Shredded Chicken Tacos
Serves 6
- 2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
- salt
- pepper
- 2 Tbs vegetable oil
- 1 onion, halved and sliced thin
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 (14.5 oz) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 Tbs minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce plus 2 tsp adobo sauce
- 1/2 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp grated lime zest plus 2 Tbs juice
- 12 (6 inch) corn tortillas, warmed
- 1 avocado, halved, pitted, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 2 oz Cotija cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)
- 6 scallions, minced
- minced fresh cilantro
- lime wedges
- Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large Ditch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- And half of the chicken and brown on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
- Transfer to large plate.
- Repeat with remaining chicken.
- 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 and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add tomatoes, broth, chipotle and adobo sauce, and sugar and bring to a boil, scraping up and browned bits.
- Return chicken to pot, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until meat registers 195°F, 15 to 20 minutes, flipping chicken after 5 minutes.
- Transfer chicken to cutting board.
- 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-sized pieces.
- Return chicken to pot with sauce.
- Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until sauce clings to chicken, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in lime zest and juice.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Spoon chicken into center of each warm tortilla and serve, passing avocado, Cotija, scallions, cilantro, and lime wedges separately.
For the Chicken
For the Tacos
Dunn, Steve. "Shredded Chicken Tacos." Cooks Illustrated Jul. & Aug. 2016: 4-5.