Chicken Tinga Tamales Recipes

CHICKEN TINGA RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and add the sliced onion. Stir-fry for 3 minutes and stir in the garlic. Cook for another 2 minutes until fragrant.
• Mix in the chopped tomato and parsley, lower the heat, stir and let cook until tomatoes start releasing its juices. This step will take about 6-7 minutes. If your tomatoes aren't juicy enough add a couple of tablespoons of water.
• Finally, add the chicken and chopped chipotle pepper. Simmer for about 8 more minutes until all the flavors had blended. Season with salt and pepper.
• To serve, garnish with chopped parsley. You can serve it as a main dish with rice and a salad or as a topping for tostadas, sopes or for empanada filling. If you have leftovers this dish freezes well for about a month.

CHEF JOHN'S CHICKEN TINGA

Steps:

• Place chicken thighs, garlic cloves, halved onion, salt, oregano, water, and chicken stock, and water in a large pot. Bring to a simmer over high heat; reduce to medium-low. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
• Transfer onion halves to a bowl with a slotted spoon; transfer chicken thighs to a separate bowl.
• Pour broth through a strainer into a large bowl.
• Heat olive oil in the same pot over medium heat. Add diced onions and cook until beginning to soften, about 4 minutes. Transfer strained liquid to onions. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat; turn heat to medium-low; reduce broth by about half, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Transfer reserved boiled onions to a blender. Add chipotle peppers and the adobo sauce. Swirl a bit of water in the can and add to the blender. Add tomatoes. Cover blender with the lid. Pulse on and off until mixture is partially blended. Blend on medium speed until smooth, 1 or 2 minutes. Transfer to pot with broth and onions.
• Increase heat to medium-high. Simmer 15 minutes or so, depending on how thick you want the sauce. Reduce heat to medium-low.
• Tear chicken into bite-size pieces and add to the pot. Cook another 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish; garnish with crumbled cotija cheese and cilantro.

TAMALES DE POLLO (CHIPOTLE CHICKEN TAMALES)

Steps:

• Place the corn husks in a large bowl and add enough warm water to cover. Weigh down with a plate if needed and soak until softened, at least 1 hour and up to 3 hours.
• Meanwhile, whisk the harina de maíz nixtamalizado, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Add the lard and rub into the dry ingredients with your fingers until thoroughly incorporated and the mixture is sandy. Add 2 1/2 cups broth, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix and knead in each addition with your hands until fully incorporated before adding the next. The dough should be soft and tacky but not sticky. If needed, continue adding broth 1/4 cup at a time, kneading well after each addition.
• To assemble a tamal, remove a husk from the water and pat dry. Use your fingers or a palette knife to spread a handful of masa (about 1/4 cup) in the center of the husk, covering about two-thirds of the husk with masa about 1/4-inch thick. Leave at least 3 inches clear at the pointed end and at least an inch on the other sides. Put 1 heaping spoonful of the chicken tinga filling lengthwise down the center of the masa. Wrap by bringing the right side of the dough over the filling and folding in half. Continue rolling tightly to the long end of the husk, then fold the pointed bottom end over the tamal towards the open top. Set aside folded ends down. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
• Prepare a large steamer by setting a steamer insert or rack above gently boiling water. Stack the tamales flat seam side down on the insert, leaving an empty space in the center. Cover with remaining husks, then the lid. Steam, replenishing the water as needed, until the tamales are firm and the masa comes away easily from the husk, about 45 to 55 minutes. Remove from the heat and keep warm in the steamer until ready to serve. Steamed and cooled tamales can be wrapped individually and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and steam until heated through to serve.

CHICKEN TINGA TACOS

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the chipotles, garlic, cumin, salt and cayenne and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes and stock and cook until they begin to simmer, about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and carefully ladle the sauce into a heat-safe blender. Puree until smooth. Pour the sauce back into the pan over medium heat and add the chicken, stirring to incorporate the chicken into the sauce. Cook until the sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes. Serve with tortillas and desired toppings.
• Combine the white vinegar, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt in a small saucepan with 1/2 cup water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add the onions and shallots to a pint jar and pour the liquid over the top. Let cool completely. Refrigerate up to 1 week.

CHICKEN TINGA TAMALES

Steps:

• Soak corn husks in hot water 30 min. Meanwhile, beat next 4 ingredients in large bowl with mixer on low speed until blended. Gradually add water, beating well after each addition until light and fluffy.
• Heat dressing in medium skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions; cook 3 min. Add remaining ingredients; stir. Cook on medium heat 10 min., stirring occasionally.
• Spread about 1/3 cup masa dough into 4-inch square on center of each of 12 drained corn husks, leaving about 2 inches at top of husk. Top each with about 3 Tbsp. chicken mixture. Fold over both sides and one end of each husk to enclose filling.
• Pour 3 cups water into tamalera pot or 8-qt. stockpot fitted with steamer basket. Line bottom of tamalera liner or steamer basket with some of the remaining corn husks. Place tamales, open ends up, in tamalera; cover with remaining corn husks or damp kitchen towel. Cover with lid. Bring to boil on medium-high heat; simmer on medium-low heat 1 hour or until tamales pull away from leaves, adding more boiling water to pan and adjusting heat as necessary to maintain a gentle boil.

CHICKEN TINGA TOSTADOS

Steps:

• Place the chicken into a large pot along with 1/4 cup of sliced onion, garlic, and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook until no longer pink, about 25 minutes. Remove chicken, cool, and shred meat. Discard skin and bones.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the remaining onion slices, and fry until transparent. Place tomatoes into a pan of boiling water (you could use the leftover chicken water), and boil until they split open.
• Place the tomatoes, the whole can of chipotle peppers, chicken bouillon into a blender or large food processor. Process until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Pour this mixture into a large pan, and add the shredded chicken and cooked onions. Heat through.
• To serve, each person spreads some sour cream on their tostada shell, and tops with a spoonful of the chicken.

TINGA DE POLLO (CHICKEN WITH CHIPOTLE AND ONIONS)

Steps:

• Cook the chicken: Combine the chicken, onion, celery and carrots in a large saucepan and add 4 cups cold water. Add more water if needed to cover the solids. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to maintain a simmer. Cook until the chicken is very tender and falling off the bones, about 45 minutes.
• Transfer the chicken to a bowl. When cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones, then pull the meat into very fine shreds. Strain the broth and reserve for Tamales de Pollo or another use.
• While the chicken cooks, make the sauce: Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. While the onion cooks, puree the tomatoes, chipotles and garlic in a blender until smooth. Add to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Add the chicken to the sauce and gently fold to evenly coat and heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately or cool to room temperature to use a filling for Tamales de Pollo.

CHIPOTLE CHICKEN TINGA

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large non-stick flameproof casserole dish or saucepan. Fry the onions with a pinch of salt for 10 mins, or until softened. Add the garlic and fry for 1 min more. Tip in the chipotle paste, tomatoes and sugar with half a can of water. Sit the chicken thighs in the sauce. Bring to a low simmer and cook, covered, for 20-25 mins, stirring often, until the liquid has reduced slightly and the chicken is cooked through.
• Using two forks, shred the chicken and stir it back through the sauce. Season to taste. If the sauce is too thin, return to the heat and simmer for 5 mins until the sauce has reduced more. To freeze, leave to cool completely and transfer to large freezerproof bags.
• To make the salsa, combine the red onion, tomatoes, lime zest and juice, coriander leaves and stalks. Season to taste. Serve the chicken with the tomato salsa, tortilla chips, guacamole and a scattering of coriander leaves.