This easy slow cooker fiesta chicken recipe is an easy, versatile Mexican dinner dish. With chicken breasts, corn, black beans, ranch seasoning, Rotel, cream cheese, lime juice, and chicken broth, this creamy crock pot fiesta chicken can be served in tacos, rice bowls, or even on nachos!
Crock Pot Fiesta Chicken is the perfect Mexican meal for a busy family on the go. I love being able to throw all of the ingredients in the crock pot in the morning and when dinner time rolls around, it’s ready to serve! You can use fiesta chicken crock pot recipe to make tacos or put it in a rice bowl. You can even use it this flavorful, creamy chicken as a topping for nachos. This is such a great slow cooker meal because it is so versatile and the uses for dinner are endless.
If you love creamy chicken you are going to love this easy, creamy slow cooker fiesta chicken recipe. You may have heard of it as fiesta ranch chicken or just fiesta chicken. Either way, the Mexican inspired flavors make this slow cooker fiesta chicken delicious. This is such a great recipe to double and freeze some for later in the week. You can just reheat it on a night when you are busy and add it to some rice or put it in some tortillas.
One of my favorite things about slow cooker recipes is how simple they are to make! This crock pot fiesta chicken is no exception. First, you place your chicken breasts in the crock pot. Then you will add your black beans, corn, Rotel, and seasonings. Next, squeeze your fresh lime juice on top and pour in the chicken broth. Once you have done that, you will put your block of cream cheese on top. That is what will give this crock pot fiesta chicken the creaminess that you are looking for! Once everything is in the slow cooker, just let it cook!
If you are looking for more great dinner ideas for busy nights. You should check out our Instant Pot Goulash or our Sheet Pan Chicken Nachos. They are perfect for a weeknight dinner for the family.
Why You’ll Love This Fiesta Chicken Crock Pot Recipe
- All of the work is done in advance. When you’re hungry for dinner, this fiesta chicken will be ready to enjoy!
- This slow cooker fiesta chicken is creamy, tender, and delicious.
- This fiesta chicken is very versatile! It can be served in a rice bowl, on nachos, on a tortilla, or even in a quesadilla!
- This chicken is a kid-friendly weeknight dinner recipe – your whole family will love it!
Ingredients for Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken
With just a few ingredients and a Crock Pot, you can make this tasty fiesta chicken crock pot recipe with very little effort.
- Chicken Breasts: look for chicken breasts that are similar in size so they bake evenly.
- Ranch Dressing Seasoning: Adds so much flavor to this fiesta chicken and can be substituted for spicy or fiesta dry ranch seasoning.
- Onion Powder: Onion powder is a delicious addition to add lots of flavor to the slow cooker fiesta chicken.
- Black Pepper: You can add more to season this fiesta chicken to your liking.
- Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies: See substitutions down below to make it less spicy.
- Corn: I used canned corn in this easy slow cooker fiesta chicken, but you can use fresh corn as well.
- Black Beans: You can also use dry beans for this slow cooker fiesta chicken recipe. You will need to follow the directions and re-hydrate them first.
- Cream Cheese: This is what makes this shredded Mexican chicken so creamy.
- Limes: Try to use freshly squeezed lime juice. The bottled stuff just doesn’t taste the same.
- Chicken Broth: You can make your own with bullion or use chicken broth from a can.
How To Make This Easy Slow Cooker Crock Pot Fiesta Chicken
Step 1: Place chicken breasts in the Crock Pot. Add drained and rinsed black beans, drained corn, Rotel tomatoes, onion powder, ranch seasoning, and black pepper.
Step 2: Squeeze fresh lime juice over the top. Then pour chicken broth over ingredients and place cream cheese block on top.
Step 3: Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or on LOW for 5-6 hours. Chicken is done when it reaches 165 degrees internal temperature.
Step 4: Remove chicken from the Crock Pot. Using two forks shred the chicken and add back into the Crock Pot.
Step 5: Stir all the ingredients together until cream cheese coats everything.
Step 6: Serve while hot and enjoy!
Popular Substitutions & Additions
Store brand tomatoes and diced chiles can be used in place of the Rotel brand. You can also use any variation of your choice for this fiesta chicken recipe.
For some extra spice, when you serve this slow cooker fiesta chicken, top it with some chopped jalapenos. If everyone in your family likes the spice, add some into the slow cooker.
You can use dry black beans or drained canned black beans for this chicken recipe.
You can use chicken broth from a can or make your own bouillon cube for this fiesta chicken.
What to Serve with Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken
- Tacos: Add crock pot fiesta chicken to your favorite corn or flour tortillas.
- Over Rice: Serve easy slow cooker fiesta chicken over plain white rice, cilantro lime rice or Mexican rice.
- Burrito Bowl: Make a layer of rice and add the creamy fiesta chicken on top. Then add your favorite toppings like guacamole, sour cream, shredded lettuce, tortilla strips and pico de gallo. Then sprinkle a little shredded cheese over the top.
- Salad: Place a tortilla in the bottom of a bowl and sprinkle cheddar cheese over it. Melt the cheese in the microwave or oven. Then add cilantro rice, fiesta chicken, shredded lettuce, guacamole, pico de gallo, shredded cheese and tortilla strips. Then add your favorite dressing over the top.
- Sandwich: Add slow cooker fiesta chicken to your favorite bun or bread.
Storing Leftover Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken
Leftover Crock Pot fiesta chicken can be refrigerated for up to 3-4 days in an airtight container and reheated in the microwave, making it ideal for quick lunches or dinners.
Slow cooker fiesta chicken is the perfect freezer meal. I like to double or even triple this recipe and then divide it into dinner sized portions. Then I will put them in individual freezer bags and freeze them for later. Make sure to let the shredded chicken cool to room temperature before placing it in the freezer bags and freezing. This fiesta chicken recipe will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you are ready to serve it, remove it from the freezer the night before and let it thaw in the refrigerator. You can microwave the chicken or throw it back in the Crock Pot.
Crock Pot Fiesta Chicken Recipe FAQ’s
Can I Make This Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken Less Spicy?
Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies can have a little bit of a kick to them. So if you and your family don’t like spice. Here are a few ways you can tone it down.
- If you can find mild Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies this is a great alternative.
- Use your favorite mild salsa. You will need about 2 cups to use this as a substitute.
- You can also use plain diced tomatoes to remove all the spice
How will I know that my chicken is cooked all the way?
When your chicken is completely cooked, you won’t see any pink and it will easily shred with two forks. If you want to be extra safe, you can check the temperature with a meat thermometer.
Do I need to spray or line my crock pot before I cook this fiesta chicken?
I always recommend either spraying or lining your slow cooker to make cleanup a little easier!
Other Slow Cooker Recipes You’ll Love
Don’t forget to come back and let me know how your easy creamy slow cooker fiesta chicken recipe turned out!
Crock Pot Fiesta Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 dry ranch dressing packet
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 10 oz can Rotel diced tomatoes and green chilies (do not drain)
- 1 15 oz can whole kernel corn (drained)
- 1 15 oz can black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 8 oz block of plain cream cheese
- 2 fresh squeezed limes
- ½ cup chicken broth
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in the Crock Pot. Add drained and rinsed black beans, drained corn, Rotel tomatoes, onion powder, ranch seasoning, and black pepper.
- Squeeze fresh lime juice over the top. Then pour chicken broth over ingredients and place cream cheese block on top.
- Place the lid on the slow cooker. Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or on LOW for 5-6 hours. Chicken is done when it reaches 165 degrees internal temperature.
- Remove chicken from the Crock Pot. Using two forks shred the chicken and add back into the Crock Pot.
- Stir all the ingredients together until cream cheese coats everything.
- Serve while hot and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?
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I love easy and delicious crock pot recipes like this!
I love them too!
This sounds like such a flavourful and delicious meal – my family would totally love it!
You should totally make this for them.
I am loving this chicken dinner idea! I can’t believe so much flavor is packed into such an easy dish. I love it when I can let the slow cooker do all the work.
I love when the slow cooker does all the work too.
Oh this I have to try – saving to make this weekend!
Let me know what you think once you try it.
Ooh such a great use of the slow cooker! So many great flavors. Love that the chicken reheats well for leftovers too.
It is definitely a great recipe for leftovers.
Guy question here. Are the chicken breasts thawed? IE not frozen? I think so but wanted to make sure.
The recipe calls for thawed chicken breasts. But if you want to use frozen you can bump the cooking time up by one hour. Just make sure the chicken reaches 165 degrees.
I’m trying this tonight! I followed the recipe exactly, except I added an additional small can of green chilies.I will then turn the result into enchiladas 🙂
I love the addition of green chilies. I can’t wait to hear how you like them.
I have tried and follow the recipe and is watery not thick what should I do ?
Did you drain both the black beans and corn? Also, make sure your chicken is not frozen, this could cause it to be thinner.
My family really liked this.
I’m so glad
How would you make this without a crock pot?
I haven’t made this on the stovetop, but you can add cooked chicken and all other ingredients to a large pot and cook on the stove top
I have two questions can we use taco seasoning? Can we omit the black beans? What would be a good substitution?
Yes you an use taco seasoning and if you want to omit the black beans all together you can. You can substitute them with kidney beans if you prefer.
Could I make this recipe and use it to make pinwheels using flour tortillas? Would I have to do anything extra to the mixture?
I havent made this into pinwheels, but I would love to hear how it turns out if you decide to try it.
This recipe is totally awesome 🥰
I’ve made this fiesta chicken 3 or 4 times! We love the finished dish, and it’s very easy to make. You have to try this, you won’t be disappointed! 😋
Thank you for sharing Betty!
I added some extra seasoning and hot sauce. I can say this one is better.
Glad you liked it.
I modified this only because I didn’t have time to go to the store first and still turned out great! I used diced tomatoes instead of Rotel, added a canned chipotle pepper, left out the ranch mix and used a partial container of chive and onion cream cheese. Served it with Fritos and shredded cheddar.
I tried this and it tasted good, but it was way too watery. I drained the corn. I rinsed and drained the black beans. Followed the recipe exactly and it’s just a big soupy mess.