Chicken Tacos With Chipotle

By David Tanis

Chicken Tacos With Chipotle
Karsten Moran for The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour
Rating
5(1,698)
Comments
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For good tacos, you need fresh, hot tortillas and a zesty filling. Canned chipotle chiles will do the trick with their smoky heat; it's an easy way to get flavor fast. Look for small cans with “chipotle chiles in adobo” on the label. And Mexican groceries generally have better-quality tortillas than the ones you find in supermarkets; it's worth seeking those out and heating them gently over steam, or by toasting them in a dry cast-iron pan. You can also use this recipe with precooked chicken, which makes this already quite simple recipe as easy as falling out of bed.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

    For the Tacos

    • 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

    For Garnish

    • 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
Ingredient Substitution Guide
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Preparation

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. Step 3

    Heat the tortillas over steam or by your favorite method, keeping them soft and pliable.

  4. 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.

Ratings

5 out of 5
1,698 user ratings
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Comments

Yogamom

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.

jeff willowbrook

25 ingredients make a quick easy weeknight dinner?

Belinda

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!

Brad

I’m in Texas and we get canned chipotles in adobo sauce all the time. However, there is hardly any extra sauce in the can. So I took a couple of tablespoons of the cooked down broth and put it in a blender with several chipotles. Maybe 5-6. Of course we like heat! Wonderful and got the right color. There is also a recipe for Salsa Negro on NYT. I served some of that with the tacos and it was unbelievable!

Dom

I will say if you can handle spice I didn’t regret using a full can of adobo chipotle chiles for about 2-3lbs of chicken. It definitely needed more salt, pepper, thyme, onion pepper, and garlic pepper but it was worth the step up in flavor :)

Berndo

Super easy and good as heck. As some people mentioned, not a bad idea to toss the bones and skin back in the broth to deepen the flavors a bit. MIL only had ground allspice and clove. I think I overdid it on the allspice, but it was a pretty tasty, unique flavor. Definite make again.

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