Slow cooker mole chicken has such a deep, rich flavor but is made really easy with a blender mole sauce. It's perfect for tacos, rice bowls, wraps, quesadillas and more!
Today's easy slow cooker mole chicken brings ALL the flavor. All of it. There's no flavor left for anything else because this mole chicken is hoarding it all.
It tastes that way at least.
Now, I know mole sauce can sound intimidating and complicated - SO many ingredients! But I promise this one is as easy as we can possibly manage. Because we're making a blender mole sauce.
You pretty much just add everything to a blender and hit the power button. See, you can do this!
(OK, technically I'm telling you to sauté the onion and garlic in a pan before you blend it up but you know what? I've skipped that step before and it was still delicious.)
And after it slow cooks with the chicken, this sauce gets rich and velvety and has an amazing and complex depth of flavor!
I of course love making slow cooker mole chicken tacos with the shredded meat, cause tacos. ❤️ We almost always have this for Cinco de Mayo.
It's also great for rice bowls (or cauliflower rice if you're going low-carb) as well as wraps, quesadillas, nachos and more.
And this recipe makes A TON so you'll be able to try it all the ways!
OK, let's get cooking.
Recipe Notes:
Chicken: I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs for this recipe because I think they have more flavor in the slow cooker. You could substitute chicken breasts if you prefer.
Consistency: This is really saucy on day one. The leftovers soak up the extra sauce as they sit (which is great for keeping it moist while freezing and later reheating) so you do want to save it all. But if you're making tacos and don't want them to be soggy, just shred your meat and only add in as much sauce as you want to use the first night. Then mix in the extras with all the remaining sauce when you go to store it.
Peanut butter: I use peanut butter but you could substitute almond butter if you prefer. (I've actually used toasted almonds in place of the PB with this recipe before. I just like how easy it is with the PB, which I always have on hand.)
Don't forget the toppings! My must-haves are chopped fresh cilantro, crumbled queso fresco cheese and a drizzle of crema or sour cream/Greek yogurt.
Other topping ideas: diced or sliced avocado, pickled red onions, chopped fresh onions or green onions and any of your other favorite taco toppings.
As mentioned, this makes a lot! I've got storage tips in the recipe card below. And I've got some additional pairings just below the recipe card if you need to round out your spread.
Enjoy and have a great week!
XO,
Kathryn
Easy Slow Cooker Mole Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 12), trimmed of excess fat
- Salt and black pepper
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, well drained
- 1 (14.5 oz.) can stewed tomatoes (Mexican flavored if you can find it), well drained
- 2 dried ancho chiles, stem and seeds removed
- 1 (12 oz.) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
- ⅓ cup creamy peanut butter
- ¼ cup raisins
- 3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (about ½ cup)
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For serving:
- Fresh chopped cilantro, queso fresco, crema, avocado, etc.
Instructions
- Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper and place in a 5-to-6-quart slow cooker.
- Heat oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and sauce for 5-6 minutes, until softened.
- Add cooked onions and garlic to a blender along with the remaining ingredients (except the cilantro). Blend until smooth.
- Add the blended tomato mixture to the slow cooker, ensuring the chicken thighs are covered. Cook on low for 6-7 hours, until chicken is cooked through.
- Remove chicken thighs and roughly shred the chicken. Return the shredded chicken to the slow cooker and stir to mix it into the sauce. (See notes below on consistency.) Let it sit in the sauce, on the warm setting, for at least 10 minutes.
- Serve the chicken and sauce with fresh cilantro and crumbled queso fresco and drizzle with crema or sour cream.
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Notes
Nutrition
If you want to round our your meal, we love this chicken with some yellow rice and Mexican coleslaw and chips and homemade guacamole. It would also work well with a marinated veggie salad to balance the flavors.
Hungry for more? Try this slow cooker chicken shawarma and check out this slow cooker Mexican shredded chicken that is just 3 ingredients, super versatile and great for meal prep.
Holly says
Mmm,mmm - this is making my mouth water! I love chicken mole but you just took it to a whole 'natha level in the crockpot! I can't wait to try this!
Kathryn says
The slow cooker makes it so easy - and really helps concentrate those amazing flavors! 🙂