Chicken Lettuce Taco Boats
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These lettuce taco boats are a dinner you'll feel great about feeding to the family ā and they'll love it, too! Juicy shredded chicken is smothered in a delicious and zesty chipotle, orange, and pineapple sauce and then heaped inside crisp lettuce wraps. Add some fresh toppings and you have a fun and wholesome take on taco night ā with just ten minutes of prep time!
Chicken tacos always hit the spot! Try these rotisserie chicken tacos on your next busy weeknight, or these buffalo chicken tacos to bring the heat!
These lettuce taco boats provide a low-carb twist to traditional tacos. Throw the chicken into the slow cooker and let it do all the work for you. Then walk away and come back to wrap it up in some satisfyingly crunchy lettuce and throw down some pineapple and avocado, and you've got yourself one tasty lettuce boat tacos dinner that's a breeze to make!
Ingredients needed
These handheld delights are bursting with flavor thanks to these delicious ingredients:
- Pineapple: Mince some up to add to the slow cooker, and use some for a zesty fresh burst on top of the lettuce taco boats!
- Oranges: Orange juice brings a bright citrusy note!
- Garlic: Adds savory depth.
- Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce: Use more or less depending on how spicy you enjoy it!
- Dijon mustard:Ā Adds a little tang to the chicken.
- Chicken: Use boneless and skinless chicken breasts for convenient shredding. Chicken thighs work, too.
- Toppings: Crispy lettuce gives a satisfying crunch and works for low carb or gluten-free eaters. Butter lettuce, bibb, or romaine lettuce works best! Add some pineapple chunks, avocado slices, and fresh cilantro.
How to make lettuce taco boats
These taco lettuce boats are a breeze, making them perfect for busy nights ā just put everything in the slow cooker, come back later to shred the chicken, and then pile it on some lettuce ā done! These are the instructions:
- Slow cooker: Put the chicken, pineapple, garlic, orange, dijon mustard, and chipotle into your crock pot, turn it on, then walk away!
- Shred: Shred the chicken with two forks and mix it around with the sauce.
- Assemble: Pile that juicy chicken into lettuce wraps and top with some avocado slices and a bunch of fresh pineapple chunks. Dig in!
What to serve with chicken taco boats
While these taco lettuce wraps are an easy solution for a busy weeknight, you can pair them with any of our Mexican and southwest recipes for a fiesta! Open the meal with some grilled guacamole, summer peach salsa, or corn salsa.
Serve these lettuce taco boats with some taco rice or Mexican rice. Or, add some sweet potato nachos, Mexican cucumber salad, or Mexican street corn pasta to your table spread.
Don't forget the pineapple margaritas, or make some margarita popsicles for dessert!
Recipe FAQs
Can I substitute the chipotle peppers for something else?
Sure! You can use any ingredient that you prefer. We suggest making your own taco seasoning with pantry staples like chili powder, paprika, cumin, oregano, garlic powder, and onion powder.
Can I make this with other meat?
Sure! If you use pork in the slow cooker, note that it will take longer to cook ā around 7-8 hours on low. You could also use ground beef or ground turkey.
Can I add anything else?
Sure thing! You can add any of your usual favorite taco toppings. Our top picks are halved cherry tomatoes, a dollop of sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, some hot sauce, black beans, and wedges of limes on the side.
How do I store leftovers?
Leftovers can store well, which makes this recipe great for meal prep for work lunches. Store leftover chicken in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days, then keep the lettuce leaves and toppings separate. It's best to slice the avocado fresh when you reheat the chicken.
Chicken Lettuce Taco Boats Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup minced pineapple
- Juice from 2 large oranges (about Ā½ cup)
- 6 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2-4 tablespoons minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (depending on how spicy you like it)
- 2 tablespoons dijon mustard
- 4 chicken breasts
Toppings
- Crispy lettuce (butter lettuce works the best)
- Sliced avocado
- Pineapple chunks
- Cilantro
Instructions
- In the bowl of your slow cooker, mix the pineapple, orange juice, garlic, chipotle peppers, and dijon mustard. Add the chicken breasts and set your crock pot to high for 3-4 hours or low for 7-8 hours.1 cup minced pineapple, Juice from 2 large oranges, 6 cloves garlic, 2-4 tablespoons minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, 2 tablespoons dijon mustard, 4 chicken breasts
- Shred the chicken using 2 forks right in the crockpot and them mix it around with the sauce in the pot.
- Pile the shredded chicken into the lettuce boats and top with sliced avocado, pineapple, and cilantro.Crispy lettuce, Sliced avocado, Cilantro, Pineapple chunks
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
For more inspiration, check out all of our taco recipes!
I’m not a huge fan of Chipotle peppers. Do you have a good suggestion to use instead or omit then? Maybe your taco seasoning?
Yes, I think that taco seasoning would add great flavor!
These turned out great! I served with regular tacos for the kids and mine on lettuce wraps. We all loved the shredded chicken. Made your guac too. Yum!
Would you make any recipe changes if I swapped out the chicken for pork?
Pork would be super delicious in this recipe! I would opt for the cooking it on low option as pork will take longer to cook. It will be excellent in 7-8 hours, but you could leave the pork in longer too if you needed to.
Thank you, Kristen! Love everything you make.
Thank you so much! You totally made my day. š
Check the recipe, you’ve got the times backwards for the low and high settings.
Thank you for pointing that out! Should make more sense now. š
Have you made this in the Instapot? I’d love cook times! I’ve just started using mine and am now hooked! Thanks can’t wait to try this out!