Slap Yo Thigh It's So Good Chicken Tacos

I love, love, LOVE Mexican food. There's just something warm and comforting about it. The first bite into my favorite burrito feels like tucking into a pair of fuzzy slippers on a frigid, rainy night. Similar to Indian cuisine, the barrier of entry is rather high -- the stew recipes call for all sorts of exotic chiles and herbs, and even more esoteric ingredients such as tamarin paste and chocolate. The sauces are multi-layered and often time consuming. 


As one would expect, I was rather intimidated when I made my first foray into Mexican cooking. After poking around the inter-webs, I found a crash course to initiate myself on the various dried chile peppers, the foundation of many Mexican dishes. Turns out that scores of the peppers that we're most familiar with aren't all that spicy; their main purpose is to provide that smokey, caramel-y depth to the sauces. I discovered a great little Mexican grocer in the Mission that offer an extensive selection of herbs and spices at rock bottom prices. I got a huge bag each of ancho, negro and California chiles for less than $8! 

Recipe

3 pounds of chicken
3 ancho chiles
5 chile negro
5 chile California
1 medium sized onion
1/2 head of garlic
1 inch segment of ginger
20 sprigs of cilantro (give or take)
3 limes
3 bay leaves
1 can of diced tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 cup tequila (plus more to sooth the nerves if you almost started a grease fire like I did)
8 warm tortillas
1/4 head of cabbage
salt and pepper to taste
oil for browning chicken



The night before making the dish, soak the chiles. I found the least messy way to do this is to cut up the chiles and remove the seeds before submerging them in water. Using a pair of kitchen shears, clip the tip of the chile, shake out the seeds and discard the stems. Sometimes, the seedlings are timid and need a little encouragement, so go at it, shake it like yo mama gave you a pair! It also helps to rub the chiles a bit beforehand to loosen the little suckers. Don't worry if you can't get rid of all the seeds, you can strain them out later. Pour hot water over the pods and let them soak. Good night, little ones.

Chile negro, Chile California, Ancho Chile

Fish out the hydrated chiles and put them in the blender, reserving the soaking liquid. Peel and cut the onion into around 8 sections, peel the the garlic, around 4-5 large cloves and, cut off the stems of the cilantro. Using a micro-plank, zest 2 limes, then juice them. Now, for the ginger, I like its flavor but hate to bite into a piece, even a small one. I use the micro-plank to grate the ginger to protect my taste buds from any accidental chunks of the fiery root. Throw everything in with the chiles, strain the soaking liquid of seeds, around 1 1/2 cups, into the blender, puree well. Season with salt and add the brown sugar. I like my food a bit on the sweeter side, but if that's not your thing, adjust the amount of sugar. This mix is very versatile; I've used it in the past as a marinade (with a splash of tequila) for BBQ'ed chicken. It has a mole quality to it, rich and smokey.

Before I go any further, I am compelled to devote a paragraph to my love of enameled cast iron cookware. My mom got me a 5.5 quart Dutch oven from the Martha Stewart collection last year and it's one of the best presents that I've ever received. The quality of my food vastly improved. Le Creuset used to dominate the market and demand an arm and leg for their enamel-ware; these days, one can own one for around $50, approximately a quarter of what the former charges! These dutch ovens heat evenly, are able to withstand high temperatures, hold heat well and the best feature of all, go from stovetop into the oven in a jiffy. Like a good set of knives, it's a must for every home cook.


Now that I've declared my love for enamel-ware to the cyber world, back to the chicken. Preheat the oven to 300º. I'm using chicken thighs today, but you could easily substitute chicken breast or even pork shoulder or short ribs. Since this is a stew, I prefer to use a cut of meat with the bones attached for added flavor. I left the skin on, you could de-skin the chicken if you prefer. Wash the chicken, pat dry to minimize splattering, and season with salt and pepper. 


Heat the dutch oven on medium high, when the pot comes up to temperature, pour a bit of oil, just enough to coat the bottom. Brown the chicken on both sides, around 2-3 minutes on each side, remove from the pot and set aside. Remember not to crowd the pan -- it'll trap steam and the meat won't sear as well. Don't worry if you burn the chicken a little because the bits at the bottom will add flavor to the dish when we deglaze the pan. 

Be careful, the oil will splatter and aim for your eye

When all the chicken are done, lower the stove to medium, pour out any excess oil and deglaze the pan with the tequila. Using a wooden spatula, scrape any of the bits from the bottom of the pan. Empty the can of diced tomatoes and the contents of blender into the alcohol brew; stir in the cumin, bay leaves, cinnamon and Mexican oregano. Sample the stew base and adjust for seasoning to your taste. Add the chicken, including any run off juices, back into the pot. Make sure all the meat are submerged and pop the pot into the oven for two hours. If there's no enough sauce, pour in some more water. Check the stew around the half way point to stir the contents and ensure the chicken are covered by the sauce.

Remove the pot from the oven and let stand for 15 minutes or so. Using a thong, fish out the chicken onto a plate and pull out the thigh bone. The chicken meat should fall off the bone without any resistance, much like the French. Using two forks, shred the chicken by pulling the meat apart. Spoon a bit more sauce over the pollo to keep it moist. Cut the remaining limes into wedges and finely slice the cabbage. If so desire, dice half an onion and mix with a bit of chopped cilantro, or slice up an avocado, for accompaniments. Warm up the tortillas and voila. Trust me, people will be lining up with their plates waiting for the tacos as soon as you take the chicken stew out of the oven and open the lid.

Reflections
I truly love this recipe -- it's simple and doesn't require much prep work. In the future, I will build on the base sauce and try to transform it into a mole by adding pepitos, raisins and Mexican cooking chocolate. I always save the sauce -- it would make a great sauce for enchiladas or add some pizzazz to any grilled meat. You can even squirrel it away in the freezer for a rainy day. Bon appetit!!