Best Chicken Tacos
One Weight Watchers point per serving chicken taco filling? Yes please! This blog post is being updated since I first posted this recipe in 2011 – nearly 13 years ago! At only 1 Weight Watchers point per serving, you can splurge on a bit of cheese. 🥰 But these were the best chicken tacos I’ve ever had. And in true food blogger practice, I never made them again. This is on my list to make again this week!
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Tony was flipping through the channels on Saturday and he stopped it on America’s Test Kitchens to have me watch how they made chicken tacos. The first word I heard was “chipotle peppers” which meant I was in, Tony was out. So while I made taco seasoning chicken tacos for Tony and Hannah, they missed out on the best chicken tacos I’ve ever had – I literally had to stop myself from taking more chicken out of the bowl! Perfect for tacos, burritos, or to make chicken nachos.
Best Chicken Tacos
These are hands down one of the most flavorful chicken tacos I've ever had. Who knew adding orange juice and mustard to tacos would be delicious?
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon canola oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 3/4 cup chopped cilantro, divided
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- Tortillas of your choice (for serving)
Instructions
Prepare the Pan: Heat 1 teaspoon of canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Cook Aromatics: Add the minced garlic and chipotle peppers to the skillet. Sauté for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant.
Build the Sauce Base: Add 1/2 cup of the chopped cilantro, the orange juice, and Worcestershire sauce to the skillet. Stir to combine.
Cook the Chicken: Nestle the chicken breasts into the sauce in a single layer. Cover the skillet, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through (internal temperature should reach 165°F).
Shred the Chicken: Remove the chicken from the skillet and let it rest for a couple of minutes. Use two forks to shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
Finish the Sauce: Whisk the yellow mustard and the remaining 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro into the sauce in the skillet. Stir well to combine.
Coat the Chicken: Return the shredded chicken to the skillet, tossing it in the sauce until it’s fully coated.
Serve: Warm your favorite tortillas, and serve the chicken mixture as taco filling. Garnish as desired (e.g., with additional cilantro, lime wedges, or other toppings).
Notes
As of the date of this publication, the chicken filling is 1 WW point per serving. Click here for the WW tracker.
The picture above was taken years later – the pic below was the original picture, when I thought I knew how to take a good food photo 😀
I can’t describe what a unique flavor this is – it’s slightly sweet because of the orange juice, but then you get the tang of the mustard at the end and the brightness of the fresh cilantro. This one is a keeper – for me. And actually when I was packing my lunch I thought how much my old Weight Watchers buddies would have loved this lunch. 🙁
The other thing missing from this picture is the “refried” beans I made. I thought I had refried beans, but I didn’t so I drained a can of cannelli beans, put it in a small sauce pan with 1 4 oz. can of green chilis. I heated it for about 10 minutes on low heat, then used a potato masher and mashed it up – it looked like baby food, but it was so good!
I was able to use my free gym pass at lunch yesterday though – so I did 2.75 miles in 35 minutes, all while watching Pregnant and 16 on MTV. I think every teenager should watch that show – it’s so sad seeing these super young girls having to grow up so fast when they have a baby. Hell, it made me grow up when I had Hannah and I was 23!
We have so much leftover ham, I am trying to find ways to use it up. I asked Tony what he had for lunch and he was like “I had a ham sandwich.” Rats. I thought he wouldn’t be up for having ham for dinner, because I found a recipe I wanted to make. Cheesy Baked Penne from RecipeGirl. I copied her recipe pretty much verbatim, except I reduced the provolone cheese and Parmesan cheese down to 1/2 a cup each instead of a full cup. And I didn’t bake it – Tony doesn’t like baked pasta, and it looked perfect the way it was – and this literally took about 15 minutes to put together.
When I told him what I was going to make he was all over it – he loves ham and peas. 😀 I made this 6 servings since its so rich, it comes out to be 390 calories, 13.8 fat, 45 carbs, 1.4 fiber and 2.6 grams of protein, or 10 PointsPlus. Definitely Weight Watchers approved and worth the points!
I did end up adding some pasta water to the sauce – I didn’t want a cheese sauce, but rather the sauce to just coat the pasta – this was pure comfort in a bowl. 😀
I have to tell you though I was hungry a lot yesterday. I think I added about 10 points in extras because I was so hungry – a handful of peanuts, a piece of cheese and ham while making dinner, crackers and cheese after dinner. I think maybe I need to add more protein?
It’s Wednesday so its . . . Hanging With Hannah! 😀 We are going to go to the gym and swim and then pick up Chipotle and probably come back and watch American Idol. 😀
Stats for Tuesday:
- 41 points
- 30 minute water jogging
- 40 minute treadmill jogging (2.75 miles)
- average blood sugar 151
Happy Wednesday!😀 Make it a great day!
These ARE the best tacos EVER! Made them for cinco de mayo tonight – AMAZING. Thanks for sharing another great recipe!
That pasta looks delish!
I’ve never gotten into 16 & Pregnant – I’ve watched a few episodes but it doesn’t draw me in like some of the other reality shows I’m hooked on.
I’ve been a food beast the last few days. I’m starting to think it’s “lady issues” coming to visit a little early. Regardless, I’ll blame them anyway! Those chicken tacos sound delish! Hope date night is fabulous!
Oh, that pasta seriously looks amazing! And I’m sad that Tony and Hannah didn’t get to enjoy those tacos with you! They look amazing!
I so have to make those Chicken Tacos…I LOVE Chicken tacos…and have never made them at home.
Biz, I don’t know why, but your post had me giggling this morning! I’m totally going to make those tacos…sometimes I want something other than the typical ground beef taco and I think Dave would actually eat these!
I have Mexican chicken cooking in my crock pot for tacos for tonight! Your recipe looks intriguing with the addition of orange juice and I absolutely love chipotle peppers!
I have an Aqua Jogger to use in our pool and I’m just waiting for it to get warm enough so I can use it! It’s a great workout and so easy on the joints.
I love 16& Preg and Teen Mom. I don’t get how the media thinks it’s “glorifying” teen pregnancy. They show some serious trials and tribulations on that show. It’s definitely made ME think about having my 1st kid and I’m 26 and about to be married!
I love the pool exercises! If I had regular access to a pool I think I’d do those all the time!
Chicken tacos sound delicious. I actually had a different version of chicken tacos last night. Mixed shredded chicken with cream of chicken soup and rotel tomatoes. So good.
Cream of chicken soup? Never thought of that one!
I found my blog post for those. I made them all the way back in July of 2009!
http://www.slim-shoppin.com/easy-chicken-tacos/
And, I guess that’s why we are twins, because I said they were the best chicken taco’s I’ve ever had too!! 🙂
The aquafit picture cracked me up!!! I have 8 more “punches” on my prepaid aquafit card which I refuse to waste, but once they’re done, my days of waving my floating noodle around in the pool will be OVER! 🙂 Maybe I’ll replace those workouts with aquajogging!!! Have a great Hang with Hannah day Biz. (and as always, your meals look YUM!)
copied and pasted – the tacos sound amazing!!
That’s so funny – i’m 50/50 – sometimes I like the crunch I get from baked pasta but sometimes it’s almost too dry for me.
The ‘water jogging’ looks hard! Sweating? In a pool? Wow! I love the pic below it- so cute – I like the aquatics oldies. 🙂
OMG those look delish! i would probably put a ton of jalapeno peppers on mine!
Yum! Cinco de Mayo’s right around the corner….perhaps dinner shall be chicken soft tacos! 🙂
Jake jokes with me that I leave my patience at work, just like you leave your organizational skills LOL.
Those chicken tacos sound great! I love the OJ and mustard flavors… so different but super tasty!
That chicken taco recipe is really, really good. Its actually from Cook’s Country( a publication of Americas test kitchen). I made them when the mag first came out. Thanks for reminding me about them again. Did you ever announce who won your cheese contest?
Thank you for the reminder Randi! With all my work drama, I completely forgot about it – I plan on doing a giveaway winner post on Saturday – 😀
Before we bought our house 5 years ago, I’d never had a dishwasher so every holiday was consumed by me at the sink trying to clean up! Now that I’ve had one, I tell Mr. Helen all the time that it’s one of my favorite appliances and if it ever goes down, there’s no option, it must be replaced ASAP!
That pasta and ham dish looks sooooooo good. I may have to buy some ham just to try it!
Pool workouts are so much harder than people think! I aqua-jogged in my parents’ pool the summer before last and it really firmed me up! Sadly, they sold their house to move into an active 55 community, so no more pool 🙁 Well, they do have a pool in the community, but the old people give you the stink eye if you get in it 😉
I was considering a baked potato for breakfast [weird, I know…but hey!] but now I think I want your pasta. YUM!
Yess!! That pool workout is fun & makes ya sweat! 🙂 hehe You go girl!
The tacos look so good…so does the pasta!!!
Yum! You know, when I get super hungry, it’s usually because I have PMS. Those days, I just don’t fight it and I eat more.
The old people in the pool made me laugh! I used to do water aerobics and thought it was fun!
These sound amazing! Had to laugh at the mental image of you staring down the pool geezers. 🙂
I laughed out loud at “pool geezers” KW! 😀
oh no! I hope the dishwasher gets fixed quick! I hand wash a good deal, but I throw ALL of our glasses in the dish washer. Love that thing. Glad you got in a good water workout. I need to get back in the pool for some laps. The tacos look AMAZING. And I really enjoy homemade refried beans, its nice to know what goes in them. Have fun tonight with Hannah! Jealous of the Chipotle
Those chicken tacos sound very good, love the chipotles!
I have got to make those tacos! You know me…big fan of America’s Test Kitchen…for the most part, I love all of the recipes I have made of theirs and some are well….just absolutely OVER THE TOP good! Sometimes I wonder if so many other cookbooks actually MAKE the recipes before they publish them to a cookbook.
I wish I could find a pool to work out in….I think I would love water jogging!
Always be nice to old people, because one thing is for sure….we will ALL be old people one day! lol
I actually think of you Renee whenever I do an America’s Test Kitchen recipe! 😀
I’ve made those before, the orange juice/mustard/worcestershire mixture with the tacos. I loved it! I think I called it tangy chicken fajitas on my blog or something like that. They were awesome.
Love your water workout! I so wish I had a pool nearby that I could do that!
16 & Pregnant is one of those shows I can’t NOT watch because it’s such a trainwreck, but it worries me how much they glam up teen pregnancy by having the Teen Mom spinoff and magazine covers etc!
Mmm, your eats look sooo tasty!