Creamy Mexican Shredded Chicken

This slow-cooked Creamy Mexican Shredded Chicken is a warm, easy dinner that the whole family can enjoy together! It cooks low and slow until the chicken turns soft, and the sauce becomes rich and creamy with a little Mexican-style kick.

Servings: 5

Ingredients

• 5 chicken maryland pieces (about 1 to 1.5 kg total, with bone and skin still on)
• 1 block (250g) Philadelphia cream cheese
• 1 packet (35g) taco seasoning mix
• 150ml cooking cream
• A little cornflour, used to thicken the sauce at the end

Creamy Mexican Shredded Chicken: Directions

1. Add the chicken. Place all the chicken maryland pieces into the bottom of your slow cooker, spreading them out so they sit in one even layer.
2. Add the cream cheese. Cut the block of Philadelphia cream cheese into small cubes. Scatter the cubes evenly over the top of the chicken pieces so they melt down nicely as everything cooks.
3. Add the seasoning. Sprinkle the full packet of taco seasoning mix evenly across the chicken and cream cheese, making sure it covers as much of the surface as you can.
4. Cook on low. Put the lid on your slow cooker and cook everything on the LOW setting for 4 hours, letting the chicken slowly cook until it’s tender and fully done.
5. Take out the chicken. Carefully lift the chicken pieces out of the slow cooker using tongs or a slotted spoon, and place them on a plate or cutting board. Once they’re cool enough to touch, remove the skin and bones, and pull the meat apart into shredded pieces. Set the chicken meat aside for now.
6. Whisk the sauce. While the chicken is out of the slow cooker, give the sauce left behind a really good whisk. This helps break up any leftover lumps of cream cheese and makes the sauce smooth and well combined.
7. Thicken the sauce. In a small cup or bowl, mix about 1 heaping tablespoon of cornflour into the 150ml of cooking cream until smooth. Pour this mixture into the sauce in the slow cooker and whisk again until everything blends together nicely.
8. Return the chicken. Add the shredded chicken meat back into the slow cooker with the sauce. Stir everything together gently so the chicken gets fully coated in that creamy, cheesy sauce.
9. Finish cooking. Put the lid back on and let everything cook on LOW for another 30 minutes so the sauce thickens up and the flavors blend together.
10. Serve and enjoy. Spoon the creamy shredded chicken onto plates and serve warm. It’s tasty with steamed broccoli on the side, or you can serve it over rice if you’d like a heartier meal — both ways are delicious!