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Spice up your next tailgate with Smoky Chicken Street Tacos served with pickled red onions, fresh salsa, and cheese on mini flour-tortillas.

Whether you’re tailgating at the big game or watching from home, these little hand-held Smoky Chicken Street Tacos served with pickled red onions and fresh salsa make a deliciously, fun game-day spread!
The chicken is flavored with smoky chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and is perfectly complimented by the sweetness of the pickled red onions—I love how simple it is to make a quick batch—and the freshness of homemade salsa.
Of course, you can purchase fresh salsa in the deli to save time, but my family is really partial to the homemade.
I think it’s worth the extra time, and if you prep the toppings ahead of time and let the chicken simmer in the slow cooker. Everything will be ready for easy serving at game time and you can enjoy cheering on the team!

I didn’t realize that MINI flour tortillas were a thing until I saw these at my Kroger last week and now I’m in love!
They’re perfect for football snacks and I can’t wait to fill them with all kinds of other taco variations. Really, you need to try these!
For my recipe, I cooked chicken in the slow cooker with onions, a little chicken broth, and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.
I only used about half the small can, but if you like to turn up the heat you can add more after you shred the chicken for the tacos.

The little bit of spiciness from the chipotle peppers plus the tanginess of the pickled red onions and the fresh tomato salsa just works.
I garnished the tacos with some crumbled Feta cheese because that’s what was in my fridge, but you could also use Cojita cheese or any other shredded cheese.

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Smoky Chicken Street Tacos with Pickled Red Onions
Ingredients
- 1 lb. chicken breasts with rib meat (or skinless, boneless)
- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon lite salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2-3 chipotle chilies in adobo chopped
- 2-3 tablespoons adobo sauce from the can
- 12 mini flour tortillas
- 4 ounces Feta cheese or Cojita cheese, crumbled
Pickled Red Onions
- 1 large red onion thinly sliced and separated into rings
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon agave nectar
- 1/4 teaspoon lite salt
Fresh Salsa
- 2 cups grape or cherry tomatoes diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper seeded and diced
- 1-2 cloves garlic minced
- 2-3 green onions diced
- 1/2 lime juiced
- 1/2 teaspoon lite salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Slow Cooked Smoky Chicken
- Lightly coat inside of slow cooker with cooking spray. Add chicken (remove the skin if using breasts on the bone) and sprinkle with the cumin, salt, and pepper. Add the chopped onion, chipotle chilies, and the adobo sauce on top. Pour 1 cup chicken broth over all and cook for 4 hours on high.
- Remove chicken from the slow cooker and discard bones. Shred meat using two forks. Strain the broth and pour 1/2 to 1 cup over shredded chicken and mix. Return to the slow cooker to keep warm until ready to assemble tacos.
Pickled Red Onions
- Add red onions to a shallow bowl. Combine the vinegar, agave nectar and salt and pour over onions, stirring to coat. Allow to sit at room temperature for up to an hour, stirring occasionally to make sure all the onions are moistened. Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Fresh Salsa
- In a medium bowl, combine all salsa ingredients and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
To Assemble Tacos
- Place 3-4 tablespoons shredded chicken on each tortilla. Top with desired amount of pickled red onions, fresh salsa, and cheese.
Notes
Nutrition
Life Love and Good Food does not claim to be a registered dietician or nutritionist. Nutritional information shared on this site is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.