Chicken Tinga
User Reviews
5
Chicken Tinga
Description
Chicken Tinga starts by poaching boneless, skinless chicken breasts with onion, garlic, bay leaf, and salt until cooked through and tender. The cooked chicken is shredded and set aside. The sauce is prepared by broiling Roma tomatoes and onion halves until charred, giving the sauce a smoky depth. These are then blended with chipotle peppers in adobo, garlic, oregano, salt, cumin, olive oil, and reserved chicken broth to form a richly flavored base.
The shredded chicken is returned to the sauce, absorbing its smoky and slightly spicy notes, creating a moist filling ideal for tacos or tostadas. Serving with warm corn tortillas and traditional garnishes like cotija cheese, diced onion, cilantro, and avocado adds texture and brightness.
For convenience, shredded cooked chicken can be substituted with store-bought rotisserie chicken. Adjust the chipotle pepper quantity for desired spice level. The recipe can be adapted for slow cooker or Instant Pot methods by combining the chicken and sauce and cooking under specified conditions, allowing hands-off preparation.
Ingredients
For the chicken
- 1 ½ - 2 pounds chicken breast see notes for using shredded chicken, boneless skinless; or chicken thighs
- ¼ large onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- water as needed
For the sauce
- 4 large Roma tomato
- 1 large onion halved, white
- 2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon oregano dried, Mexican
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin ground
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For Serving
- corn tortillas warm
- cotija cheese
- onion white, diced
- cilantro chopped
- avocado diced
Instructions
- Make the chicken: Add the chicken, onion, garlic, bay leaf, and salt to a large saute pan or Dutch oven. Cover the chicken completely with water, plus an additional inch. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, cover, and cook for 15-20 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the internal temperature reaches 165˚F.
- Reserve 1 cup of the broth and set aside. Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let it rest until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes. Shred the chicken with 2 forks, your hands, or mix it in a stand mixer using the paddle attachment and set aside.
- Make the sauce: Spray a large baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray or grease with oil. Place the tomatoes and the onion halves on the baking sheet and place under the broiler. Broil on high for 10 minutes, flipping over halfway through, until blackened and charred in some spots.
- Add the roasted tomatoes, onion halves, chipotle peppers, garlic, oregano, salt, cumin, and ½ cup of the reserved broth into a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.
- Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the tinga sauce, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Combine: Add the shredded chicken and stir to combine to evenly coat the chicken. Cook for an additional 10 minutes while the sauce thickens and reduces. If the sauce reduces too much, stir in a splash or two of the remaining reserved broth.
- Serve the tinga in warm corn or flour tortillas with cotija cheese, onion, cilantro, and diced avocado.
Notes
- Use 4 cups of pre-shredded cooked chicken, such as rotisserie chicken, to save time; add about ½ cup chicken broth to moisten.
- Increase chipotle peppers to 2 tablespoons for a spicier sauce.
- For convenience, 1 (15-ounce) can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes can replace fresh roasting.
- Mexican oregano is preferred; substitute with regular oregano if unavailable.
- Slow cooker option: combine sauce and chicken, cook low 5-6 hours or high 3 hours, then shred chicken and mix in sauce.
- Instant Pot option: combine sauce and chicken, pressure cook 10 minutes, quick release, shred chicken, and stir sauce.
Nutrition Information
Show DetailsNutrition Facts
Serving: 6servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 181 kcal
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1serving | |
| Calories | 181kcal | 9% |
| Carbohydrates | 7g | 2% |
| Protein | 25g | 50% |
| Fat | 6g | 9% |
| Saturated Fat | 1g | 5% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 3g | 15% |
| Trans Fat | 0.01g | 1% |
| Cholesterol | 73mg | 24% |
| Sodium | 917mg | 38% |
| Potassium | 599mg | 13% |
| Fiber | 2g | 8% |
| Sugar | 3g | 6% |
| Vitamin A | 390IU | 8% |
| Vitamin C | 10mg | 11% |
| Calcium | 30mg | 3% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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