Chipotle Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Morita chiles are red, fully mature Chipotles. This gives them a unique, medium – hot smokey flavor which is popular in many Southwestern dishes. These can be added to sauces (including Mole) to add smokey flavor and maintain the red color of the sauces. These peppers are about 2-4 inches in length, 1 inch in width, and have a deep brick reddish brown color. The word Chipotle translated to smoked chile. Consider the Chipotle a 6.5 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the hottest). Scoville heat units 7,000-25,000.
Suggested Use:
Use Morita in enchilada sauces, chili, stews, barbecue ribs, and corn bread. Their smoky quality combines well with poultry, meats and fall squash.
Ingredients:
3 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 cup frozen corn
1 pound chicken breast
2 – 3 chipotle peppers (depending on your love of heat)
1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro
1 lime
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
3 scallions, thinly sliced
1 head butter lettuce, rinsed and leaves separated
coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
Instructions:
Turn on the broiler. Arrange the corn on a rimmed baking sheet with a Tbs. of oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Broil the corn for about 5 minutes, or until they start to slightly char and turn crispy. You can toss them a couple of times throughout. Set aside.
Heat the remaining 2 Tbs. oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and sear for 6 minutes on each side until cooked through and browned all over. Move to a cutting board and let sit for 5 minutes. Then dice the chicken.
In a food processor, combine the cilantro, lime juice, and chipotle peppers. Process until smooth.
Add the chicken back to the pan, along with the chipotle sauce, freshly diced red bell pepper and roasted corn. Toss until combined.
Serve a couple of Tbs. (or more if you’re a freak like me) of the chicken mixture in each lettuce cup and garnish with scallions!
Adapted from bevcooks.com