Easy Salsa Chicken
This one-pan-meal delivers pan-seared chicken and golden sweet corn in a fiery salsa sauce. Add a blanket of stretch Mexican cheese and you can get this crowd-pleasing dish on the table in under 30 minutes!
There’s so much flavor in this chicken – it will blow your mind! First, we season the chicken with taco seasoning, and then sear the seasoning into the meat. There’s a tremendous amount of flavor in taco seasoning, and it’s a one-stop-shop for adding robust flavor to the chicken. Then, we simmer the chicken in salsa – and it can be any salsa you prefer. Make it mild, make it spicy – it’s up to you!
I used chicken breasts, but this dish works with chicken thighs too. The chicken breasts I purchased were enormous, like 3/4 pound each. For that reason, I cut them into thinner, smaller pieces that resembled 4-ounce chicken breasts. If desired, you can swap in 6 to 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs. Whatever you use, cook all chicken to 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.
What should you serve with this salsa chicken? I served the chicken and sauce with rice and it was perfect because the rice soaked up all the flavors! There wasn’t a drop of sauce left. You can also serve the dish with tortillas, bread, or your favorite cooked grain. Add a fresh green salad on the side and the meal is complete.
Easy Salsa Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 pound skinless boneless chicken breasts, or boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon taco seasoning
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup salsa of choice, or more if desired
- 1/2 cup frozen or canned corn, kept frozen until ready to use, drained if canned
- 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
- Fresh cilantro for serving, optional
Instructions
- Season both sides of the chicken with the taco seasoning. If desired, refrigerate for up to 12 hours.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown on both sides.
- Add the salsa and bring to a simmer, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the corn and simmer for 5 more minutes, until the corn is crisp-tender and the chicken is cooked through (165 degrees on a meat thermometer).
- Top the chicken with the cheese and remove the pan from the heat. Let stand for a few minutes to melt the cheese.
- Top with cilantro (if using) and serve.