A nourishing, one-pot family favourite perfect for babies, toddlers and beyond
This is one of our go-to recipes when we want something easy, hands-off, and packed with flavour – whether we’re home or out camping. It’s the kind of dish you can throw together in baby’s nap time, leave to cook low and slow, then come back to perfectly tender, shred-it-with-a-fork chicken. I find for me, doing the after school sports now, I rely on these meals I can pop on at lunch and have ready waiting for me when I get home with hangry children.
It also works beautifully over a campfire in a Dutch oven if you’re a camper!
I prefer to cook this one in the oven as it gives more depth of flavour, but we’ve included a slow cooker version too – with slightly less liquid, so it’s not too watery at the end.
It’s a great source of iron, easy to freeze, and works well for babies just starting out or toddlers going through a fussy phase.
Suitable From:
Around 6 months+ You can offer it shredded as a finger food or mix into mashed vegetables or broth for spoon feeding.
Swaps:
- Chicken thighs can be swapped for chicken breast, but thighs give a juicier result
- Bone broth can be substituted with vegetable broth or water
- Garlic/onion-free: swap for leek or fennel if needed
- Mingle do a great taco spice mix packet if you want to swap out all the spices for this, for an even easier dinner.
Serving Suggestions:
- Stuff into soft wraps or tacos with mashed avocado and grated cheese
- Serve with nachos, guacamole, cheese and black beans
- Serve over rice, quinoa, or sweet potato
- Mix with yoghurt or mashed veggies for babies
- Add into quesadillas or over baked potatoes
Storage:
Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge and reheat gently before serving.
Slow Cooked Mexican Shredded Chicken
Ingredients
- 700 grams chicken thigh
- 1 onion finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 400 grams tinned tomatoes
- 2 TBSP tomato paste
- 1 cup chicken broth SLOW COOK: only use ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1.5 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- pinch or two of salt
- 2 TBSP olive oil or cooking fat of choice
optional
- 200 grams tinned black beans half a tin, drained
Instructions
OVEN INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 130C fan-forced.
- In a large oven-safe pot or Dutch oven, heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until softened and fragrant.
- Remove from heat and deglaze the pan with ½ cup of the bone broth, scraping up any browned bits.
- Add chicken thighs, diced tomatoes, remaining broth, tomato paste, and all spices. Stir well to coat.
- Cover with a lid and place in the oven for 4 hours, until the chicken is tender and pulls apart easily.
- Shred the chicken directly in the pot using two forks, stir through the sauce.
- If using black beans, add now and pop the lid on until ready to serve, the residual heat from the chicken will be enough to warm them through.
SLOW COOKER INSTRUCTIONS
- In a pan, heat olive oil and sauté onion and garlic until softened. Add the spices and salt, and cook for one minute to toast and release flavour.
- Deglaze the pan with 2 tablespoons of broth, then add chicken thighs and brown slightly. Stir in the diced tomatoes and ¼ cup of broth and black beans if using.
- Transfer everything into your slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours.
- Shred the chicken with forks and stir through the sauce before serving.
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