Chicken Tinga Tostadas

Create these incredibly tasty Chicken Tinga Tostadas from scratch in under 40 minutes. This quick family dinner recipe features shredded rotisserie chicken simmered in a fiery chipotle tinga sauce. Choose your spice level then customize each tostada with a selection of toppings and garnishes.

If your looking for more Mexican recipes, why not mix up a batch of Homemade Horchata and make it a meal with a classic side of Pinto Beans and Rice? Then, finish off your family fiesta with Churros with chocolate sauce for dipping. 

Chicken Tinga Tostadas

Who’s up for changing Taco Tuesdays into Tostada Tuesdays? Either way, this easy chicken tinga recipe is delicious in both Mexican dishes. Your family will love it on crispy corn tostadas or as chicken tinga tacos on fresh flour or corn tortillas. It’s also delicious in a burrito or as a filling for enchiladas.

Tender pulled rotisserie chicken is the perfect ‘meal prep hack’ when you combine it with tomatoes, chipotle chiles in adobo, herbs, and aromatics. I also like to cook batches of boneless skinless chicken thighs in my Instant Pot for ready made dinner convenience.

However, you can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts and cook them in the instant pot or slow cooker.

This recipe is all about the Mexican shredded chicken, but the toppings are a close second. The sky’s the limit when you build a huge tostada toppings bar then let your family’s imagination run wild. Tuesdays will never be the same again!

Tacos vs Tostadas

Though they are recognized as two different dishes, tacos and tostadas are one in the same. The difference is that tacos are eaten on warmed fresh flour or corn tortillas while tostadas have a crispy corn tortilla base.

A tostada is essentially a stale tortilla that is deep fried until crispy and repurposed into a flat or bowl shaped (called a chalupa) base. You could say hard shell tacos are soft tortillas that have been fried into a v shaped tostada.

Since tostadas are flat and crispy, topping slide off easily. The solution is to top them with a ‘sticky’ layer (like refried beans or guacamole) so the toppings have something to cling to. Tostadas can be served as a stand-alone dish, or as a side to seafood ceviche, stews, or soups like pozole or menudo.

Whether you choose to use this delicious chicken tinga meat in a tinga tacos recipe, or as tostadas, this Mexican chicken recipe will quickly become a family favourite food.

Ingredients in Chicken Tinga Tostadas

This flavourful chicken tinga sauce contains very few, widely available ingredients. I highly recommend investing in a quality blender for a super smooth sauce.

• Olive Oil
• Onion
• Garlic
• Chipotle Peppers
• Adobo Sauce
• Fire Roasted Tomatoes
• Limes
• Oregano
• Better than Bouillion
• Shredded Chicken
• Tostada Shells

This recipe contains two specialty ingredients: canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and tostadas. You can usually find these two items in the Mexican section of your local grocery store or at a Latino market.

When buying tostada shells, inspect the package well for any breakage and carefully transport them home as they are quite fragile.

Mexican oregano has a more pronounced flavour than regular dried oregano and it is worth buying if you can find it. However, this recipe will still be tasty if you use regular dried oregano.

Finally, let’s talk toppings. Any topping you would eat on chicken tacos, you can eat on tostadas. Start with a layer of warm refried beans, then add the meat and top with sliced radishes, chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, shredded lettuce, cotija cheese, and sour cream or Mexican crema. Serve Chicken Tinga Tostadas with hot sauce and lime wedges.

How to Make Chicken Tinga

There are two ways to make this saucy chicken tinga: the easy way and the REALLY easy way. If you have a favourite method of making shredded chicken, get cooking! You’ll need approximately 4 cups of shredded chicken or eight cups if you are doubling the recipe.

A rotisserie chicken is the epitome of convenience in my humble opinion. Use the meat in so many dishes, then use the bones to make chicken stock. It’s a win-win!

Investing in a good blender makes a difference in many recipes. This is not a sponsored post, but I never knew how much I needed a good blender until I bought a Vitamix. I use it all the time to make smoothies, creamy soups, and sauces.

To Make the Tinga Sauce

To make this Chicken Tinga recipe, add olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onions until soft, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 additional minute.

Transfer onion mixture to a blender followed by the chipotle pepper, adobo sauce, fire roasted tomatoes, lime juice, bouillon, and oregano. Blend the sauce until smooth then taste. If you want more spice blend in another chipotle pepper or more adobo sauce.

Transfer the sauce back into the same skillet and bring to a slow simmer over low heat. Cover and simmer the sauce for 10 minutes then add the shredded chicken. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper as needed. Simmer for another 10 minutes on low heat.

Assemble the Tostadas

This one of those family favourite recipes because everyone loves to customize their own tostadas. Start by spreading about 1 ½ tablespoons refried beans on each tostada shell (or taco) followed by a few tablespoons of chicken tinga meat.

Create a tostada (or taco) toppings bar, then let everyone garnish with their favourite toppings. Serve the Chicken Tinga Tostadas with a side of Mexican Pinto Beans and Rice, if desired.

Leftovers and Storage

Refrigerate Chicken Tinga leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days or for up to 3 months (unassembled). Thaw overnight in the fridge then reheat leftover meat slowly in a covered sauce pan over low heat, stirring occasionally or use a microwave to cook the meat.

Chicken Tinga meat freezes very well. Doubling the recipe and freezing half for a later meal is an excellent meal prep idea and uses more of the chipotle peppers can. Pro tip: Divide the can of chipotle pepper into portions and freeze the leftovers for future recipes.

Hi! I’m Bernice Hill and I am the recipe developer, photographer, and writer at Dish ‘n’ the Kitchen. It is my pleasure to share easy to follow recipes that are delicious, nutritious, and approachable for the whole family.

If you make this Chicken Tinga Tostadas recipe, I’d love to hear about it in the comments section or in a recipe rating. Be sure to follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for my latest recipes. Also, if you do make this recipe, please share your photos and tag me on Instagram. I hope you like this recipe!