Rachael Ray: Rachael's Daytime Talkshow

Ancho Chicken Soft Tacos

Aired on: August 10, 2009, February 11, 2009

This recipe is great for a quick weeknight meal, especially when you swap out the fresh roasted chicken for a store-bought rotisserie – let them do the hard work for you! You can buy ancho chilis at specialty stores or online at sites like Penzeys Spices, www.latinmerchant.com or www.mexgrocer.com.

Ingredients

1 store-bought rotisserie chicken or meat from Citrus Roasted Chicken
3 dried ancho peppers, stemmed and seeded
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
3 to 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
2 tablespoons sherry or sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 soft flour tortillas

Yields: 4 servings

Preparation

Place the ancho peppers and chicken stock into a small pot over medium-high heat. Bring up to a bubble and simmer until the peppers are very tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a food processor or blender and puree until smooth. Reserve.

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add the red onion and garlic to the pan, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.

While the veggies are cooking, remove the skin and meat from the chicken, and shred the meat.

Add the sherry or sherry vinegar to the pan and cook for a minute to burn off the alcohol. Add the oregano, cumin, coriander, shredded chicken and ancho puree to the skillet and cook (add a splash of chicken stock if the mixture is too thick), until heated through, 3-4 minutes.