Easy Shredded Chicken for Tacos - The Recipe Wench (2024)

FAQs

What type of chicken is easiest to shred? ›

While any cut of chicken can be shredded, boneless, skinless chicken breasts are naturally made for shredding: their fibers are perfectly aligned so the breast shreds easily and quickly. If you want shorter pieces in your shredded chicken, cut the breast in half crosswise before shredding it.

I generally use 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast per 2 people having 2 tacos, meaning that each chicken breast makes about 4 tacos (3 if they're small). I use 1 pound of chicken (about two large chicken breasts) to feed a family of 4.

I cooked 4 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast and wound up with enough meat for 30 tacos/tostadas.

While there are a variety of different methods to cook chicken for shredding or dicing, poaching (gently cooking the chicken in water) is the one I've found to be the quickest and easiest, with the smallest amount of clean up. You don't need any equipment other than a pot to make it.

You can use pre-cooked or fresh-baked, boneless chicken pieces, although if the meat is still warm the shredding process is easier. Here's how to do it: Remove any skin from the chicken pieces.

The Plastic Bag Chicken Shredding Hack

Here's how to do it. Start by cutting the string (or plastic) trussing on the legs. Then place the whole chicken in a gallon-sized bag, zip it up, and go to town. Use your fingers to prod, poke, and pull the meat from the bone.

There is no difference between shredded chicken and pulled chicken; both terms can be used interchangeably. Both refer to meat cooked until tender, then “pulled” or “shredded” along the meat's grain. Shredded and pulled chicken are popular in sandwiches, soups, pizzas, tacos, enchiladas, and casseroles.

How many people will 3 pounds of shredded chicken feed? - Quora. A pound is 16 ounces. Assuming each person eats 4 ounces per serving and has only one serving each, 3 pounds should feed 12 people. However, always plan for extra food.

We recommend grabbing 5 pounds of chicken if you're looking to have enough shredded chicken for 12 adult servings (think: 3 (4-serving) meals). If you're not looking to cook that much chicken, feel free to reduce the amount of chicken based on the amount you do need.

How many tacos will 5 lbs of meat make? ›

Each taco shell or small soft taco-size tortilla fits about 2 ounces or 1/4 cup of meat. If you add diced onions, you could stretch a pound of ground beef to make about a dozen tacos. With just the meat and spices, you can make about 8 tacos from a pound of meat.

I would get 6.5 to 7.5 pounds of ground beef for tacos for 20 people if the tacos are going to be most of the food for the meal.

Use the forks to pull in opposite directions to make smaller pieces. You can also use one to hold the chicken down, then shred it with the other. If using chicken thighs that are cooked until it falls apart, tongs also work well for shredding.

Is it better to shred chicken hot or cold? It's best to shred chicken when it's hot or warm and not when it's cold. It's much easier to pull the chicken apart with your hands or forks when it's warm. However, if you are cutting or slicing chicken, it's easier to do so with a knife when it's cold.

Kitchen Hack: Shred Chicken in the Stand Mixer

Here's how to shred chicken in the easiest, most efficient way possible: Prep your stand mixer. Outfit your stand mixer with the paddle attachment and place your cooked chicken breast into the bowl. Shred.

Using a stand mixer is a fast way to get perfectly shredded chicken each time. Simply shred the cooked chicken on low speed for about 30 to 60 seconds, until you get finely shredded pieces.