Shredded Chicken Tacos (Tinga De Pollo)

Submitted by gailanng

"Cook’s Illustrated"

 

• Ready In: 1hr 10mins
• Ingredients: 19
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
• salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons canola oil or 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 onion, halved and sliced thin
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1⁄2 cup chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce plus 2 teaspoons adobo sauce
• 1⁄2 teaspoon brown sugar
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon grated lime zest plus 2 tablespoons juice

• The Rest

• 12 (6 inch) corn tortillas, warmed
• 1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 ounces Cotija cheese (1/2 cup) or 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)
• 6 green onions, minced (green tops)
• minced fresh cilantro
• lime wedge

directions

1. FOR THE CHICKEN: Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of chicken and brown on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to large plate. Repeat with remaining chicken.
2. Reduce heat to medium, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to now-empty pot, and heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cumin and cinnamon; cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add tomatoes, broth, chipotle with adobo sauce and brown sugar; bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits.
3. Return chicken to pot, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until meat registers 195 degrees, 15 to 20 minutes, flipping chicken after 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to cutting board.
4. Transfer cooking liquid to blender and process until smooth, 15 to 30 seconds. Return sauce to pot. When cool enough to handle, use two forks to shred chicken into bite-size pieces. Return chicken to pot with sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sauce is thickened and clings to chicken, about 10 minutes. Stir in lime zest and juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5. THE REST: Spoon chicken into center of each warm tortilla and serve, passing avocado, Cotija, green onions, cilantro and lime wedges separately.

Reviews

[dannyboy22]

I followed your recipe exactly except I cooked the chicken in an instant pot. It was excellent. Thank you for sharing.