Adobo Chicken Tacos

All tacos all the time!

I think ours would be happy household if we made this every day. The words, “I don’t think I feel like tacos tonight” have never been uttered under our roof. That is partially due to these awesome Adobo Chicken Tacos.

Veggie tacos used to be our jam. Step 1. Go to the latin grocery store around the corner. Step 2. Buy lots of jalapenos and other veggies for nearly zero dollars. Step 3. Cook with spices and insert in tortilla. Step 4. Enjoy. It was a nearly perfect process. Cheap and easy, fast and delicious. But that process was ruined – RUINED – when we received the  June 2012 Bon Appetit.

The June 2012 Bon Appetit is a very special Bon Appetit. It is the one with the salmon on the cover, but inside the is a huge TACO SECTION. There are pork tacos, beef tacos, chicken tacos, poblano tacos (which will require their own post at a later date) and SHRIMP TACOS!

(If you know me at all, you know that this is all highly suspect. I don’t eat anything that ever lived in the sea… so a Salmon Bon Appetit and Shrimp taco recipe should be an immediate turn off.)

So these Shrimp Tacos were cooked in an Adobo sauce. Obviously, the shrimp had to go, but the sauce looked so fantastic, we had to try it.

Long story short, (too late!) this sauce is awesome. And you should use it on your shrimp tacos, chicken tacos, sparingly on your veggie tacos, or on other non-taco-centric food-related ventures.

The whole process starts with Ancho chiles. I took a special picture of these chiles because sometimes it is hard to identify dried chiles once you’re at the market. Obviously, these are easier to find at your local Latin grocery store. If you don’t have one, you can still check at your regular grocery store, but you’ll probably have better luck at grocery stores with more elaborate “ethnic” sections.

If you have a bunch of dried chiles that aren’t Ancho chiles, or only a few Anchos and a bunch of other chiles, GO FOR IT! It’s fun to see what happens when you mix them. It might turn out very spicy though, so be careful!

Many chile sauces start with this same process, so once you have it down, you can experiment with just about everything. Go crazy! Use chicken stock instead of water! Add some spices! It will probably turn out very yummy.

This also requires a blender and/or food processor. If you don’t have one of these, GET ONE. It’s an awesome investment and your taste buds will thank you. Mmmmm just looking at this awful photo makes me want tacos.

This is just a picture of the shishito peppers I got at the farmer’s market. (Did I mention lately how much I love our CSA??) If you’ve never had them, you should try them. I just put them in here because I was snacking on them while making these tacos. All you have to do is char them and salt them and you have a really yummy snack!

Happy Taco Time!

Adobo Sauce
(adapted from Bon Appetit’s Shrimp in Adobo Sauce from June 2012.)

• 6 dried ancho chiles, stemmed
• 4 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed)
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt plus more for seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar

1. Toast the dried chiles in a hot skillet until fragrant and slightly softened, about 1 minute.

For a spicier version: remove the stems but reserve the seeds. Cut the chiles into strips with a scissor

For a less spicy version: remove the stems and seeds. Cut the chiles into strips with a scissor

2. Put the strips of chiles into a bowl and pour 1 cup of hot water over. Let them steep in the hot water (turning and stirring if necessary to get everything wet) for 10 minutes. [The original recipe suggested 1/2 cup water. This makes the sauce more paste-y. This is fine, but if you’ll be cooking it in a skillet, much of the water will eventually evaporate anyways. You can also substitute chicken broth for the water, if desired.]

3. Add chiles, water, garlic, vinegar, salt, oregano, cumin and sugar (along with reserved seeds, if using) to the bowl of a blender or food processor. Process into a thick paste/sauce.

Taco-ize

The best way to cook taco chicken in the adobo sauce is to cut the chicken into cubes, marinate the raw chicken in the sauce for half an hour, and then cook it up in a skillet until the chicken is fully cooked. You can use a simliar method for shrimp or other meats. This sauce is powerful, so use sparingly with veggie tacos.

Taco Toppings!

Our favorite taco toppings are:

– Queso Quesadilla

– Sour Cream

– Pickled Red onions (see quick recipe here) or diced raw onions

– Lettuce or whatever greens are in the fridge

– Cilantro

And here’s one more picture of that awesome taco!

p.s. Have you seen this recipe on Spoon Fork Bacon (aka my favorite guilty pleasure food blog and thus my favorite food blog)!?

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Corn and Bean Sriracha Baked Tacos

Rather than our usual taco dinner, we decided to make these baked tacos (sort of a cross between taquitos and enchiladas) because it is so much easier to make them all at once than prepare them one-at-a-time at the table. These would be a great dinner or lunch while watching the game and drinking a beer, and they’re perfect for a crowd. We used up leftover ham and cheddar cheese that we had in the fridge along with refried beans, corn salsa and chopped tomatoes, but you can use a variety of different fillings (ground meat, bell peppers, queso blanco, etc). We also chopped up some iceberg lettuce and made some guacamole to go on the side. We used small corn tortillas, but you can use flour, wheat, or large tortillas… they will all do the job. If you want more of a sauce, add a can of crushed tomatoes or mild salsa on top before sprinkling the cheese on and baking.

Corn and Bean Sriracha Baked Tacos

Small corn tortillas

Ham, cut into strips

Cheddar cheese, cut into strips

Refried pinto beans

Tomatoes, chopped

Corn salsa (combine corn, onions, sugar, chilies, and cider vinegar)

Shredded Mexican cheese, or cheddar and mozzarella

Sriracha

Iceberg lettuce (optional)

Avocados for guacamole (optional)

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease a large deep baking pan with cooking spray, or use butter for added flavor.

Assemble tacos by filling tortillas with corn salsa, beans, cheese, ham and tomatoes and rolling up. Place them in baking pan with edges down. Pack them close together so fillings do not spill out.

 

When the pan us full, sprinkle tacos with cheese and drizzle with Sriracha. Bake for 15-20 minutes until slightly brown at the edges and  cheese is beginning to bubble.

 

Let cool slightly and serve with chopped lettuce, guacamole, and your favorite beer.