Salsa Chicken
I am always looking for simple ways to prepare delicious, homemade meals for my family on busy weeknights. After a long day, gathering around our family dinner table for a comforting meal is often my favorite part of the day. No matter the meal, it’s a chance to just be present together and enjoy each other’s company. If the meal is comforting and delicious and doesn’t require hours of planning, that’s a welcome bonus.
When Desert Pepper Trading Company invited me to participate in their Recipe Challenge, I wanted to create just that sort of recipe to share with you. I decided to taste the products they provided me to work with and try to imagine the most delicious ways to put them to use.
We had a taste test in the farmhouse kitchen to try each of them on a Saturday afternoon. We started with the Cantina Medium Salsa. I was surprised at how much flavor was packed into each bite. It reminded me of the fresh salsa I have made when we have tomatoes, peppers, and onions available in the garden. It’s the closest any jarred salsa has ever come to matching that homemade salsa for flavor and richness.
We moved on to the Peach Mango Salsa next. It was such a bright and delicious blend of flavors. I watched as my family kept dipping their tortilla chips in that jar, going back for more of that slightly sweet flavor. After one bite, I knew that I would be making fish tacos with that salsa and that the combination would be delicious.
After warming it up, we moved on to the Chile Con Queso. It was cheesy with just the right amount of heat for our tastebuds. Unlike so many other similar products I have tried, this one had a velvety texture. I loved how smooth it was from jar to spoon and drizzled over nachos.
I set about dreaming up ways I could incorporate these products into a recipe to share with you. I tried several that were delicious, but a bit more involved than I had in mind for this recipe. I knew that these flavorful Desert Pepper products would add incredible flavor to whatever recipe I added them to, but I couldn’t seem to land on a recipe that was simple, weeknight friendly, and really let the fresh flavor of these products shine through.
Then, on a particularly busy evening when the time for dinner prep was painfully short, I decided to cook chicken breasts in my Instant Pot. I knew that it was a quick way for me to cook chicken for dinner while I cleaned up from my day spent outside working in the garden. I added the chicken to the pot and surveyed the spice drawer and refrigerator for ways to add flavor to the chicken.
I reached for the jar of Desert Pepper Cantina Salsa that we had taste tested a few days earlier. I added some to the pot along with a few spices from the spice drawer. I fastened the lid, set the pot to cook, and went to clean up before dinner.
When I returned and opened the lid, I discovered juicy, fully cooked chicken ready to be shredded for dinner. The salsa had kept the chicken juicy and it was easy to pull apart into shredded pieces that everyone could enjoy in soft tacos, burritos, sandwiches, or served on a bed of the fresh greens I had brought in from the garden.
I shredded the chicken and returned it to the pot, stirring it to coat it in the salsa broth that had collected in the pot. I helped myself to a taste to see if it needed additional seasoning. It didn’t. It was perfect. I was surprised at how much of the fresh flavor from the Cantina salsa came through.
Since then, this Salsa Chicken has become a weeknight staple here at the farmhouse. It’s the perfect sort of meal for a busy weeknight. Not only is it easy, but it is so flavorful and delicious. I make a bit pot of this recipe at the beginning of the week and we enjoy it for several nights. It’s so versatile and we continue to invent new ways to enjoy this juicy, flavorful chicken at our dinner table. I hope that you’ll find ways to enjoy it at yours.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot, don’t worry. I have included a recipe that can be made using your slow cooker. It’s equally delicious and full of flavor.
You can find Desert Pepper Trading Products at Sprouts, Publix, Hannaford, Harris Teeter, Shop Rite, Walmart, Giant Eagle, Market Basket, Jewel, and Meijer.
Looking for ideas for delicious weeknight meals? You can find a few of my favorites right here:
Salsa Chicken – Instant Pot Version
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- ¼ cup Desert Pepper Cantina Salsa
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Desert Pepper Chile Con Queso for serving
- Desert Pepper Salsa in your favorite variety for serving
Instructions
- Place the salsa, chicken, and seasonings in the pot. Stir the chicken to coat.
- Secure the lid and turn the valve to the sealing position. Select the Manual or Pressure Cook settings and select a cook time of between 10-15 minutes.I find that large, thick chicken breasts need a full 14-15 minutes, although you can cut them in half horizontally for quicker cooking if you prefer. Chicken thighs or thin chicken breasts should be fully cooked in 10-12 minutes. Frozen chicken will require a few extra minutes to cook through.Thanks to the salsa, there’s really no worry about overcooking the chicken or ending up with dry chicken, so I usually set my Instant Pot to 14 minutes on the Manual setting unless I have particularly large pieces or frozen chicken.
- When the cook time has elapsed, allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 to 10 minutes before opening the valve to vent and then removing the lid.
- Remove the chicken from the pot. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 165ºF. Shred the chicken using two large forks. Return the shredded chicken to the pot. Stir to coat the chicken in the flavorful salsa broth in the pot.
- Serve immediately or allow the chicken to rest in the broth on the warm setting, absorbing the delicious flavor of the salsa and seasonings until you are ready to serve.
Salsa Chicken – Slow Cooker Version
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
- ¼ cup Desert Pepper Cantina Salsa
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Desert Pepper Chile Con Queso for serving
- Desert Pepper Salsa in your favorite variety for serving
Instructions
- Place the salsa, chicken, and seasonings in the slow cooker. Stir the chicken to coat.
- Cover with the lid and cook on low for 4 – 6 hours or high for 3 – 4 hours, until cooked through. The internal temperature of the chicken should reach 165ºF. Thanks to the salsa, there’s really no worry about overcooking the chicken, so you can allow the chicken to cook longer to fit into your schedule without any worry of ending up with dry chicken.
- When the chicken is fully cooked, it should be easy to shred using two large forks. Shred the chicken directly in the slow cooker or remove the chicken pieces from the pot, shred, and return to the pot with the salsa broth. Stir to coat the chicken in the flavorful broth.
- Serve immediately or allow the chicken to rest in the broth on the low or warm setting to absorb the delicious flavor of the salsa and seasonings until you are ready to serve.
This recipe was created for the Desert Pepper Trading Company Recipe Challenge. I was provided the Desert Pepper Trading Company products used in this recipe as part of my participation in the recipe challenge. This post was not sponsored and I was not paid to use, review, or recommend the product.
We’re grateful to have the opportunity to share a high-quality brand with our readers. You can learn more about this product by visiting Desert Pepper Trading Company online, or on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
1840 Farm abides by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion, and identity. Compensation received from sponsors will never influence the topics or posts made on this blog. Sponsored posts will be clearly labeled as such. Product reviews will include our honest opinions about the product(s) reviewed. Products that do not meet our standards of daily use on our farm will not be reviewed. Samples of the products that I review are sent to me at no expense in order to allow me to use the product and evaluate its performance. The framework of our review process does not guarantee a positive review in exchange for the product provided. Our product reviews contain both facts about the product and my personal opinion of its performance while it was used at 1840 Farm.
My favorite salsa! The black bean and corn is our top pick for a Southwestern chicken recipe with avocado, cilantro, lime, and crema; meatless, hot or cold, our go-to summer meal or just to dip some corn tortillas ! will have to try your recipe, thanks! Been eating it for quite a few years. And I could DRINK the Mango Peach straight from the jar!!😆Currently the two stores (Kroger and Meijer) no longer carry it. Thanks Jennifer for posting.