Lizs Mexican Style Braised Chicken Food

BRAISED CHICKEN WITH TOMATOES

Steps:

• Season chicken with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Heat oil in a large dutch oven or heavy pot over medium-high heat. Once it is hot, add the chicken pieces skin-side down. Fry the chicken, turning once per side until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
• Reduce heat to medium and stir in the chopped onion and the garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes until the onion looks transparent.
• Add the diced peppers and keep cooking for 5 more minutes. Scrape any browned bits at the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.
• Stir in the chopped tomatoes, cook for 5 more minutes. Add Knorr Tomato-Chicken Bouillon dissolved in the ½ cup of water and turn the heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer.
• Check to see if it needs more salt, then cover the pot and cook for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the chicken is fully cooked and tender.

LIZ'S MEXICAN-STYLE BRAISED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375. Heat 2 Tbsp. olive or canola oil in a heavy casserole (Le Cruset). Shake chicken in a plastic bag with the flour, salt, pepper and a little garlic powder to coat the pieces. Saute chicken until golden brown on each side. Remove from pan and set aside. While chicken is cooking, In a small skillet saute mushrooms with 1 Tbsp. olive or canola oil until they are browned. Set aside. Add the pepper, onion and garlic to the casserole and cook till they soften. Add tomatoes, mushrooms and chicken. Cook lightly till warmed, then add enchilada sauce. Mix together, cover, then bake for about 35-45 minutes till chicken is tender. Sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with warm corn tortillas and a salad.

BRAISED CHICKEN WITH TOMATILLOS AND JALAPENOS

Steps:

• For the chicken: Preheat the grill.
• Place the tomatillos and jalapenos on the grill and cook until the skins char and blister, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the tomatillos and jalapenos from the grill and let cool.
• Coat a large, wide straight-sided saute pan with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat.
• Sprinkle the chicken generously with salt. Add the chicken legs and thighs, skin-side down, to the hot pan. Brown the chicken well on all sides. Remove from the pan and reserve.
• Ditch the excess fat from the pan and add a few drops of new oil. Add the onions, season with salt and cook until the onions are very soft and aromatic, 7 to 8 minutes.
• While the onions are cooking, coarsely chop the tomatillos and reserve. Chop the jalapenos into 1/4-inch dice and reserve with the tomatillos. If you want to tone down the heat, remove the seeds from the jalapenos before chopping.
• Add the garlic to the pan with the onions and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
• Add the reserved tomatillos and jalapenos. Stir to combine and add the chicken stock, lime juice and zest. Taste and season with salt if needed (it probably will).
• Return the chicken to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 15 minutes.
• Remove the lid and let cook for 15 more minutes. This will allow the stock to reduce. Taste for seasoning and adjust if needed.
• For the sour cream: Combine the sour cream with the lime zest and juice and reserve.
• Remove the chicken from the pan and stir in the cilantro.
• Spoon the sauce over the chicken, sprinkle with cilantro leaves and serve with the lime sour cream.
• Beverage Pairing Suggestion: Light Lager

BRAISED RANCHERO CHICKEN

Steps:

• For the ranchero sauce: On a gas range or under a broiler, roast the green, red and poblano peppers until well charred. Let cool. Stem and seed the charred peppers. Coarsely chop and set aside.
• In a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle, finely grind the whole guajillo and pasilla chiles and set aside.
• In a large saucepan, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, covered, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the guajillo and pasilla chiles, cumin, chili powder, oregano, thyme, black pepper, salt and garlic. Stir and cook until the spices become fragrant and are fully coated in oil, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, green chiles and sugar. Stir and continue to cook until the sauce starts to simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook until the vegetables soften and the flavors come together, 30 to 40 minutes. Taste and add additional salt and pepper as needed.
• For the ranchero chicken: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a small Dutch oven or medium sized roasting pan combine the chicken, stock, salt, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and lime juice with 2 cups of the ranchero sauce. (Reserve remaining ranchero sauce for another use.) Stir and top with the lid or seal well with aluminum foil and braise in the oven, 2 1/2 hours. Remove from the oven and let cool enough to handle the chicken.
• Shred the chicken with two forks or your hands. Strain the braising liquid and add the strained solids back in with the shredded chicken. Reserve enough liquid to moisten the mixture. Return to the pan and keep warm in a low oven until ready to serve.
• For the tostada shells: Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with paper towels. In a small frying pan, heat 1/2-inch oil until hot. Add 1 tortilla and cook, flipping once a minute, until crispy and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the paper towels and repeat with remaining tortillas.
• Serve the chicken on the tostada shells and top with avocado and queso fresco.

CHIPOTLE-BRAISED CHICKEN TACOS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• For the cilantro-lime cream: In a bowl, combine the sour cream, honey, lime juice, cilantro, coriander, cumin, salt and pepper and whisk together. Refrigerate until using.
• For the braised chicken: Heat a saute pan over high heat. Sprinkle the chicken with the kosher salt and pepper. Add the grapeseed oil to the pan and sear the chicken on both sides until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Do not overcrowd the pan; sear the chicken in batches if needed. Remove the chicken from the pan and hold in an oven-safe casserole dish for further cooking.
• Add the onions and peppers to the saute pan and cook until tender. Add the paprika, smoked paprika and chipotle peppers and saute with the peppers and onions for 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and ketchup, stir and bring to a simmer. Pour the braising liquid over the chicken and cover the casserole dish with foil. Cook in the oven until the chicken is tender and falls apart, 45 minutes.
• While the chicken is still hot, shred it and return it to the braising liquid. If you are using it right away, keep the chicken hot in the braising liquid for plating. (If you are refrigerating the chicken to use later, cool it down and store it in the braising liquid. Reheat it as needed for plating.)
• For the guacamole: Cut the avocados in half and remove the pits. With a spoon, scoop out the avocado flesh into a bowl. Add the red onions, tomatoes and cilantro and mash the ingredients together. Season with salt and lime juice.
• Divide the lettuce among the taco shells. Spoon about 2 ounces of the braised chicken into each shell. Top with guacamole, a tablespoon of cilantro-lime cream and 2 sprigs cilantro.

MEXICAN ROASTED OR BRAISED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Defrost the chicken, if necessary, and remove the neck, liver, giblets, and excess fat. Rinse if needed, then place in the pot. If you prefer a lower-fat version, you can remove the skin and most of the fat from the bird, but the flavor will suffer (you can always skim the fat from the cooking liquid, later).
• Preheat the oven to 320°F.
• In a small bowl, combine the achiote, comino (cumin), oregano, and lime juice, then use the back of a spoon to mash into a thick marinade or thin paste.
• Place some of the marinade in the chicken and work it around inside, then pour the rest over the chicken and cover the skin.
• If you are braising in the oven, you may need to add a 1/2 cup of water, depending on the type of bird. Try it the first time you make the recipe, and you can leave it out, later, if you don't want the additional liquid. You do NOT need to add the water, if you cook this in the a slow cooker.
• If the lid for your pot has any holes, or there are any gaps between the lid and pan (or crock), cover the lid with foil so it seals tightly.
• The chicken will need to cook 2 1/2-3 hours. Check the temperature at the thickest parts and remove when the chicken is done (approx 170, a bit lower, if you want to finish the chicken on the stove top). If you want to brighten up the dish a bit and restore a sour bite, add another 1/4 cup of lime juice a couple of minutes before serving.

LISA'S EASY CHICKEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a medium bowl, mix the olive oil, garlic salt, parsley, chives, pepper, Old Bay Seasoning, and seasoning salt. Rub the chicken breasts with 1/2 the mixture, and place the breasts in a medium baking dish.
• Toss the green bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onion with the remaining olive oil mixture. Arrange over the chicken.
• Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, stirring the vegetables once, until the vegetables are tender, the chicken is no longer pink, and its juices run clear.