Chicken Taquitos with Avocado Crema
Crispy Chicken Taquitos with Avocado Crema are a delicious appetizer. Filled with stewed chicken tinga and topped with avocado.
Ingredients
Taquitos:
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken thighs washed and dried, bone-in or breasts
- 1/2 white onion peeled and quartered
- 2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon oregano optional, dried, Mexican
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme dried
- 1/2 teaspoon marjoram dried
- lemon juice juice from 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup beer a light lager works best
- 1 cup chicken stock low-sodium
- 8 flour tortilla warmed (they're more pliable to roll when they're warm, or corn tortilla
- neutral oil for frying
Avocado Crema:
- 2 avocado ripe
- 3 tablespoons Mexican crema or sour cream
- lime juice juice from 2 limes
- 1/2 jalapeño minced
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Garnishes:
- 2 ounces cotija cheese crumbled
- 2 radish cup into matchsticks
Instructions
To Make the Taquitos:
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. To a blender, add the white onion, Ancho chile powder, tomato paste, kosher salt, Mexican oregano, dried thyme, dried marjoram, juice from 1 lemon, beer and chicken stock; pulse until smooth.
- Place the chicken in a medium casserole dish (I used a 8x8-inch). Pour the tomato mixture atop the chicken; the chicken should be mostly covered--it's ok if their tops are peeking out of the sauce.
- Transfer to the oven to bake for 1 1/2 hours, until just cooked and chicken is tender. Allow the chicken to cool on the counter until they're cool enough to handle. Using a fork, shred the chicken. Toss the chicken with a few tablespoons of the tomato mixture from the casserole dish.
- To warm the tortillas, stack them on a microwave-proof plate and cover them with a damp paper towel. Warm them for 20 seconds or until pliable. If you're without a microwave, you can do this in the oven, too. Turn the oven to 200 degrees F, place the tortillas, stacked, on a baking sheet and cover them with a damp paper towel; transfer to the oven to warm for 10 minutes.
- In a medium skillet or pot, pour in enough oil until it reaches about 1/2-inch up the sides of the pan. To assemble the taquitos, spoon a few tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of each tortilla. Tightly roll up each taquito and transfer to the hot oil, seam-side down.
- Pan-fry the taquitos for 2 to 3 minutes, turning them every so often, until they're golden brown and crispy. Drain the taquitos on a bed of paper towels and transfer them to a baking sheet in a warm oven (200 degrees F). Repeat the stuffing and pan-frying process until you've cooked up all of the taquitos.
To Make the Avocado Crema:
- Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse until smooth. (If you don't have a food processor, you can also do this in a bowl, no biggie!)
To Serve:
- Serve the taquitos with a dollop of avocado crema, a sprinkling of cotija cheese and sliced radishes.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 12 taquitos
Amount Per Serving
Calories 29
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 4g | |
| Calories | 29kcal | 1% |
| Carbohydrates | 3g | 1% |
| Protein | 1g | 2% |
| Fat | 1g | 2% |
| Saturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 0.2g | 1% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 0.3g | 2% |
| Cholesterol | 4mg | 1% |
| Sodium | 491mg | 20% |
| Potassium | 88mg | 2% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 1g | 2% |
| Vitamin A | 467IU | 9% |
| Vitamin C | 2mg | 2% |
| Calcium | 35mg | 4% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.