Slow-Cooked Salsa Chicken Tacos

If there is a rule that says that a slow-cooker is only to be used in the fall and winter, well, I happily break it  (the rule, not the slow-cooker!).

In the summer, when it's too hot to turn the oven on, a slow-cooker is a great alternative. And how about putting your ingredients in there, turning it on, going to the pool for the afternoon and coming home to a homemade cooked dinner? Nice, huh?

This is the easiest, healthiest Mexican dinner you can make at home. All you need is a couple of chicken breasts, a jar of your favorite salsa (I love Trader Joe's fire-roasted tomato salsa), hard shells or soft tortillas and your typical taco toppings. Once the meat is cooked, bring everything to the table and let everyone build their own tacos.

Serves 4-6

• 3 boneless and skinless chicken breast (organic if possible) = 3 escalopes de poulet
• 1 16 oz. jar salsa = 1 bocal de 450 g de salsa
• Hard taco shells and/or soft whole-wheat tortillas = tacos rigides ou tortillas souples
• Toppings: shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, diced onion, roasted corn, shredded cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese, sour cream, guacamole, chopped cilantro...
• Toppings: laitue, tomates coupées en dés, onion émincé, maïs, cheddar râpé, crème fraîche, guacamole, coriandre...

Pour half the salsa in the slow-cooker, place the chicken in there and top with remaining salsa. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours. Remove chicken, put on a cutting board and shred with 2 forks. Place the meat back in the slow-cooker, cover and keep on low for another 30 minutes. Turn to the “keep warm” feature until ready to serve.

Fill the taco shells or tortillas with the salsa chicken and garnish with the toppings of your choice. Enjoy!

Note: you can also make this on the stove-top. In a large sauce pan, bring the salsa and 1 cup of chicken broth to a simmer over medium heat. Add the chicken breast, turn to low heat and cook, covered, for about 2 hours.