Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken {Taco Slop}

My husband affectionately (?) named this dish “Taco Slop.”

That’s kinda his thing.

White chicken chili? Slop.

16 bean soup? Slop.

Split pea soup? Green slop.

Oatmeal? Slop.

And this my friends, is taco slop.

Perhaps it is his military background. Perhaps it is because he’s a dude. I know it sounds like he probably isn’t a fan of these “slops,” but I swear to you…they are some of his favorite things.

Well, except the green slop. I think he could probably take or leave that.

This chicken…umm… taco slop, well, let’s call it Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken from now on. It is insanely easy to make and so versatile. It is great on a tortilla, on chips as nachos, or served over (brown) rice like I did. It is easy to customize to your tastes, add beans, leave them out, add corn, leave it out, add more spice or tone it down a bit. I even added a bunch of chopped spinach. You can’t really taste it and I love to cram extra nutrients in wherever I can.

I was inspired by a recipe on This Woman Cooks, one of my favorite food blogging pals…who got the recipe from Chef Mommy (whose blog is new to me)….who got the recipe from Fake Ginger, another of my favorite food blogging pals! It all comes full circle I guess. It is almost like that game telephone where you whisper something in one person’s ear and by the time it gets to the end of the line it something completely different. There are definitely some similarities remaining in this recipe, but it is practically an entirely different recipe by the time it is getting published here.

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken {Taco Slop}
Note: This makes a GIGANTIC batch. Feel free to scale back if desired, but it does freeze well.

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts plus one pound of boneless skinless thighs (you may use all dark or all white too, whatever you prefer)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup salsa
2 tablespoons taco seasoning
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 small onion, diced
one 15 ounce can of black beans, drained and rinsed
one 15.25 ounce can of corn, drained
4 cups loosely packed spinach, roughly chopped
cheddar cheese, scallions, or cilantro for topping
rice, tortillas, or chips for serving

1. Put chicken, soup, salsa, red pepper, onion, and taco seasoning in slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 hours. Remove chicken, shred using two forks, and return to slow cooker.
2. Stir in beans, corn, and spinach. Cover and continue to cook on low for 30-60 minutes or until heated through and spinach is wilted.
3. Serve over rice or in tortillas, or as dip for chips. Garnish with cheese or scallions or cilantro. I wish we would have had some cilantro.

Verdict: Delicious. I’ve made this a few times. I wouldn’t venture to call it “gourmet” or fancy, but it gets the job done and fills bellies and puts smiles on people’s faces. It is good food and easy to make.
Husband’s take: Loves this slop.
Changes I would make: None, but you could easily play around with the flavors and add in different things. The original recipe had sour cream and I left it out, mostly to conserve calories, but also because my husband isn’t really a big fan of it.
Difficulty: Soooooo easy.

Tagged as: beans, chicken, corn, Mexican, slow cooker, taco