Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Chili (Dump and Go!)
This easy dump-and-go slow cooker chicken chili is made with just 6 simple pantry ingredients. You won’t believe how delicious easy can be! Also includes stovetop and Instant Pot instructions.
About This Recipe
We are huge fans of slow cooker chili around here, especially when the chili is made in the slow cooker as a super easy dump-and-go style recipe.
And, chili is always a crowd pleaser recipe!
Since it can be made ahead with a mostly hands-off cook time chili is also perfect for busy weeknights, relaxed weekends at home, potlucks, parties, game day and more.
This slow cooker chicken chili recipe is made super simple with just six ingredients, and very little prep.
It leans on taco-inspired flavors, and uses salsa as a way to add depth of flavor without extra chopping.
Tip: If you’re looking a creamy type of chicken chili, I highly recommend this creamy slow cooker white chicken chili instead.
Recipe Notes and Adaptation Ideas
This is a taco-inspired chicken chili, and includes simple spices like earthy cumin and garlic to kick up the flavor factor.
Or, for a vegetarian option, check out this easy and flavorful slow cooker vegetarian chili.
How to Store or Freeze Leftover Slow Cooker Chicken Chili
Homemade slow cooker chicken chili will keep well in the fridge for up to 3-4 days, in a sealed container.
This recipe also freezes well, so store in a sealed freezer friendly container for up to 2-3 months.
Tip: This recipe can be made ahead! Perfect for meal prep on busy weeks (or anytime you need to feed a crowd quickly & easily), just make ahead, store, and gently reheat when ready to serve.
Ingredients and Substitution Suggestions
Chicken: Boneless, skinless chicken breasts for boneless skinless chicken thighs work equally well in this recipe, so it really just depends on personal preference and what you have on hand.
Tomato sauce: Look for canned tomato sauce along with other tomato products in the canned section of your grocery store. Opt for a brand without added sugar to keep this recipe sugar-free.
Kidney beans: I like the earthy, almost meaty flavor and texture of kidney beans for this recipe, but chili beans, black beans, pinto beans, or white beans can also be used.
Chunky salsa: Look for a jarred, chunky salsa without any added sugar. Use mild for a mild chili, and spicy for more of a kick. I don’t recommend fresh salsa for this recipe, as the final result ends up on the watery side.
Cumin: Ground cumin adds an earthy flavor and makes this chili taste more like chili. I don’t recommend skipping it.
Granulated garlic: Granulated garlic adds flavor without any chopping, but feel free to substitute 2 cloves fresh minced garlic if you prefer.
Tip: Wondering what to serve with your chicken taco chili, here are 10 easy and delicious side dishes that complete a chili dinner menu.
More Easy Slow Cooker Chili Recipes
This Recipe Is…
Note: This recipe was originally titled 6-Ingredient Chicken Taco Chili. The title, post and photos have been updated to provide additional information, but the recipe remains the same.
Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Chili (Dump and Go)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or thighs
- 1 15-oz can tomato sauce
- 2 15-oz cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed, (or chili, black, or pinto beans)
- 1 15-oz jar chunky salsa, divided
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Optional Toppings
- Easy Guacamole
- Fresh Tomato Salsa
- Fresh lime juice, hot sauce, sour cream, grated cheese, chopped green onion, chopped cilantro
Equipment
Instructions
Slow Cooker Instructions
- Divide the jar of salsa in half.
- Place the chicken, tomato sauce, beans, half the salsa, cumin, garlic and salt in a 6-quart slow cooker, stirring to combine. Refrigerate the remaining salsa to add at the end.
- Cover and cook on high for 4-6 hours, or low for 6-8, or until the chicken is cooked through. Do not uncover during this time.
- Uncover, remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks, or chop into bite sized pieces. Add back to the slow cooker.
- Stir in the remaining salsa. Taste and add additional salt and hot sauce if desired. Serve with any toppings you like.
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Place the chicken, beans, cumin, garlic and salt in a 6-quart pressure cooker, stirring to combine.
- Pour over the salsa and the tomato sauce. Do not stir.
- Cover and cook on high pressure for 20 minutes, then allow to naturally release.
- Uncover, remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks, or chop into bite sized pieces. Add back to the pressure cooker.
- Stir in the remaining salsa. Taste and add additional salt and hot sauce if desired. Serve with any toppings you like.
Stovetop Instructions
- Place the chicken, tomato sauce, beans, half the salsa, cumin, garlic and salt in a large pot or Dutch oven, stirring to combine. Refrigerate the remaining salsa to add at the end.
- Over, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook, covered, for 40-55 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Uncover, remove the chicken to a cutting board and shred with two forks, or chop into bite sized pieces. Add back to the pot.
- Stir in the remaining salsa. Taste and add additional salt and hot sauce if desired. Serve with any toppings you like.
Great recipe! I added a 15 oz can of diced tomatoes to fluff it up a bit, since I added more chicken than recipe called for. May add some bell pepper next time for a bit of color and veggie content.
Julia, yum, love all these adaptations! And so glad you enjoyed. 🙂
This stew is so good. I added onion and green peppers. I also had to adjust but setting to medium otherwise I get the burn notification, but worth it to fix it for how yummy and simple it is. Any advice to avoid burn notice?
Kaela, setting to medium is a great option to avoid the burn notification. Pressure cookers are so different when it comes to the burn sensor (some are way more sensitive than others) so it sounds like you found a good fix!
Ahhhhhh!!!!! This is BANANAS how delicious and how easy this is. It’s astonishing that something that takes ONE minute to prep can be so tasty! This recipe was so easy and so good that on day eleventybillion of quarantine it feels like the greatest gift of my life! Thank you for this 💕
Amy, you win for best comment of the month. So happy to hear this is making your quarantine life just a little easier. Much love coming your way!
Just made this recipe for dinner. My husband said it was the best thing I’ve ever cooked. It was definitely the easiest! So much flavor!
I followed the recipe exactly and topped with cheese, green onions and cilantro. Served with blue corn chips.
Love all your recipes!
Stephanie, woohoo, that’s awesome. So glad you enjoyed–those toppings sound amazing!
This recipe is SO good, it is BY FAR my 1 of my favorite foods ever!!
Elle, thank you so much for your very kind review. I’m so happy this is one of your favorites!
I had this at my daughter’s house and loved it. She was so pleased that it was so easy as she has a newborn. I am planning on making a big pot of it for hubby and me later today.
Joanne, so happy to hear this one was a hit and worth making a second time!
can this be converted into a stovetop or oven recipe? I don’t have a slow cooker 🙁
Alyssa, yes you can do this one on the stovetop. Add all the ingredients to a Dutch oven or large heavy duty pot, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the chicken is cooked through and very tender. The chicken won’t likely have the same fall-apart consistency, but you can cut it into bite-sized pieces and it should still taste great!
My husband and I loved this recipe! We added sliced avocado, cilantro, sour cream, and shredded cheese as toppings. I added one tsp of cayenne and red chili flakes, and made it a bit more chicken heavy, and it was great for us! So easy and so good.
Love those topping ideas and that you tweaked this one a bit to fit our tastes, Sarah. Thanks so much for leaving a reveiw!
Excellent, easy, delicious recipe!!! I make it all the time now!
But when cooked in a pressure cooker, it took much longer than ten minutes.
Hi Taylor, so glad you enjoyed this recipe! When you say it took longer in the pressure cooker, do you mean the total time was longer than 10 minutes (meaning that it took additional time to come to pressure, then it needed 10 minutes to cook), or do you mean it took more than 10 minutes after the pressure cooker came to pressure? Thanks for letting me know so I can put a note in the recipe instructions. Cheers!
Robyn, it took its time to pressurize, then cooked for ten minutes, then vented. The chicken was still raw. I ended up letting it repressurize, cooked for an additional 45 minutes, vented, and it came out PERFECT (just too late to eat for supper that particular night). Would still 100% do it in the InstantPot again though!
Thanks, Taylor, that’s super helpful! I’m assuming the chicken wasn’t raw, correct? Just trying to figure out how the timing was so different for you than when I tested it. I’ll give it another go in my IP and will make a note on cook time in the recipe card as well. Thanks for the feedback, and glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Great. I used the ingredients I had up so took cover off mid way added sautéed garlic diced sautéed zucchini and partial steamed fresh corn removed from the cob. Added a little ancho chili pepper. ( put cover back on!) Three boys age 3 7 and 10 ate seconds. 👍
Karina, yay, so glad you enjoyed this one and made it work with what you had on hand. Thanks so much for leaving a review!
Can you prep this in the crockpot the night before and start it in the morning without sacrificing the recipe?
Nicole, yes, I’ve done it many times! I prep everything in the base of the slow cooker, cover, refrigerate, then put it back in the slow cooker unit and proceed with the recipe. I usually add an additional 30 minutes to account for the slow cooker base being cold, but otherwise the recipe stays the same.
Omg this was so so good! Stuck with only half the salsa and it was perfection! If I didn’t stop myself I would have eaten a ton! My kids loved it too and that is a win for this mama! ❤️
Wonderful, so happy to hear this one was a hit for you, Nicole! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!
Hi Robyn, how would i convert this recipe to a 1.5 quart slow cooker? should i cut the ingredients in half? thanks!!
I haven’t tried this one in a 1.5, but I’m guessing you could try cutting the ingredients in half. If you give it at ry let us know how it turns out!
Easy and delicious! I’ll make this again.
Fantastic, so happy to hear this one was a hit. Thanks for leaving a review!
Popped this in my slow cooker this morning and a delicious dinner was ready a few hours later. My husband declared it delicious! I loved it because it was so easy and used minimal ingredients!
Wonderful, so happy to hear you and your husband enjoyed this one, Darlene! Thanks so much for leaving a review!
Would this recipe as is fit in a 4.5 quart crockpot? I don’t have a 6 quart…..
Hi Noelle, I haven’t tested it, but i think it will work. You just want to make sure there is at least one inch clearance between the contents of the slow cooker and the lid. If you give it a try, let us know how it turns out!
to shred the chicken, all you need is to kinda smash it with a spatula or wooden spoon…when its cooked, it’ll break down right in the crock pot. i left out the salsa (too much salt) and just put in diced salt free tomatoes and italian herbs. i also used ground chicken and served it over roasted veggies, topped with fat free plain greek yogurt. the next morning i put some in a ramekin, warmed in the toaster oven, then nestled an egg in it and put it back in the toaster oven until soft cooked …yummy! try it with some baked spaghetti squash too…super yummy!!
Lala, so happy you enjoyed this one, and great tip about serving it with a soft cooked egg. Thanks so much for leaving a review!