· In: Dinner, Lunch, Meal Prep
If you love Chipotle, you need to make this quick and easy copycat Chipotle chicken! It is the perfect protein to add to burritos, tacos, bowls or salads, and you can even make it ahead of time to easily add to meals throughout the week.
Why I Love Making Copycat Chipotle Chicken
This recipe uses boneless, skinless chicken thighs marinated in a spicy, flavorful chipotle sauce. You can cook the chicken on a grill, in a cast iron pan, or air fryer! It’s smokey and charred on the outside, and tender and juicy on the inside… it tastes EXACTLY like the chicken from Chipotle!
Chipotle is one of the only fast foods places I like to go to, there food is fresh and it’s easy to choose a healthy meal there that tastes delicious! I love their chicken, but usually end up having to ask for double chicken on my bowls because sometimes they skimp you… by making it at home, you NEVER have to ask for double chicken!
Also – I’m almost positive that if you added up all of these ingredients it would be way less than ONE BOWL from Chipotle!
How to Easily Adjust the Spiciness
One of my favorite parts about this recipe is that you can EASILY ADJUST how spicy the chicken is. At the store you want to buy a 7.5 ounce can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. It will probably be in the International isle near all of the hot sauces and taco kits.
This chicken has a mild-medium spice level, similar to chicken at Chipotle. It has a ton of flavor and a medium spicy kick to it without being over the top. It was the perfect amount of spice for me (I like spicy food), and my husband Finn thought it was perfect too, and he likes more mild spice.
When you open the can you will see that there are whole chipotle peppers, and then there is a red adobo sauce. The chipotle peppers are where most of the spice is, the adobo sauce is more of a medium spice.
I used a fork to grab two chipotle peppers, then I used a spoon to get 2 tbsp of the adobo sauce to add to my marinade. I found this to be the PERFECT mild-medium spice for 1lb of chicken thighs.
IF YOU WANT IT MORE SPICY:
If you want to add more spice, add a few more whole chipotle peppers and some more adobo sauce. I’ve seen a few recipes call for the entire 7 ounce can, but that would be way to spicy for me!
IF YOU WANT IT LESS SPICY:
If you want this chicken to be more mild and kid-friendly, I would leave out the whole chipotle peppers and just do 1-2 tbsp of adobo sauce.
How to Serve Copycat Chipotle Chicken
There are so many ways you can serve this chicken!
- In a burrito
- In tacos
- In a burrito bowl
- On a salad
- In a quesadilla
I love making a burrito bowl with homemade cilantro lime rice (just stir lime juice, chopped cilantro and a pinch of salt into cooked rice), chopped romaine, copycat Chipotle chicken, and of course GUACAMOLE!
I hope you enjoy this recipe! 🙂
If you love Chipotle, you need to make this quick and easy copycat Chipotle chicken! It is the perfect protein to add to burritos, tacos, bowls or salads, and you can even make it ahead of time to easily add to meals throughout the week.
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Prep Time:40 minutes mins
Cook Time:20 minutes mins
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 7.5 ounce can of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (I used 2 chipotle peppers and 2 tbsp adobo sauce)
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil
Instructions
Open the can of chipotle peppers. You can adjust the spiciness of the chicken depending on how many chipotle peppers you add. I used 2 chipotle peppers and 2 tbsp of the adobo sauce from the can which gave the chicken a medium spice level that was very similar to Chipotle's!
Add the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, white vinegar, minced garlic, cumin, dried oregano, salt, pepper and water to a blender. Blend for about 30 seconds until smooth.
Place the chicken thighs in a ziplock bag or bowl and pour the chipotle marinade on top. Toss well to combine.
Zip up the bag or cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
You can grill the chicken, or heat a cast iron skillet over medium heat with 1/2 tbsp of olive oil. Add the chicken thighs and cook for 6-7 minutes per side until they have a light char on the outside and the inside temperature is at least 165F.
Place the chicken on a cutting board and let it rest for a few minutes before dicing it. You can serve this straight away in a burrito, bowl or salad, or store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
Notes
This recipe makes about 4 servings:
151 calories, 18g protein, 0.7g carbs, 9g fat per serving
