Shredded Chicken Tacos
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I had some corn tortillas left from when I made Tequila-Lime Shrimp Tacos, so I figured I’d whip up some more tacos for dinner. I always keep chicken in the freezer, so I figured I’d poach said chicken and shred it, throw some spices on it and make tacos two nights in a row. We’re on a Cinco de Mayo roll here, people! These were great. Not quite as good as the shrimp tacos, but really tasty nonetheless. The mix of spices was great, and coating the shredded chicken with tomato paste really deepened the flavor.
Shredded Chicken Tacos
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mexican
Description
Poached chicken shreds nicely. The mix of spices was great, and coating the shredded chicken with tomato paste really deepened the flavor.
Ingredients
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1 lime, halved (and cut one of the halves into wedges)
12 small corn tortillas
Avocado, diced
Cilantro, chopped
Radishes, thinly sliced
Tomatoes, chopped
Instructions
Place chicken in a saucepan and cover with water by 2 inches. Add bay leaf and a healthy pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer until chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken, reserving the cooking liquid, and let cool slightly. Shred the chicken with 2 forks and set aside.
Heat oil in a large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. onion and garlic and sauté for a few minutes, until soft. Add tomato paste, cumin, smoked paprika, coriander, and shredded chicken and stir. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the juice of half of the lime. If the chicken is dry, add a few tablespoons of the reserved cooking liquid (I ended up adding 3 tablespoons). Stir to combine and heat through.
To serve, place chicken on a double layer of warmed tortillas. Top with avocado, cilantro, tomatoes and radishes. Squeeze a lime wedge over each taco before digging in, if desired.
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 246
- Sugar: 1.6 g
- Sodium: 66.8 mg
- Fat: 6.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 24.2 g
- Fiber: 3.7 g
- Protein: 23.6 g
- Cholesterol: 66.2 mg
Keywords: chicken tacos, shredded chicken, Taco Tuesday
Ashley
Ashley Covelli is a food photographer, recipe developer, and culinary instructor based in Ossining, New York. She loves helping people become enthusiastic and adventurous in the kitchen so that they can build skills and confidence to cook for themselves and their loved ones. She can almost always be found with at least 3 different beverages within arm's reach.
3 Comments
Alicia
These tacos were delicious! I tweaked the recipe a bit, I added 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper to this dish along with all of the other spices. It gave this dish that the extra zing of spice that I thought that it needed. You can even cut that in half if you are not one for spicy dishes but want a hint of a bit more flavor. You can not go wrong with these tacos.
Alicia
Great recipe you can not go wrong with these taco’s. I tweaked the recipe a bit. I boiled the chicken in chicken broth and water. It gave the chicken a strong flavor. Also my family likes a hint of spice to our food. So I added 1/2 tsp of cayenne pepper to the spices. This gave it the zing of spice without it being to hot or overwhelming. If you are skeptical of spicy food you can even cut that in half to 1/4 tsp and it will bring out the flavor and compliment these tacos wonderfully!
Ashley
So glad you enjoyed them! Cayenne would definitely be a great addition to these… I’d just have to separate some for my toddler first, although he does like a bit of spice! 🙂