Shredded Chicken Tacos for National Taco Day
Thursday, October 4, 2012 at 8:33AM in Appetizer, Kitchen Play, Main Dish, Poultry, Sauce, lunch, recipes, snack Did you know that today, October 4th, is National Taco Day? What better way to celebrate than with homemade Shredded Chicken Tacos? And also one of our favorite toppings, California Black Ripe Olives! Do you remember when you were a kid and you’d put a black olive on each fingertip and eat them one at a time? I do! Did you know that California produces over 95% of the olives grown in the US? I had no idea! These are not grown on huge industrial farms, either. They’re cultivated on multi-generational orchards powered by hardworking American farmers and their families. They follow strict growing and handling standards to sustain consistent results. You can feel good about buying and serving them to your family!
This recipe was developed for Kitchen PLAY’s Sidecar Series. We’re celebrating CA Black Ripe Olives for National Taco Day. It’s a delicious pairing!
Please join all of us along with California Black Ripe Olives (@MissCAOlive ) and Kitchen Play (@kitchen_play)for a fun Twitter party!
Join Kitchen PLAY, California Ripe Olives and some of your favorite food bloggers for a Twitter Party on October 16th, 7:00 PM EDT. Learn about this tasty, nutritious and versatile food. Have fun testing your olive knowledge. Win great olive prizes! Register here.
Beginning October 1, read all ten posts at Kitchen PLAY celebrating National Taco Day with California Ripe Olives for clues. Each post contains an "olive fact" that may appear as a trivia question during the Twitter Party. A new post and fact will be revealed each day, Monday through Friday, until October 12.
My CA Ripe Olive fact: A large California Ripe Olive has only 6 calories.
This shredded chicken is loaded with flavor. The sauce features fresh ingredients and seasonings that compliment them beautifully. We’ve also added extra flavor to otherwise plain corn tortillas by adding lime juice and zest to the dough. When preparing your tacos, these or any other type, give California Black Ripe Olives a try as one of your toppings! They’re a nice pop of flavor that you might not have thought of adding.
Shredded Chicken Tacos with California Black Ripe Olives
Corn Tortillas:
2 cups Masarica
2 TB all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups warm water (may need more or less)
1/2 - 1 tsp salt
2 TB melted butter
Zest of half a lime
Juice of half a lime
Shredded Chicken:
3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
8 tomatillos, chopped
6 small tomatoes (I used Campari's), chopped
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 packet Sazon Goya with Coriander and Annatto
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
1 bunch cilantro
1/2 cup chicken broth, for deglazing pan
Juice from half a lime
Toppings:
California Black Ripe Olives, sliced
Shredded cheese of your choice
Diced tomatoes
Sour Cream
Cilantro
Make the tortillas:
In a medium bowl, mix the masarica, AP flour, water, salt, butter, lime juice and zest. Mix with your hands until you have a nice dough that isn't sticky. Roll into balls about the size of a golf ball. Press in a tortilla press, or press with your hands. Cook in a fairly hot skillet with a little oil on both sides, until nicely golden brown and a little crispy. Set aside and cover with a towel. This recipe makes 12 (4-5 inch) tortillas.
These will not be crispy like store bought taco shells, but soft and pliable. And good!
Prepare the chicken:
For the sauce: In a large sauce pan (I actually used my wok!), heat a bit of oil and add the onion, garlic, and red bell pepper. Sauté for about 5-7 minutes. Add the tomatoes, tomatillos, cumin, Sazon Goya, salt, pepper, 1 cup of chicken broth, and the bunch of cilantro. Bring to a boil, then turn down slightly to a good bubbling simmer. Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes or so, until it's cooked down and slightly thickened.
Using a blender (carefully!), puree the sauce--not completely, leave a bit of texture in it. Do it in batches if you're using a blender and hold a kitchen towel over the lid in case any leaks out. OR, if you're smart, use your immersion blender, which I still don't have! Set the sauce aside and stir in the juice from half a lime.
Next, In a large skillet (I use a large 16 x 12 inch electric skillet for this), heat a bit of oil, then add the chicken thighs. Brown on each side, about 5 minutes a side. Remove from pan and set aside. Deglaze the pan with the 1/2 cup chicken broth, scraping up all of the chicken bits.
Pour the pureed sauce into the pan, then add the chicken and any accumulated juices back into the pan. Turn each chicken thigh over to coat it with sauce. Turn heat down to low, and partially cover the pan. Simmer for 20 minutes, spooning some of the sauce over the chicken every 10 minutes.
After 20 minutes, remove the chicken pieces, and shred them using two forks. Add the shredded meat back to the sauce and mix it all up. You can leave it in the pan over very low heat, or remove it now to a bowl.
Make your tacos!
Spoon a little chicken down the center of the tortillas, and top with cheese, California Black Ripe Olives, tomatoes, sour cream and cilantro. Serve immediately.
- You don’t have to make fresh tortillas--you can certainly use store bought.
- This chicken recipe is very versatile! Use it in burritos, or in a taco bowl served over rice, and add your toppings. You could also easily turn this into a soup by adding more broth and any veggies that you may like. Add some rice, and top with crispy corn tortilla strips.
- You could also use this sauce recipe with shredded pork or beef.
Reader Comments (3)
Wow, these sound so flavorful! I love shredded chicken tacos. Every day should be taco day!
What?! How did I miss National Taco Day!? I love, love chicken tacos and these look like a great way to celebrate!
These tacos look amazing! I didn't celebrate National Taco Day, but I celebrate basically every week anyway :) The more olives, the better!