Tag Archives: Weekday

Chicken Tinga Tacos

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We took a basic Chicken Tinga recipe using a rotisserie chicken and made tacos as our main dish. If you’ve never had it, chicken tinga has a smoky sweetness that’s hard to resist and uses easy-to-find ingredients such as tomatoes (canned or fresh), chipotle peppers in adobo, and of course, chicken.

The dish originates from Puebla, Mexico, and it falls under what a guisado: a meat or vegetable that is cooked with few ingredients and is stewy, homey, and delicious. There are many variations for this recipe so feel free to adjust to your own preferences.

The number of servings will vary depending on how and what you serve the tinga in. For us, one serving equaled two stuffed tacos and a side of rice and beans.

Not fans of anything too sweet with our meat, we reduced the amount of honey from three tablespoons down to one.

Chicken Tinga Tacos

  • Servings: 5-6
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 medium white onion
  • 4 large cloves garlic
  • 2-4 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (plus 1 Tbsp. of the adobo sauce)
  • 1 15-oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 Tbsp. honey
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. dried oregano
  • 6 cups shredded cooked chicken (such as from a 3 1/2 lb. rotisserie chicken)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Optional toppings: chopped fresh cilantro, shredded Mexican cheese blend, crumbled cotija cheese, fresh lime wedges, quick pickled red onions, sliced avocado, and/or Mexican crema
  • Corn tortillas, taco shells, or tostadas, for serving

Directions

  1. Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, until fragrant. Remove stockpot from heat and transfer the onion mixture to a blender.
  2. Add the chipotles and 1 tablespoon of adobo sauce, tomatoes, chicken stock, honey, cumin and oregano to the blender. Cover and purée until smooth, then pour the sauce back into the stockpot.
    Alternatively, use a an immersion blender directly into the stockpot.
  3. Add the chicken and bay leaf to the sauce and toss until combined. Cook over medium-high heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
  4. Season the chicken with salt and pepper to your taste.
  5. Serve it warm with your tortillas and choice of toppings.

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Adapted from a recipe from GimmeSomeOven.com

Persian Barley-Lentil Soup with Spinach

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This hearty vegetarian soup combines two classic Persian soups: lentil and barley. Instead of dried limes common in Persian cuisine to infuse the broth with unique citrus notes, this recipe opts for easier-to-find fresh limes and uses the zest for fragrance and flavor and the juice to add tanginess.

For efficiency, prep the spinach and cilantro while the barley and lentils cook. And to round out the meal, serve with warmed bread or flatbread and a dollop of plain yogurt for richness. We were thoroughly impressed by this deeply flavored soup.

NOTE: This is the fast method using a pressure cooker or InstaPot and it all comes together in just under and hour. The slow method takes 5 to 6 hours, and we are not posting that recipe here.

Don’t use hulled barley instead of pearled barley. Hulled barley has had its inedible outer hull removed but retains its bran. Pearled barley, on the other hand, has been polished to remove the bran, which makes it quicker to tenderize; in this recipe, it cooks at the same rate as the lentils.

Persian Barley-Lentil Soup with Spinach

  • Servings: 4-5
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more to serve
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 6 medium garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 medium carrots, peeled, quartered lengthwise and sliced ½-inch thick
  • 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
  • 4 bay leaves
  • Kosher salt and ground black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp. grated lime zest, plus 3 Tbsp. lime juice, plus lime wedges to serve
  • ¾ cup pearled barley
  • ½ cup brown or green lentils
  • 1½ qts. low-sodium vegetable broth
  • 4 cups lightly packed baby spinach, chopped
  • 1 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions

  1. On a 6-quart Instant Pot, select More/High Sauté. Add the oil and heat until shimmering. Add the onion, garlic, carrots, tomato paste, bay and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lime zest and juice, barley, lentils and broth, scraping up any browned bits, then distribute in an even layer.
  2. Press Cancel, lock the lid in place and move the pressure valve to Sealing. Select Pressure Cook or Manual; set the pressure level to High. Set the cooking time for 18 minutes. When pressure cooking is complete, quick-release the steam by moving the pressure valve to Venting. Press Cancel, then carefully open the pot.
  3. Remove and discard the bay, then stir in the spinach and cilantro. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve drizzled with oil and with lime wedges on the side.

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Recipe by Julia Rackow for Milk Street

Ground Lamb Pulao

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The aroma of fresh mint and spices permeates this bright, turmeric-painted pulao made with basmati rice and ground lamb. This recipe, which has origins in the ground meat pulaos of India, is quite flexible and open to additions: a handful of fresh dill, a generous sprinkling of fried peanuts or other nuts, or crispy, fried onions tossed in just before serving.

It also works well if you substitute beef for the lamb, and really needs no sides, except maybe some raita, creamy plain yogurt or a salad. And we did just that, a simple side salad completed our meal.

We had plenty leftover with only the two of us for dinner. The extras were refrigerated and a day later reheated and enjoyed for lunch.

Ground Lamb Pulao

  • Servings: 4-6
  • Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

  • 2 cups basmati rice
  • 1 ½ lbs. ground lamb or beef
  • 1 tsp. ghee, unsalted butter or extra-virgin olive oil
  • 4 garlic cloves, peeled and grated
  • 2 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
  • 1 ½ tsp. garam masala
  • ½ tsp. red chile powder
  • ½ tsp. black pepper
  • 2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 3 Tbsp. lime juice
  • ½ tsp. ground turmeric
  • 1 bunch scallions (about 6), trimmed and thinly sliced
  • ¼ cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves

  1. Check the rice and discard any debris. Place the rice in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse under running water until the water runs clear. Place the rice in a bowl, cover with water by 1 inch, and soak for 30 minutes.
  2. As the rice soaks, cook the lamb: Place a medium saucepan with a heavy lid or a Dutch oven over medium heat. When the saucepan is hot, break the lamb into chunks, and cook until the fat renders, about 2 minutes. Drain most of the fat, leaving behind 1 to 2 tablespoons, and continue to cook the lamb until it browns, another 2 minutes.
  3. Add the ghee and heat over medium until it melts, 30 to 45 seconds. Add the garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute.
  4. Add the garam masala, chile powder, black pepper and 1 teaspoon salt and sauté until the spices are fragrant, 1 minute. Add 1 tablespoon lime juice and stir until the flavors come together, about 1 minute.
  5. Transfer the lamb mixture to a large bowl and keep warm. (To do so, you could transfer it to a 250-degree oven.) Clean the saucepan and wipe dry.
  6. Drain the soaked rice. Add to the same saucepan and cover with water by 1 inch. Stir in 1 tablespoon lime juice, the turmeric and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then cover, and reduce heat to simmer until the rice absorbs all the water, about 10 minutes. (Do not stir the rice as it cooks, or the grains might break.) Remove the saucepan from heat, and let sit, uncovered, for 5 minutes.
  7. Stir the rice into the cooked lamb mixture, then drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice. Fold the scallions and mint into the rice, and serve immediately.

Directions

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Adapted from a recipe by Nik Sharma for NYTimes Cooking