Save yourself a ton of money with this easy to make Copycat Chipotle Chicken Recipe. Use the chicken to make your own tacos, burritos, bowls and salads at home for a fraction of the cost of take out.
Chipotle restaurant use chicken thighs for their chopped chicken. There’s a good reason for that. Chicken thighs are more tender and juicier when cooked. You can use either thighs or breasts. Both will taste delicious in this recipe.
If using chicken breasts keep them from drying out during cooking by pounding them so they are the same thickness. Usually one end of the chicken breast is much thicker than the other. Pounding the thicker side helps to make them the same thickness. This means you won’t end up with the thinner end getting dried out before the thicker end finishes cooking.
Easy Copycat Chipotle Chicken Recipe
What gives the diced chicken used in tacos, quesadillas, burrito bowls and salads is the delicious chipotle marinade. You can easily recreate the Chipotle chicken marinade at home with ingredients that you can find in your local grocery store. The marinated chicken is then cooked (use your oven or air fryer), chopped and used in your favorite recipes.
Check out the FAQ section below for the ingredient swaps you can use with this recipe.
Copycat Chipotle Chicken Ingredients:
- Red onion – use a medium sized onion for this recipe.
- Chipotle peppers or Chiles in Adobo Sauce – go with your favorite brand of canned Chipotle chiles in Adobo sauce. If you can’t find any see our substitution suggestion below. The smokey flavors of chipotle chiles give the cooked chicken extra flavor and a little bit of heat.
- Adobo sauce – you’ll want to add in some additional sauce that the chipotle chiles come in to the marinade so make sure to save it.
- Garlic – minced or whole garlic cloves works with this recipe.
- Apple cider vinegar – don’t skip this. It helps the chicken absorb the marinade.
- Olive oil – adding a bit of oil keeps the chicken juicy when it’s cooking.
- Herbs/Spices – these include cumin, oregano, salt and ground black pepper.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs – use your choice of chicken cuts. They all work with this recipe.
Directions for making Copycat Chipotle Chicken:
Prep the chicken by placing each piece between waxed paper or in a plastic bag and pound it to an even thickness using a meat mallet or a heavy can. Place in a storage bag or a covered container while preparing marinade.
Prepare the marinade: Place the marinade ingredients including red onion, garlic, adobo chiles, adobo sauce, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper in a blender and puree.
Step1: Pour contents of blender over chicken that you put in a container or plastic bag. Turn to evenly coat the chicken in marinade. Place the chicken in the refrigerator. Allow it to marinate 2-6 hours. You can also overnight if desired.
Step 2: To cook the chicken in an air fryer: Follow your air fryer directions for preheating. Place several pieces of chicken, evenly spaced, in the air fryer. Set the temperature to 370 degrees or use the chicken setting (this will depend on your air fryer) and cook the chicken for 10 minutes.
Step 3: Flip the chicken over and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and the juices run clear.
Step 4: Remove the chicken and allow to rest 5 minutes. Place chicken on a cutting board and dice into small, bite-sized pieces. The chicken is now ready to be used in your favorite recipes.
Don’t have an air fryer? You can still make this Chipotle chicken recipe in the oven.
Directions to make Chipotle Chicken in the oven:
To cook the chicken in the oven:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken in a baking pan.
Bake 20 minutes.
Step 2: Turn and bake another 10 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees and the juices run clear.
Step 3: Remove the chicken and allow to rest 5 minutes. Place chicken on a cutting board and dice into small, bite-sized pieces.
The chicken is now ready to be used in your favorite recipes.
Tips and Substitutions:
What can I use in place of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce?
Chipotle chiles in adobo sauce add a bit of heat along with a smokey flavor.
If you don’t have any on hand, and can’t find them in a local store, then you can try substituting a teaspoon of Tabasco chipotle hot sauce in its place.
If you don’t have that then a mix of smoked paprika and cayenne pepper can be used. Try 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika and ½ a teaspoon of cayenne in the marinade in place of the chiles.
Other Substitutions:
Apple cider vinegar can be replaced with white vinegar.
Olive oil can be replaced with your favorite light flavored oil such as vegetable, canola oil, safflower oil, avocado oil, etc.
How long should I marinate the chicken?
The longer you marinate the chicken the more flavor it will have. The minimum amount of time it should be marinated is 2 hours. Try at least 6 hours to give it that restaurant quality flavor. Overnight is even better.
Freezer marinating tip:
You can even try a freezer marinating method.
Place your pieces of chicken in a freezer bag, top with marinade and freeze. When the chicken is thawing the marinade will infuse it with flavor. Why not double or triple the batch of marinade and give it a try!
How can I use Copycat Chipotle chicken?
Chipotle sells their chicken in burritos, bowls and in salads. Don’t limit yourself too just these. Try this chicken in tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas and other favorite dishes.
Serve it up with your favorite toppings such as black beans, pinto beans, or even refried beans.
Top your chipotle chicken tacos, burritos or salad bowls with fresh pico de gallo or your favorite salsa.
Try making burrito or rice bowls with cilantro lime rice or your favorite brown rice.
Add a squeeze of fresh lime juice over the chicken and top with a bit of sour cream.
Shred the chicken and use it to make these Air Fryer Chicken Taquitos.…so good!
Storage Instructions:
Store leftovers in a covered airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also freeze leftovers in a freezer bag or freezer safe container for up to 3 months. Remember to mark your freezer bag/container with the date.
Try this recipe and love it? Review it by clicking the star rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ on the recipe card! This helps other readers to find this recipe since the recipe rating will encourage search engines, such as Google, to suggest it to others. This helps support Remake My Plate as we are a reader supported publication.
Copycat Chipotle Chicken Recipe
Equipment
- Cutting board
- Sharp knife
- Baking dish
- Air Fryer optional
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium Red Onion
- 2-3 Chipotle chilies in Adobo sauce
- 2 tablespoons Adobo sauce
- 1 tablespoon Garlic, minced or 3 whole cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Ground Cumin
- 1 tablespoon Oregano
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs
Instructions
- Prep chicken by placing each piece between waxed paper or in a plastic bag and pound to an even thickness using a meat mallet or a heavy can. Place in a storage bag or a covered container while preparing marinade.
Prepare the marinade
- Place red onion, garlic, adobo chiles, adobo sauce, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper in a blender and puree.
Prepare the chicken
- Place the chicken in a plastic storage bag or storage container. Pour contents of blender over chicken. Turn to even coat chicken. Place in refrigerator and all the chicken to marinate 2-6 hours. You can also allow it to marinate overnight if desired.
To cook in the air fryer
- Follow your air fryer directions for preheating. Place several evenly spaced pieces of chicken in the air fryer. Set the temperature to 370 degrees or use the chicken setting (this will depend on your air fryer) cook the chicken for 10 minutes. Turn and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and the juices run clear.
To cook in the oven
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken in a baking pan. Bake 20 minutes. Turn and bake another 10 minutes or until the internal temperature is 165 degrees and the juices run clear.
- Remove the chicken and allow to rest 5 minutes. Dice into small, bite sized pieces. The chicken is now ready to be used in your favorite recipes.
Nutrition
You might also like one of these recipes:
Easy to make Pineapple Coconut Dump Cake
Want to get new recipes sent directly to your inbox? Then subscribe to our newsletter (see below) and be the first to know when we post a new recipe as well as get weekly shopping, cooking and meal planning tips. Follow me on Pinterest where you can find links to our recipes as well as other recipes you and your family will enjoy.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy. If you click on the banner below you will be taken directly to my Etsy shop to see the digital items currently listed.
