I usually forgo the grilled option, since whatever I’m
ordering almost always benefits from sauce; which leaves me with the nearly
impossible decision of choosing between the red and the green. I love both, so
I’m always torn. By the way, in Mexican culinary lingo, tinga means, “torn.”
The real challenge here is deciding how to use it. You can’t
go wrong with tacos, but my favorite delivery system is tostados. Fry up a corn
or flour tortilla nice and crisp; top with tinga, and garnish with the usual
suspects. It doesn’t get any better than that…unless the tortilla is shaped
into a bowl, which I’ll show you how to do quickly, and mess-free, in the next
video. Until then, I really hope you give this a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients for 6 large portions:
3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
3 cloves peeled whole garlic cloves
1 large yellow onion, halved
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
1 can (7-oz) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 can (28-oz) peeled plum tomatoes (I recommend using San
Marzano) or 3 1/2 cups of any fresh or canned tomato product
2 tablespoons olive oil or reserved chicken fat
1 large onion, diced
Cotija cheese and cilantro to garnish
48 comments:
Dear Chef John,
some of us are not Breast Lunatics (as far as chicken is concerned) because we want to be, but because we have to be. Supermarkets here in Germany do not offer boneless, skinless chicken thighs (which, since I started watching your videos, is a pity).
Otherwise, this recipe looks great again (unfortunately, our supermarkets don't feature Chipotle Chilies nor San Marzano tomatoes, either...).
Keep up the good work! :)
Simultaneously drooling all over my keyboard and laughing to tears. "What the wildlings might call a taco salad"? Cause they're north of the wall, right? You're the best, Chef John
Chef, I just went to Allrecipes to print this recipe and it isn't up yet. Do you know about how long it takes for them to publish your recipes?
Hey Chef John,
canned Chipotle Chiles are hard to come by where I live, so any idea what I should use to substitute them (or even replicate that sauce?)
Written directions?
What do you do with the garlic cloves add to the sauce or discard.
I made this substituting tofu for chicken, shallots for garlic, potato for onion, parsley for oregano, ketchup for tomatoes, and pickles for chipotle. It wasn't very good, it didn't taste the slightest bit Mexican, this is an awful recipe.
shesh - Allrecipes publishes a printed version of all of Chef John's recipes. The link is up there, the first one under his Food Friends.
man, does that look good! Also, it's almost the end of the work day and I am very hungry. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment!
SY: What a coincidence. I made the same substitutions and it came out great.
DrWest, do your stores sell chicken thighs with bone and skin? If so, I would just poach those, and separate the meat when they're done. The resulting stock might even taste better due to the bones. As for San Marzano tomatoes, you are waaaay closer to Italy than we are, yet most larger supermarkets here now stock them. They are also available at smaller "foodie" stores, and of course from Italian grocers. Perhaps there is not enough demand where you live?
@SY I love you.
Amazon is your friend people. There is no substitute for Chipotle.
@SY I love you.
Forget the taco bowls, give us the Green option recipe as well! No need to be torn if we can unite in harmony with BOTH colors of the tinga rainbow!
For the chipotles i'll use these: http://www.ebay.de/itm/Chipotles-in-Adobo-La-Costena-Mexiko-220g-/152124864934
Hi Chef John, I hope you notice my comment.
I know this may sound a lot, but I would be so happy if you can make a video recipe for people who have IBD (inflammatory bowl disease/ Crohn disease)
There's nothing much I can eat right now, but I want to eat delicious food that won't cause me flare.
I know I'm asking for a lot, but I would really be so happy ��
Chef, please host a contest only winnable by me. Let the prize be a weekend food tour of SF with you.
I'm happy to pay for my travel and your food. PLEASE! :)
-Travis from KC
Hay SY,
I am still laughing, would love to see your recipe for a slice of bread and butter...........
I made this tonight with about half of the chipotles (low tolerance for heat in this house) and it was fantastic. I served the chicken tinga as tacos with corn tortillas, and it may have been the best Mexican meal that I've ever made. I recommend a little fresh lime to go with it. Really superb, will definitely make again and again.
Is it possible to make this and the broth at the same time to save steps?
It's "tostadas," chef, not "tostados,"tortillas being a feminine noun.
Thanks for this delicious recipe. I have been eating tostadas with ground meat (picadillo) for weeks and was looking for something with chicken. This is it.
Love your recipes.
@SY I agree YOUR recipe sounds just awful. Try using the original one next time and your dish just might come out tasting Mexican. :-)
I made this Thursday night, outstanding. The next time I make it I want to try and add oven roasted fresh tomatoes, if I plan enough ahead I might roast some red bell peppers the next time I BBQ to add as well. Thanks for the inspiration Chef John.
Good shit chef!
Chrissy says she'd make it again in a hot second.
Every bit as good as promised!! Just a little too hot for me so next time I'll use 1/2 can of the chilies! But this is an awesome disk!! Thank you!!
I prepared the recipe true to the video and loved it. My husband and I like it for breakfast with a fried egg on top and a salad or French bread on the side. French bread is great for dipping in the tasty red sauce.
I personally added juice of a large lime n it was awesome
Loving both of them
Is breaking all the rules.
Made this recipe 2 days ago. Had my doubts about using an entire can of chipotles, seeds and all, but have lots of faith in CJ. Wow! It was fantastic! I also made the tortilla bowls. The next day it was even better, like any stew. Only thing I did differently was double the onion and garlic amounts. Also scored the chicken fat extra credit. Will make this again and again! Thank you!
Another winner. Thank you.
Chef John, really looking forward to making this; is there anyway I can print this with directions? Thank you so much for all the incredible recipes! Jim
Made this last weekend just a couple of days after you posted the tostada shell recipe. I can confirm that this makes amazing tacos, quesadillas, and taco salads.
However I had this crazy idea for the next time I make it, Mexican Jambalaya! It would be made basically the same way except at the point you are sauteeing the onions, also add green peppers, and at the point you mix in the tomato/chipotle sauce also add black beans, corn, and maybe 3/4 cup uncooked rice.
Really liked this recipe and made it twice now (it's a great one to cook for the week).
Only change I made first time round was using bone-in, skin-on thighs. I can't see it doing anything other than adding more flavour and after poaching the meat comes off very easily.
Second time around I made a few other alterations, it may well be less authentic but came out quite well and I think shows that it's a solid base to be able to experiment with somewhat.
I added a carrot and some red/orange peppers in with the onion for the boiling and blending into the sauce, added a bit of sweetness and some extra body to the final dish. I also added in some diced chorizo, these boiled to disperse the flavour but after straining were fried up along with the onions along with some extra peppers.
I also blitzed in a small amount of xanthan gum to help thicken the sauce and help mix in some of the rendered fat but that's entirely optional, however I find is particularly effective when reheating in microwaves at work as it helps the sauce stay together rather than going watery.
Was thinking too much about the poor quality of chicken here in China (can get nice whole birds, but just buying legs I shudder to think how much hormones are in there) when I had a crazy idea -- make the tinga sauce and poach some nice white fish in the there! Came out fabulous.
Great recipe! One of my favorite comfort foods. Mi abuelita always told me to include 1 or 2 cinnamon sticks when boiling the chicken, I think it really makes a difference!
For corn tortilla bowls brush with oil then microwave over ramekin for 15 seconds, then bake.
I made this the other day and it come out very sour tasting not sure what I did wrong.
Hey Guys! I had big chicken breasts (ha) on hand and I did the poaching in my slow cooker. It came out great. My sauce to chicken ratio was a little off and I'm sure thighs would have been better, but still really good. I added a can of drained and rinsed black beans at the end and have been eating off of it for days.
I made this tonight and we had them as Chicken Tinga Tacos and it was THE BEST chicken tacos we have ever had! I feel a Chicken Tinga Poutine coming on.....
Thanks for the great recipe.
One question: Wouldn't it be better if we first browned the chicken thighs a little? That is: Brown chicken thighs (both sides) in a couple of Tbsp of oil (in batches if necessary), remove excess oil from pot, de-glaze with a bit of broth if necessary, then return thighs to pot, add halved onion, garlic cloves, salt, oregano, broth, etc. and continue with the recipe as is. Wouldn't this add some depth of flavor to the chicken (instead simply boiling it)? Would it have some other unwanted side-effect that I cannot think of? (Maybe the resulting stock/broth will be a little less clear, but I think it would be as flavorful if not more)... Any thoughts on this?
Made this Sunday night. Incredible! Literally best chicken tacos I have ever had. Will definitely be going into the rotation. Thanks CJ!
Tried this out tonight, was awesome. Ended up sticking with the actual recipe rather than making any of my own changes, would definitely throw in some diced peppers next time. Wanted to try the burrito bowls too so made those and had some stellar salads. For anyone who can't handle hot food this is pretty spicy, my wife has a really low tolerance for spicy food and couldn't eat too much of this unfortunately but the flavor made it hard to stop.
Will definitely be enjoying this myself in leftovers over the rest of the week and weekend and shes excited to see those burrito bowls come into use in other taco salad recipes.
Oh Chef John, I must say this was tremendous. A little tang, a little heat, and lots of flavor. I used bone-in chicken pieces, mostly thighs, for the first step, and then separated the meat afterwards, shredding it and adding back to the sauce. The stock was super flavorful!
All in all a perfect recipe - served to 30+ happy guests in homemade corn tortilla shells. Just wow.
Oh Chef John, I must say this was tremendous. A little tang, a little heat, and lots of flavor. I used bone-in chicken pieces, mostly thighs, for the first step, and then separated the meat afterwards, shredding it and adding back to the sauce. The stock was super flavorful!
All in all a perfect recipe - served to 30+ happy guests in homemade corn tortilla shells. Just wow.
Made this for the first time this weekend. Loved it. It will now be one of my go-to dishes. Instead of poaching the chicken thighs for 30 minutes on the stove, I threw them in the crock pot in the morning and finished the dish in the evening. Will definitely do that again.
I paired it with jicama/orange salad from Bittman's "How to cook everything." Great combo. It's a perfect summertime side for Phoenix... which has summer nearly year-round.
Next time I'll use queso fresco instead of cotija, which I find a bit too salty.
WHAT?!! I'm a New Mexican, who cooks with chiles at least weekly, so probably have more knowledge of types of chile than the average bear.
I had NO IDEA that Chipotle chiles were ripened jalapeño! Such a clever lad, Chef john. Thanks!
Chef John,
I just recently discovered your blog and so glad I did. I made your lobster thermidor, scallops st jacques and now the chicken tinga. All have been outstanding! I'm presently eating a salad with some of the chicken and "the usual suspects," LOL. Thank you so much!
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