Mexican Pulled Chicken Food

MEXICAN PULLED (SHREDDED) CHICKEN

Steps:

• Mix the olive oil (2 tablespoons), smoked paprika (1 tablespoon), ground coriander (1 teaspoon), ground cumin (1 teaspoon), garlic powder (1 teaspoon), kosher salt (1 teaspoon), black pepper (1/2 teaspoon), and lime juice and zest (from one lime) in a small bowl or glass measuring cup.
• Place the chicken thighs in a container, bowl, or large plastic bag. Pour the marinade on top (it will be thick) and or stir to coat each piece of chicken evenly (if in a bag, just smoosh it around until everything is evenly coated). Cover and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes, or as long as 24 hours.
• Heat a large (12-inch) non-stick skillet over medium high heat (see notes for other skillets). Add marinated chicken; sear without moving on one side for 5-7 minutes (check that it's not burning after 2-3 minutes- you may want to turn the heat down to medium if you have very hot burners or flip it earlier if it's cooking fast).
• Once the seared side is browned and looking crispy, flip to other side and sear, until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees F or meat is no longer pink (another 5-10 minutes, depending on thickness and size of chicken. Turn the heat down to medium or medium-low if both sides are seared but inside is not yet cooked the whole way). If you have a lid to your skillet, you can cover it to speed up the cooking time a bit.
• Remove chicken from skillet to a cutting board. Allow to rest for 5 minutes, then shred with two forks. Optional: for an extra punch of flavor, you can return the shredded chicken to the skillet to coat in the cooking juices.
• Serve with a squeeze of fresh lime juice garnished with fresh cilantro, if desired. Use in enchiladas, on tacos or burritos, in bowls, or on its own as a main course.

PULLED CHICKEN TOSTADAS

Steps:

• Cook the bacon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring, until lightly browned and crisp, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the onions and cook, stirring often and scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until soft and golden, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, puree the tomatoes in a blender. Add to the saucepan along with the chicken, chipotle, adobo sauce and cumin. Cook until warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes, adding up to 1/4 cup water if the sauce is too thick; season with salt and pepper.
• Toss the coleslaw mix with the lime juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a medium bowl. Warm the tostadas as the label directs.
• Top the tostadas with the chicken and coleslaw. Thin the sour cream with 1 to 2 tablespoons water; drizzle over the tostadas. Top with the avocado.

SHREDDED CHICKEN FOR ENCHILADAS, TOSTADAS, TACOS...

Steps:

• Place first four ingredients in a pot. Add just enough water to cover the chicken.
• Bring to a slow boil, cover, lower heat to maintain a simmer and cook until done, about 20 - 25 minutes. If using a whole chicken; cook approximately 50 - 60 minutes.
• Remove chicken from pot, let cool and shred. (I cool my chicken in the refrigerator to be safe) If using a whole chicken; remove meat from bones and shred. Reserve broth.
• In a large pan, melt butter over low heat.
• Add the remaining ingredients listed, except tomato sauce, salt, and broth.
• Sauté until soft, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in shredded chicken and briefly sauté.
• Add tomato sauce and ½ cup of reserved broth.
• Salt to taste.

SLOW-COOKER SHREDDED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Mix chicken, onions, garlic, bay leaves, broth, salt, and pepper in a slow cooker. Cover and cook until chicken shreds easily when pierced with a fork, about 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low.
• Remove chicken from liquid and shred with a fork; taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl; discard vegetables. Store chicken and broth together or separately.
• Do Ahead
• Chicken can be made 3 days ahead; cover and chill either in broth or separately, or freeze either together or separately up to 6 months.

SHREDDED MEXICAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Remove remaining fat and skin from chicken.
• Rub lime halves all over chicken and allow to sit to impart flavor.
• In a large pot, bring next 6 ingredients to a boil.
• Add chicken, reduce heat and simmer until chicken is cooked (about 20 minutes, depending on size).
• Meanwhile, mix salsa, cumin and chili powder in a large bowl.
• Drain chicken until it is cool enough to handle.
• Add chicken to salsa mixture and shred chicken with two forks, stirring to distribute salsa and seasoning.
• Add salt and pepper to taste.

MEXICAN-STYLE PULLED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Place chicken in the bottom of a slow cooker. Pour enchilada sauce and salsa over top. Cover and cook until you stir and the meat starts to fall apart, on Low for at least 6 hours or on High for at least 3 hours.
• Lift out pieces of meat with 2 forks and place on a plate. Shred meat and return to the pot for at least 20 minutes to absorb the remaining sauce.

PULLED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Rub the chicken thighs with 1 tbsp of the chipotle paste and some seasoning. Mix the remaining chipotle paste with the passata, barbecue sauce, 100ml water and half the onion. Spoon the sauce into a roasting tin that will fit the chicken snugly in a single layer and add the chicken thighs. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hr, then uncover, increase the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and bake for another 20 mins.
• Meanwhile, mix the remaining onion with the lime juice and some salt, and set aside while the chicken cooks. Mix all the beans in a saucepan with 100ml water and heat, ready to serve.
• When the chicken is really tender, use two forks to shred the meat into the sauce (discard the bones). Keep covered with the foil while you heat the beans for 5-10 mins until piping hot and not too wet, and warm the tacos following pack instructions. Stir the avocado and coriander leaves into the lime-onion mixture.
• Serve the pulled chicken and beans with shredded lettuce and tacos, or rice and lime wedges to squeeze over, if you like. Top with a spoonful of the avocado salsa.

SLOW COOKER SHREDDED MEXICAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Rub chicken breasts with oil and place in the bottom of your slow cooker. Add all of the remaining ingredients except for the hot sauce. Cook on high for 2-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours or until chicken is tender enough to shred.
• Shred the chicken and let it cook on low for an additional 20 minutes to absorb some of the liquid/juices. Drain all excess liquid (see note***). Taste and add hot sauce to taste if desired.

SLOW COOKER MEXICAN PULLED CHICKEN

Steps:

• Place ingredients in the slow cooker in the following order: chicken, taco seasoning, black beans, salsa, corn, onion, bell pepper, and water.
• Cook on Low until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear, 6 to 8 hours. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Shred chicken with 2 forks.

MEXICAN PULLED CHICKEN & BEANS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Rub the chicken thighs with 2 tbsp of the chipotle paste. Put the rest in a medium bowl with the garlic, tomatoes, onion and some seasoning. Stir to combine, then tip into a large roasting tin. Sit the chicken thighs close together on top of the sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hr.
• Remove the roasting tin from the oven, add all the beans and stir into the tomato mixture around the chicken. Put back in the oven, uncovered, for 20 mins or until the chicken is tender and the beans are hot.
• Meanwhile, mix the herbs, lettuce and cucumber with a drizzle of olive oil and set aside.
• Shred the chicken using a knife and fork, and discard the bones. Mix the chicken through the sauce and beans. Serve with the salad, tortilla chips and lime wedges.