My middle son is the kid that asks every night what’s for dinner. If I say it’s chicken he says we always have chicken and he says he hates chicken. Or if we have beef, if it’s not burgers, he says he doesn’t want it.
We have been having a lot of chicken lately. And every time he comes up for dinner and says – eww that’s gross I dont want chicken again. But you know what’s been happening…he’s loved it so much that I have almost had to make extra dinner for my husband when he gets home late for dinner and can’t eat with us.
Tonights dinner was no exception. Around 1pm I realized I hadn’t taken anything out for dinner. I knew i had about 2 pounds of frozen chicken tenderloin in the freezer that I could trow into the slow cooker. I added some spices and let it cook for about 4 hours on low.
About 30 minutes before we ate dinner, I shredded the chicken and added some Litehouse ranch dressing. (That’s our favorite.) I made some 5 minute rice and some green beans and dinner was done. It was so easy! I was able to get dinner done with only about 15 minutes of prep work. And it was a big hit with all the kids.
It’s also a great recipe because it can be used for tacos, on rice, in lettuce boats – the possibilities are endless! It can easily be double or tripled if you have a crowd of people coming over for dinner.
Printable Recipe For Slow Cooker Mexican Ranch Chicken
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Slow Cooker Mexican Ranch Chicken
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon ancho chili powder
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ cup water (see note)
- 2 pounds chicken breasts or tenderloins
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- ½ cup ranch dressing
Instructions:
- In a small dish mixt together the cumin, garlic powder, ancho chili powder, salt, onion powder, paprika, and dried oregano.
- Place the chicken breast into the slow cooker and drizzle the olive oil onto it.
- Sprinkle the spice mixture over the chicken.
- Cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-5 hours.
- About 30 minutes before serving, shred the chicken and add the ranch dressing.
Serve in tacos, on top or rice, in lettuce boats – the possibilities are endless!
Notes:
- If using frozen chicken cook for about 1 hour more.
- If using frozen chicken that has has a layer of ice on it you can omit the water. (The chicken you buy in large bags usually have the frozen layer of water.)
You can also throw all these ingredients (except for the ranch dressing) into a freezer bag and freeze it. Then you can just dump it all in your slow cooker when you are in a hurry to make dinner. Just write on the bag with a sharpie that you need to cook it on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
I love slow cooker freezer meals! I have a lost of 40 slow cooker freezer meals that you can make and have dinner done with just 1 mess!
