Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa
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
For the Chipotle Shredded Chicken:
6 cups water
4 whole green onions
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons whole peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
2 teaspoons salt
1½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breast
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
3 tablespoons adobo sauce
juice of 1 lime
salt to taste
For the pineapple salsa:
2-3 cups finely diced pineapple
¼ cup minced red onion
½ cup minced cilantro
1 teaspoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
For the chipotle mayo:
¼ cup mayonnaise
2-3 tablespoons chipotle peppers, rehydrated in hot water, then drained
squeeze of lime juice
pinch of salt
For assembly
corn tortillas
INSTRUCTIONS
Bring the water, green onions, bay leaves, peppercorns, garlic, and salt to a simmer in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Once simmering, add the chicken and continue to simmer for 12-15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken reserving about a cup of the broth. Shred the chicken with two forks.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 4-5 minutes or until translucent and starting to brown. Add the garlic, chipotle peppers, and adobo sauce and cook for another minute. Add shredded chicken and ½ cup of reserved broth (or more) and cook until most the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt to taste.
For the salsa, combine all the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Stir to combine. For the chipotle mayo, whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl.
To assemble, heat the corn tortillas in a pan with a little bit of oil for a few moments. Top with about a quarter cup of chicken, a few tablespoons of pineapple salsa, and chipotle mayo to taste.
Slightly adapted from a recipe from peachandplenty.com