With chicken birria tacos, you get tender shredded chicken cooked in a smoky, spiced broth, tortillas dipped in all that red-gold goodness, a layer of melty cheese, and a skillet finish that lands somewhere between taco and very good life decision.
What is Salsa Macha?
I adore all sorts of toppings for my tacos and taco salads from guacamole to any kind of salsa. My newest favorite, though, is salsa macha.
A course, flavorful mixture of grapeseed oil, peanuts, dried chiles, peanuts, sesame seeds, vinegar, and sugar, you couldn’t find a more amazing topping for this meaty goodness wrapped in a tortilla. It adds texture and even more incredible depth of flavors in this already-rich dish.
You also needn’t reserve salsa macha for tacos. Keep the recipe up your sleeve for the likes of salad or ceviche or even try it on pizza.
Why You’ll Love Chicken Birria Tacos
It gives you birria flavor without beef’s long cook time. Chicken thighs cook faster, shred beautifully, and still soak up all the smoky, spiced, chile-rich sauce.
The tacos are crispy, cheesy, and actually satisfying. Dipping the tortillas in broth before pan-searing gives you that signature birria taco look and texture.
The consommé makes the whole thing feel complete. Serving extra strained broth on the side turns it from a good taco into the kind of dinner people remember.
Chicken Birria Tacos Ingredients
The list may look a little long, but rest assured that the ingredients are easy to source and that many of them are probably already on your shelves. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Boneless Chicken Thighs – Chicken thighs are considered to be a dark meat and have so much more flavor than chicken breasts. Using a boneless version saves times when shredding the meat. Of course, you can also use boneless, skinless chicken breasts as an alternative with little change to the cooking time whether you choose the Instant Pot method or oven braising.
- Vegetable oil – You can use any oil you prefer, but this one is inexpensive and its neutral flavor won’t interfere with the other layers of flavor in the recipe.
- Coarse kosher salt – Use a good quality salt to make sure it brings out the other ingredients.
- Ground black pepper – I prefer to use freshly ground pepper but you can use your table shaker if that’s what you have handy.
- Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce – The peppers add smoky heat while the adobo sauce adds an acidic zing.
- Adobo sauce – More adobo sauce increases the tomato and vinegar content of the dish along with other spices.
- Crushed tomatoes – Crushed tomatoes add bright acidity.
- Garlic – Minced fresh garlic is most ideal but you can use packaged minced garlic as well.
- Yellow onion – Chop up the onion in small, uniform pieces.
- Seasonings – We use a blend of ancho chile powder, dried oregano, ground cumin, paprika, ground cloves and ground cinnamon to season our chicken.
- Apple cider vinegar – This type of vinegar adds a slightly sweet yet vinegary zing.
Tacos:
- Vegetable oil – Again, the neutral flavor of the oil is ideal for this dish. If you choose another oil, just make sure that it has an appropriate smoke point.
- Small corn tortillas – Smaller tortillas are better for these tacos to make sure that there’s not too much time for the sauces to make the tacos soggy.
- Monterey Jack or oaxaca cheese – Either of these cheeses will work well – just choose whichever is your preference, or easiest to find at your grocery stores.
- Cilantro – Chop up the cilantro finely. It’s best to serve it on the side to account for people who do not like the flavor of cilantro.
- White onion – Chop the white onion finely.
- Fresh lime wedges – Serve these to squeeze over top of the tacos.
How to Make Chicken Birria Tacos
We’ve broken this up into sections to make things easier. And also included some oven instuctions!
Braised Chicken:
- Add sauce ingredients to food processor. Add the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, tomatoes, garlic, onion, ancho chile powder, oregano, cumin, paprika, cloves, cinnamon and vinegar to a large bowl or food processor.
- Blend. Using the food processor or an immersion blender, pulse the mixture until it becomes a paste. Add water and pulse until combined.
- Season chicken. Sprinkle the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
- Sear chicken. Pour the vegetable oil into the Instant Pot and heat it using the sauté setting. Place the sear the chicken thighs in the Instant Pot (or pressure cooker), using tongs to brown on all sides.
- Add sauce to pot and cook. Pour the reserved sauce into the pot with the chicken. Lock the lid and set to manual high heat.
- Quick release. When ready to remove, use the quick release method.
- Remove chicken. Use a slotted spoon to remove the chicken and transfer it to a bowl. Check the internal temp of chicken for doneness using an instant thermometer.
- Shred chicken. Use 2 forks to shred, discarding any large pieces of skin or fat. Use a mesh sieve or colander to remove the large chunks, allowing the fats to remain on top.
Tacos:
- Dip tortillas in broth and add to pan. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the vegetable oil. Dip corn tortillas first into the birria broth and then place them into the hot pan.
- Top with cheese and chicken. Add cheese and shredded chicken to the tortilla, then fold the tortilla to make the taco.
- Sear then flip. Sear the first side of the tortilla then turn. Continue to cook until cheese is melted and the tortilla is browned.
- Add garnishes. Remove the tacos from the heat and garnish with salsa macha, onion, fresh cilantro, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Oven Instructions:
- Brown chicken. In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat on the stove, heat the oil. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and add to the hot pan, browning on all sides.
- Make sauce then add to chicken. Make the sauce, then add it to the chicken
- Bake. Cover and place into the pre-heated oven (300°F) for 2 hours, or until chicken easily shreds with a fork.
- Shred. Pick back up with the step of removing the chicken and shredding it.
Chef Tips
I’ve made this chicken birria tacos recipe with different methods in my test kitchen to be able to bring you the best tips and tricks.
- Use chicken thighs, not breasts. Thighs stay juicier and shred better, which matters in a broth-heavy recipe like this.
- Brown the chicken first. That extra step gives the final broth more depth and makes the chicken taste more developed.
- Let the fat rise before dipping tortillas. That top layer of broth and fat is what gives the tortillas their signature color and crisping power.
- Dip quickly, not too long. You want the tortillas coated, not soaked to the point where they tear apart in the skillet.
- Cook the tacos until the edges crisp. That skillet time is what transforms them from good shredded chicken tacos into actual birria tacos.
Serving Suggestions
While I could easily make a meal out of nothing but tacos, some folks like to pair them with other sides. Mexican rice or Mexican cauliflower rice are great picks. As are refried beans or refried black beans.
And don’t forget dessert! Air fryer churros, sopapillas and Mexican bread pudding are all great endings to a fabulous meal.
Storage, Make Ahead and Freezing
With tacos this delicious, it’s likely you won’t have leftovers. But if you do, here are some storage tips.
Make-Ahead: You can do all of the prep work and wait until you’re ready to toss the beef into the oven or Instant Pot so it’s ready when you need it.
Refrigerator: The beef will stay fresh in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. You can choose to store it with the broth or to keep them separate.
Freezer: Store the beef in the freezer in a ziploc bag or freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. It’s recommended to freeze the broth separately.
FAQs
Traditional birria is more often associated with goat or beef, but chicken birria is a popular, practical variation that captures many of the same flavors in less time.
The dipping sauce is the strained cooking broth, often called consommé.
It gives the tortillas flavor, color, and the signature birria taco texture when crisped in the skillet.
More Tasty Taco Recipes
Everyone loves dinner when it’s taco night! Here are some of our favorite taco recipes.
Chicken Birria Taco Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 2-3 pounds boneless chicken thighs
- 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2-3 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- ½ cup crushed tomatoes
- 2-3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 yellow onion , chopped
- 1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Tacos:
- 2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 12-14 small corn tortillas
- 2 cups Monterey Jack or oaxaca cheese
- 1 cup fresh cilantro , chopped
- 1/4 cup white onion , chopped
- Fresh lime wedges
Instructions
Chicken:
- In a large food processor or a large bowl with an immersion blender, combine the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, tomatoes, garlic, onion, chili powder, oregano, cumin, paprika, cloves, cinnamon and vinegar. Pulse until you form a paste. Add 2 cups of water and pulse several times. Set aside.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat the vegetable oil over sauté in the instant pot.
- Add the chicken, browning on all sides, about 2-3 minutes per side.
- Add the reserved sauce. Place the lid on, lock in place and set to manual high pressure for 13 minutes. Use quick release method.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the chicken to a bowl and use 2 forks to shred, discarding any large bits of fat.
- Pour the sauce through a mesh sieve or colander to remove larger pieces. Allow the fats to settle on top.
Tacos:
- Heat 1-2 teaspoons of the vegetable oil in a large skillet. Dip 2-3 corn tortillas (how many will fit in the skillet) in the birria broth and directly into the hot skillet.
- Sprinkle 1 tablespoons of cheese in each tortilla, then 2-3 tablespoons of shredded chicken. Fold over the tortilla to form a taco. Sear on each side for 1-2 minutes or until browned.
- Remove and serve with fresh cilantro, onion, lime wedges and extra birria consommé for dipping.
Notes
Nutrition
I don’t care for the combo of cinnamon and cloves. Do these two ingredients add pronounced taste or can they be left out and the recipe still be yummy?
Sure thing!
For the Chicken Birria Tacos, what temperature would you cook the chicken in the oven? You indicate to put it in a preheated oven but I don’t see a temperature
Thanks for catching that- it is 300°F, we just updated it.
Can this be cooked in a crock-pot
Totally! I would start at 3 hours on high.
Yum! The spices in this recipe made it super flavorful and satisfying! We loved it!
This is wonderful! Easy, delicious and so many great flavors. No leftovers with this dish!
Fantastic tacos! I just can never say no to a good taco recipe. Love these!
This is such a flavorful sweet and spicy spin on tacos! Yum!
These look so good! I’ve made a ton of chicken taco recipes, but I’ve never made one quite like this before.