Taco Tuesday: Tinga Poblana Chicken Tacos

Yay for Taco Tuesday!! Last week was crazy with my work conference, so I didn’t get to make tacos on Tuesday 🙁 However, nothing was going to stop me from making these tacos, so I had them on Monday instead! Sarah has never steered me wrong, so I knew I was going to love the flavors of this taco and boy did I! And the timing was good too, since Cinco de Mayo was just on Saturday. I’m all for keeping with holiday themes. Dee-lish! I think the first time I ever had chorizo was last year (I thought it was gross and would never try it…shame on me!), and it turns out that I love it. So, mixing it with the chicken, and chipotle peppers was just too good.

I usually scale back my recipes so that I have enough for dinner, and maybe lunch the next day, but I went ahead and made the full recipe for this. I just had a feeling it would be worth it. I will freeze most of it, but if I didn’t have a menu plan to stick to, I could eat it for dinner every night this week! I found that it had just enough bite for me, but if you are sensitive to spicy food, I would cut the amount of chipotle in half.

Tinga Poblana with Chicken

• 1 lb bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• 4 cloves garlic, 2 smashed, 2 minced
• Salt
• 1 Tbsp cooking oil
• 1/2 lb chorizo, casings removed and crumbled
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 canned chipotles en adobo with 1 tablesoon sauce, diced
• Flour Tortillas
• Avocado
• Sour Cream
• Shredded Cheese (I used pepper jack)

1. Place the chicken and smashed garlic in a saucepan and add water to cover. Add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that forms on the surface.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is opaque throughout, 20-30 minutes.
3. Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a plate. Reserve the broth. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove and discard any skin or fat or bones and coarsely shred the meat with your fingers or a fork.
4. In a large frying pan or Dutch oven over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the chorizo and fry for about 5 minutes. Remove the excess rendered fat. Add the garlic and saute until beginning to soften, but not yet starting to brown, about 1 minute. Add about 1 cup of the reserved chicken broth, deglaze the pan. Add the shredded chicken, tomatoes, oregano, bay leaves and chiles. Stir until blended.
5. Simmer, uncovered, until the flavors are blended, about 15 minutes. Add more broth to the pan if the mixture begins to stick, but do not add too much; the mixture should absorb the liquid and not be runny. Remove and discard the bay leaves and season to taste with salt.
6. Warm tortillas, spoon a rice into center, and top with chicken mixture. Add avocado, sour cream, and cheese.