And here we are. One week away to the Mexican tacqueria pop-up! Whilst I’m busy in prep mode, I thought I’d share one of the taco recipes, which I’m hoping will be a winner next weekend. I like it. My friends like it. I hope you like it too.
Takes 45 minutes + marinade time, makes 4 work lunches
INGREDIENTS
1 pack of skinless chicken thighs
1 pack of small (15cm) corn tortillas (@oldelpaso)
3-4 dried chipotle chilli
2 limes
3 cloves of garlic
1 pepper, finely diced
1 can of red kidney beans
1 red onion, finely chopped
A big handful of frozen sweetcorn
A big handful of coriander, roughly chopped
Ground cumin
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
METHOD
1) Pre heat the oven to 180C. In a blender blitz up the chipotle chillis, lime (zest and juice), 2 cloves of garlic, salt and pepper with a good glug of olive oil.
2) Chop your chicken thighs into chunks, pour over the marinade and mix well. Leave to marinade for 3-4 hours until the flavours are well developed (but to be honest you can cook after 30 minutes if you’re in a rush). 3) When you’re ready to cook, lay on an oiled baking tray and roast for 30 minutes.
4) Meanwhile make the salsa. Put a saucepan on a medium heat. Add a touch of olive oil, followed by the diced pepper, a teaspoon of cumin, salt and pepper. Cook down for a 5 minutes or so until soft, then throw in the sweetcorn.
5) Cook the salsa for another 5 minutes, allowing the sweetcorn to char on the bottom of the pan if you can. Turn off the heat, add a squeeze of lime juice, fold through the coriander and set aside.
6) Finally make your refried beans. Put a pan on a low heat, add olive oil, the red onion and one finely sliced clove of garlic. Cook down for 15 minutes before adding the red kidney beans, a teaspoon of cumin and a splash of water. Cook for another 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper then mash with a potato masher!
7) To serve, take one taco, add a spoonful of refried beans, top with chicken and scatter over the sweetcorn salsa.