oil is fine to use. I like vegetable oil or avocado oil, too.
- Onion: I used a yellow onion, but white onions or shallots are okay to use.
- Garlic: I love fresh garlic in my food, but a teaspoon of garlic powder will work.
- Seasonings: You’ll need ground cumin, dried oregano, salt, fresh ground black pepper, cayenne, and a bay leaf.
- Tomato Purée: Use one 14-ounce can – any brand will work.
- Canned Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce: Minced, plus 1 tablespoon of the sauce. I usually use two chipotle peppers, but if you like it really spicy, use more.
- Chicken Broth: I like to use low-sodium chicken broth for this recipe, but any kind will do, including vegetable broth.
How to Make Chicken Tinga in the Instant Pot
Chicken tinga is the perfect meal for busy weeknights – it doesn’t require much prep work, and basically, all you have to do is add the ingredients to the Instant Pot and let it cook.
- Sauté the aromatics: Select the “Sauté” option on the Instant Pot. Heat the oil and add the onion, cooking, stirring occasionally, until soft. Add the garlic, cumin, oregano, bay leaf, and ½ teaspoon salt, and stir to combine.
- Make the sauce: Stir in the tomato purée, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, and chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the sauté.
- Prepare and cook the chicken: Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Add them to the Instant Pot and pressure cook for 8 minutes. Allow 10 minutes of natural pressure release.
- Shred the chicken: Open the Instant Pot, remove the chicken, and shred it using two forks. Stir the shredded chicken back into the pot, then turn the Instant Pot to sauté mode. Cook until the sauce has thickened.
- Serve. Taste for salt and seasonings and adjust accordingly, then enjoy.
Oven Method
To make chicken tinga in the oven, preheat your oven to 375°F. In a large oven-safe pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and cook the onions until softened. Add the garlic, cumin, oregano, cayenne, and bay leaf. Stir in the tomato purée, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, and chicken broth, bringing the mixture to a simmer. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper, submerge them in the sauce, and cover the pot.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165°F. Remove the chicken, shred it, and return it to the pot. If the sauce is too thin, simmer on the stovetop until thickened.
Recipe Tips
- Quick Pressure Release. While I generally do a natural pressure release, you can do a quick pressure release if you’re short on time.
- Adjust to taste. If you prefer a milder dish, leave out the cayenne and use fewer chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. For more heat, feel free to add extra cayenne and chipotle peppers.
- Use chicken thighs. Adjust the cooking time slightly if using thighs, and ensure the internal temperature reaches 165˚F by using an instant-read meat thermometer.
Serving Suggestions
You can serve chicken tinga in a few different ways. You could serve it in tacos, on tostadas, over a southwest chicken salad, in lettuce wraps, etc. It’s really up to you. You can also serve it over white rice or brown rice to keep things simple. I also love to add refried beans plus a refreshing and cool cucumber salad to balance the flavors.
If you’re going to serve chicken tinga as chicken tacos, I have a couple of suggestions. In my house, we use these low carb flour tortillas as the base. We then include shredded cabbage, avocado, cotija cheese, some cilantro, and serve it with lime wedges.
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
- If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container and keep them in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze them for up to 2 months.
- The best way to reheat chicken tinga is on your stovetop. Include the chicken and the sauce in a pan over medium heat and cook until the chicken is warm.
More Chicken Dinners
- Juicy Stove Top Chicken Breasts
- Juicy Stove Top Chicken Thighs
- Easy Baked Chicken Breasts
- Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings
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Instant Pot Chicken Tinga
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne, optional
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 can (15 ounces) tomato purée
- 2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
- 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
- ½ teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Select the “Saute” mode on the Instant Pot. Add the oil and heat it up until shimmering. To the instant pot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes.
- Add the garlic, cumin, oregano, bay leaf, and the ½ teaspoon salt, and stir to combine.
- Stir in the tomato purée, chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, and chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Then, turn off the saute mode.
- Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and add them to the Instant Pot.
- Secure the lid and Pressure Cook for 8 minutes. Then, allow 10 minutes of natural pressure release.
- Open the Instant Pot, take the chicken out, and shred it using two forks or shredder claws. Stir the shredded chicken back in the pot and turn the Instant Pot to Saute mode. Cook for 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.
- Taste for salt and adjust accordingly. Serve in tacos, tostadas, salads, lettuce wraps, etc.
Equipment
Notes
- Chicken: Chicken breasts and chicken thighs work well here. However, if you’re going to use a cut different from the suggested boneless chicken breasts, in that case, you will need to adjust the cooking time and use an instant-read meat thermometer to ensure the chicken’s internal temperature is 165˚F.
- Spices: If you’re not into spice, omit the cayenne and use fewer chipotle peppers and adobo sauce. But if you love heat, add more.
- Can I use a quick pressure release? Absolutely. If you’re short on time, you can opt for a quick one.
- Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This is a great recipe, except instead of the tomato puree, I used a 15 oz can on Rotel with Hatch chilies, this added some nice flavor. After I shredded the chicken, I added on scoop on the remaining ingredients (except the bay leaf) back onto the shredded chicken and blended the rest, before adding back onto the shredded chicken. Made tacos topped with cojita / queso fresco cheese, sour cream and cilantro. Very much enjoyed and will be making it again.
This came out so delicious and flavorful going into to my saved recipes!
That’s great to hear! I’m very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! 🙂