Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas

Alrighty so it’s not official yet but it’s likely we’ll have two swimmers in our household starting September 14th (our daughter is waiting to hear back after tryouts). What that means for them is… if our son attends practice each day, he’ll be at the pool M-F from 5:45-7:00 pm. And our daughter would be at practice M-W-F from 4:30-5:45 pm. Notice how those times don’t line up? What that means for me is figuring out a rotating schedule of Crockpot/Slow Cooker dinners pretty much every week day for about the next five months. It’s a little intimidating to think about, even for me.

But I figure my problem is your solution, so expect even more Crockpot/Slow Cooker recipes to be appearing here at Foodtastic Mom. And if you want some more recipes in the meantime, don’t forget to check out my Facebook page, “Back to School Slow Cooker Recipe Sharing”!

So for these family-pleasing chimichangas, I started with a recipe we enjoyed at a friend’s house. Hers made bacon ranch chicken sandwiches and were delicious, but I wanted to make this recipe my own and Mexican is an absolute favorite in our house.

So I swapped out the ranch seasoning packets for taco seasoning and added pinto beans instead of bacon. The filling then gets wrapped (with a big helping of shredded Monterey Jack cheese) in big tortillas and pan “fried” to mimic the chimichangas of my youth from ChiChi’s – anyone back in the late 80’s/early 90’s a fan of the ChiChi’s?

Anyway, it’s a perfect dinner for a swim team night because the chicken filling can stay warm in the Crockpot/Slow Cooker, waiting to be wrapped and crisped in the skillet when ready to eat. Toppings are your favorite salsa, sour cream, sliced jalapeños and/or guacamole.  This recipe is SO easy and most definitely a keeper!

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Cheesy Chicken Chimichangas

Author Foodtastic Mom

Ingredients

• 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 packets Taco Seasoning I used McCormick brand
• 2 pkgs. 8 oz. each cream cheese
• 1 can 15 oz. pinto beans, drained
• juice of one-half lime
• 8 burrito-sized tortillas
• 2 c. 8 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• 1 T. vegetable oil

favorite Mexican toppings

• salsa
• sour cream
• guacamole
• sliced jalapeños

Instructions

• Place the chicken, taco seasoning and cream cheese in the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours. During the final hour, stir together, break-up/shred the chicken and stir in the beans and lime juice. Continue cooking until heated through.
• To serve, place about 3/4 - 1 cup of the chicken mixture into the center of a tortilla and top with about 1/4 cup of the shredded Monterey Jack cheese. Fold to seal in the filling.
• Heat about a tablespoon of oil in a large, non-stick pan over medium heat (I was able to cook three chimichangas at once in mine).
• Turn the chimichangas to coat lightly in oil. Cook, starting with the seam side down, until all sides are nicely browned and the cheese inside is melted.
• Serve immediately.