Hold your taco plans! I don’t know what your dinner plans are this week but if they don’t involve making these Slow Cooker Thai Tacos, cancel them.
This slow cooked chicken is tossed with cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, peanuts, cilantro, and drizzled with a homemade peanut sauce. Oh, my! It’s the perfect combination of tangy, sweet, salty, with crunchy fresh veggies all wrapped in a warm tortilla!
Okay, you don’t HAVE to cancel your dinner plans, but I highly suggest you make some room for one of the most epic tacos you’ll ever make. Check how easy they are to make in this video.
How to Make Thai Chicken Tacos
Your eyes did not deceive you. The slow cooker does all the heavy lifting while the rest comes together in a big bowl. All you have to do is chop, drop, and slow cook! And if you don’t like to chop, chop, chop… save some time by buying pre-shredded cabbage, and you’re done!
Easy Thai Chicken
This recipe was originally posted as a Thai Chicken Salad recipe. But of course, I’m always thinking about Tacos. I can’t help it! And making Thai chicken is just so simple! Make it one night for the chicken salad and the next night for tacos.
I think about tacos so much; I wrote an entire cookbook called The Taco Tuesday Cookbook: 52 Tasty Taco Recipes to Make Every Week the Best Ever.
Thai Chicken with Peanuts
Not only do these tacos pack a powerful flavor punch but they’re also full of veggies, protein, and healthy fats from the oh-so-wonderful peanut sauce!
Let me tell you about this peanut sauce. I often make it ahead of time and keep it in the fridge. Then, I use it as a salad dressing during the week, to dip grilled chicken, and even with veggies as a snack. I’m pretty obsessed with it.
If you can’t have peanuts, you can still enjoy this recipe by using a sunflower seed butter to make it and omit the chopped nuts from the salad part. Soon, you’ll be obsessed with it too.
Another reason to love this recipe, leftovers (if that’s even possible!) are better the second day since the salad absorbs all the wonderful flavors of the sauce. For this reason, I like to make extra salad and refrigerate it for lunches later in the week since the cabbage doesn’t get soggy at all, it holds the texture very well.
Are you convinced yet that you have to make this recipe? I know, I know, you just need to scroll down and press the print button, I get it!
If you find yourself loving this recipe, then you should check out the lettuce cup version, it makes a perfect lunch or light dinner.
Here is to another remarkable taco night at your house.
Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Tacos with Peanut Sauce
Taco night just got better -and easier!- with these Slow Cooker Thai Chicken Tacos. The perfect combination of tangy, sweet, salty, with crunchy fresh veggies all wrapped in a warm tortilla and drizzled with Peanut Sauce!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 4-8 hours
- Total Time: 4 hours + 15 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Scale
Ingredients
Chicken:
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1/4 cup soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons chili paste (sriracha)
- 4 cloves garlic, grated
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 1/4 cup green onions, white part only, reserve green for serving
- 1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you can use thighs too)
Peanut Sauce:
- 1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
- 1 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or coconut aminos
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon chili paste (sriracha)
- 1–2 tablespoons hot water
For Serving:
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1 cup shredded purple cabbage
- 1 cup shredded (matchstick) carrots
- 1 cup diced red bell pepper
- 1/3 cup chopped unsalted peanuts
- Green onions
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges
Instructions
In the bowl of your slow cooker, whisk to combine lime juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, oil, fish sauce, chili paste, garlic, ginger, and onions. Add in chicken, cut into a few smaller pieces to make it fit in the slow cooker bowl, and stir to coat with sauce. Cook, on high for 4 hours or 8 on low.
While the chicken cooks, prepare peanut sauce by combining peanut butter, maple syrup or honey, lime juice, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and chili paste into a bowl. Add one tablespoon of water and whisk to combine. For a little thinner sauce, add water to the consistency you’d like.
Once chicken is cooked, remove chicken from slow cooker and cut into small chunks.
In a medium bowl, combine chicken, shredded cabbage, carrots, bell peppers, peanuts, green onions, and cilantro.
Top tortillas with chicken and veggie mixture and drizzle with peanut sauce. Serve with lime wedges.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 tacos
- Calories: 501
- Fat: 21.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 45 g
- Fiber: 6.1 g
- Protein: 35.5 g
