Dinner Recipe: Chicken Tacos
This recipe came from “Cooking for Two,” an America’s Test Kitchen magazine that is issued annually. This was from the 2011 edition. What they basically do is take all of their best recipes of the year and cut them down to size for two people— that way you don’t have enough food to feed a whole army if there’s only a couple of you eating. It’s pretty legit.
So, here’s my review of it. This recipe was pretty dang good. I had never made chicken tacos with anything other than shredded chicken in a can before, and this was at least two whole steps up from that. Probably more. The fact that I was eating chicken I just cooked myself, knowing exactly where it came from and how it was made, was a big plus. About five million steps up from eating food like this from Taco Bell. (I think Taco Bell is gross. This is another story we’ll have to save for another time.) In addition, my chicken wasn’t dry and it shredded pretty easily. The seasonings for the sauces in this recipe all went exceptionally well together, too. I think you’ll be surprised by some of the flavors when you try this. The sauces were really my favorite part of the meal. I also cut up some fresh avocado and tomato as toppings for my tacos, which made them even better. Overall, I would give this meal: 4.42 out of 5 spoons. (I’m going to keep doing decimals because I like them.)
How Many Calories Are We Looking At Per Serving?:
I wish I could tell you. However, unfortunately, this recipe did not come with any nutritional facts. At all. And I sure don’t know how to calculate them myself. What a shame…
Total Time It Took Me to Make This: maybe an hour or a little over
I also got distracted a couple of times and maybe used a little more prep time than I needed. I’d say give yourself around an hour, though, and you should be set no matter what.
How Many People Did It Serve?: Well, considering the title of the cookbook… TWO : ]
It makes enough for about three tacos per person.
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce
1/2 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 (6-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
salt and pepper
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
6 (6-inch) tortillas, warmed
***Notes about the ingredients:
1) The recipe called for corn tortillas. I used flour tortillas. I really don’t think it matters what kind you use— whatever you prefer.
2) I simply warmed my tortillas in the microwave for a short amount of time (like, 20 seconds). It made them soft, which is the way I like them. I’m not as big of a fan of when they’re crispy. And they were just warm enough— not hot. I think the recipe suggested that you steam them. Again, I say whatever works for you. However you prefer.
3) To make this dish more or less spicy, simply adjust the amount of chipotle chiles you use.
4) I didn’t include tomato and avocado on the ingredient list, but these are what I topped my tacos with. It turned out really nice, so I’d suggest it if you’re open! You could even use some fresh lime juice over the top of the tacos, and it’d probably be very good.
COOKING INSTRUCTIONS:
1) Heat the oil in a 10-inch non-stick skillet over medium heat. Stir in the garlic and one teaspoon of the chipotle and cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in about 5 tablespoons of the cilantro, the orange juice, and the Worcestershire sauce.
It will look something like this, and it will smell REALLY good.
2) Nestle the chicken into the skillet, and bring it to a simmer. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook until the thickest part of the breast is done. (If you’re using a cooking thermometer, it should register at about 160 to 165 degrees.) This should take about 12 to 18 minutes, and you should make sure to flip your chicken halfway through.
3) Transfer the chicken breasts to a plate, let them cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces. Meanwhile, continue to simmer the sauce over medium heat until it is slightly thickened and reduced to about 1/3 cup, about two minutes longer. Off heat, stir in the mustard, 2 more tablespoons of cilantro, and the shredded chicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
It should look something like this at this point…
4) In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon chipotles, and the remaining tablespoon of cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Again, another picture of what this will look like…
5) Spoon the chicken into the warmed tortillas. Serve with the sour cream mixture, and add whatever toppings you like.
My toppings were avocado and tomato…
This is what the dish looked like before I wrapped it up nicely…
And even though I already included a picture of it up at the top, here was my finished product…
This Dish Goes Well With: fresh veggies and/or some kind of rice, although they are definitely good enough to stand on their own
Enjoy!! As always, HAPPY COOKING : ]
