Chicken Tacos With Chipotle
- Total Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Ingredients
- 4large bone-in chicken thighs, about 1½ pounds
- 3scallions, left whole
- 1bay leaf
- 1thyme branch
- 3black peppercorns
- 1allspice berry
- 2cloves
- Kosher salt
- 3tablespoons olive oil
- 1medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 2garlic cloves, minced
- ½teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 or 3chipotle chiles in adobo, chopped
- 3tablespoons adobo sauce, from the can
- ½cup broth (use broth from simmered chicken)
- 8fresh corn tortillas
- 1small white onion, finely chopped, soaked in ice water for 10 minutes and drained
- Thinly sliced serrano chile
- Thinly sliced radishes
- Sliced avocado
- Crumbled queso fresco or mild feta cheese
- Crème fraîche or Mexican crema
- Cilantro sprigs
- Dried oregano
- Lime wedges
For the Tacos
For Garnish
Preparation
- Step 1
Put chicken thighs in a saucepan and cover with 3 cups water. Add scallions, bay leaf, thyme, peppercorns, allspice, cloves and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Simmer for 30 minutes, then remove chicken and cool. Shred chicken with your fingers, discarding chicken skin and bone. Strain broth and reserve. You should have about 2 cups shredded chicken.
- Step 2
Put olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add diced yellow onion, season with salt and cook until softened and a bit browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cumin and cook for 1 minute more. Add chopped chipotle chile and adobo sauce and stir to combine. Add shredded chicken, salt lightly and stir to coat. Add chicken broth and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes, until sauce has thickened somewhat. Keep warm.
- Step 3
Heat the tortillas over steam or by your favorite method, keeping them soft and pliable.
- Step 4
Build the tacos quickly: Put a spoonful of the saucy chicken in the center of each tortilla. Top with a teaspoon of chopped white onion, a few slivers of serrano chile, some radish and avocado slices, a teaspoon of queso fresco and a teaspoon of crème fraîche. Add a few cilantro springs and a small pinch of oregano. Serve immediately with lime wedges on the side.
Private Notes
Comments
Rick Bayless has a no-fail microwave method for steaming corn tortillas. I've been using it for years:
With a microwave: Dribble 3 tablespoons of water over a clean kitchen towel, then wrap your cold tortillas in it (you can also use damp paper towels). Slide the package into a microwaveable plastic bag and fold the top over-don't seal it. Microwave at 50% power for 4 minutes to create a steamy environment around the tortillas. Let stand for 2 to 3 minutes before serving.
25 ingredients make a quick easy weeknight dinner?
I buy a big family pack of 8 or 10 chicken thighs (I take the skin off before cooking), simmer and shred the whole thing. I freeze 2-person servings of the shredded meat (2-4 oz per person) with some of the broth in each bag, for a truly quick meal. Any extra broth is great for chicken soup later on. I make this often and try to always have some on hand!
The tacos are delicious with lots of flavor, but the recipe needs a few clarifications. In the ingredient list, it doesn’t specify “skin on” chicken, although in the instructions, it later says to remove the skin after cooking the chicken. Personally, I prefer to remove the skin before boiling to reduce the amount of fat in the broth.
The recipe may not specifically call for "skin-on" thighs, but it does call for bone-in thighs, which always have the skin on them.
This wasn’t bad. But I found the chicken rather under seasoned.
Delicious! Added some grilled pineapple, which complemented everything perfectly