Chicken fajitas tacos

It's been a while since I last posted here, but I am back and I hope I'll be posting more often!

Today I will share a recipe of very very easy chicken fajitas, you can make tacos with them with corn or flour tortilla (I used flour tortilla this time)

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast (skinless, boneless) and cut to make about 8 smaller pieces.
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil.
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
•  Salt and ground pepper to taste (I use Kosher Salt)
• 3 bell peppers (1 green, 1 yellow, 1 red), remove veins/seeds and make thin slices.
• 1 medium red onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 8 flour tortillas (6-inch) or 12 regular corn tortillas
• Fresh chopped cilantro (about 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup sour cream, for serving.
• 2 limes (cut one in wedges and the other one just cut by half)

Directions

1. Heat broiler on High, with rack set 4 inches from heat. Arrange chicken on a rimmed baking sheet lined with aluminum foil; rub with 1 tablespoon oil. Sprinkle with cayenne pepper, and season with salt and pepper. Broil, without turning, until chicken is opaque throughout, 7 - 9 minutes. Remove from oven; set aside.
   
2. On another rimmed baking sheet lined with foil, toss peppers, onion, garlic, and remaining tablespoon oil; season with salt and pepper. Broil, tossing occasionally, until vegetables are crisp-tender and slightly dark in some of their edges (charred),  about 8 minutes.
   
3. Meanwhile, thinly slice chicken crosswise. Warm up the tortillas on a comal (flat griddle or pan) on medium high, making sure they don't toast but they warm up all the way through (about 35 seconds  each side). Transfer chicken and "roasted peppers" to a platter, and serve on tortillas, garnish with cilantro, sour cream and some drops of the halved lime plus lime wedges on the side.
   
   Provecho!
   
   Paloma.
   

Huevos a la Mexicana

Hola amigos! I am back! Kind of worried because I haven't gotten any comments in my previous posts... but that's ok... I just hope I didn't offend anyone with my "review" of the "Tacos Cantina" from Taco Bell! :)

So... I had promised I would write about all the ingredients for "Mole" so I will just mention some of the "modern ingredients" (I say modern because in old times the MOLE SAUCE used to have over 100 ingredients) so... this is what Mole usually includes: Dried Pasilla Chilis, Dried Mulato Chilis,  Dried Ancho Chilis,  Garlic,  Onion, Almonds, Raisins, Sesame Seeds, Bolillo (French bread or Baguette),Cloves, Cinnamon, Anise Seeds, Black Pepper, Corn Tortilla, Chipotle Chilli, Tomato, Sugar, Salt, Unsweetened Chocolate, Lard.

So, there you have it.... that is a sauce that sounds heavy, but mole poblano is basically the "perfect balance" of all those ingredients, so it's not as heavy as it sounds....

*_*_*_*_*_*

Now... Going to my recipe today, it is a common "Almuerzo" (breakfast) in Mexico, HUEVOS A LA MEXICANA (Mexican Style eggs), in Mexico, there are 3 ingredients that you should ALWAYS HAVE at hand, and those ingredients are: "chile, tomate y cebolla" (chilies, tomato and onion), by chilies we usually mean "serrano peppers" which are VERY COMMON in many dishes in the Mexican cuisine. And those ingredients will help us make this classical Mexican breakfast, if you notice, the colors of those ingredients are the very ones of the Mexican flag (green, white and red), so, not only the flavor but the colors of this dish are very representative of Mexico.

For 2 people:

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 small red tomato (or half a biggger one) chopped (in cubes)
• 1/4 white onion (finely chopped)
• 1 or 2 chopped serrano peppers (serrano pepper is a hotter kind of pepper, you can use jalapeno or even green bell pepper if you want to avoid the heat, but serrano is the traditional pepper to use)
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• Salt to taste

Directions:
Add the oil to a pan, wait for the oil to warm up so you can sautee the vegetables, stir in the peppers and onions, sautee (season with salt). Once the onion is clear add the chopped tomato and fry a little bit longer (about 2 more minutes, until the tomato releases some of its juices), add the eggs and season with salt again, scramble the eggs and keep the eggs moving until they are cooked the way you like them.


I do not like eggs that are way too cooked (they shouldn't be dry, plus remember, the tomatoes will make it seem like the eggs are still too moist, but it's not the egg itself, it's the juice of the tomato)

Serve with refried beans, sliced avocado with salt (optional of course) and corn tortillas.

Provecho!

Paloma.

"Cantina Tacos" from Taco Bell

So... It seems my previous post (the one about Mole) wasn't as "appealing" as I thought it would be ... LOL! And I understand it... Trust me... even I don't know how chocolate and things like that can taste good on chicken... But... You can't even taste the chocolate in "Mole"... just this rich sauce that makes chicken oh! so good!

I will be posting tomorrow all of the ingredients of the original "Mole Poblano" when made from scratch so you have an idea and hopefully get you all more interested on it.

Right now, I am just coming back from Taco Bell, yes, a real Mexican eating in Taco Bell, I go there when I feel like eating something "American" ... Hubby laughs because he says that his mom used to say: "We are having Mexican food tonight!" and she would immediately take the hard "U shaped" shells out!

Anyway... I went there because someone (my neighbor and dear friend Tracy) told me I should try their new "real Tacos" .... He said: "They have the real stuff now, corn tortillas and onions, and cilantro" ... Sounded good, huh? And it looked even better in the picture when I got there... I don't know if Tracy, my friend, has actually tried those tacos (I truly do not remember if he said he tried them or he just saw they had them) but.... well... Let me just say this: They are not wrong to advertise them like "Cantina Tacos" they taste like they were cooked by someone who probably had too much to drink! What a disappointment!

The options are "chicken, pulled pork -carnitas- and steak", I didn't feel like trying the chicken one, so I ordered 2 "carnitas" and 1 "steak".... Each taco is made with 2 corn tortillas, which by the way they couldn't even warm up properly... I mean... if you can't even warm up a tortilla then don't use 2 for each taco! The tortillas were breaking apart because they weren't warm all the way through... so... Now you know that to warm up a tortilla you must know how to do it too... You can't just let your "fingers" tell you they are "warm" you need to actually SEE the tortilla forming some "air pockets" where the INSIDE of the tortilla is warming up too!

Then.. The steak tasted nothing like "Mexican steak" but it was "ok" .... Just don't ask me about the carnitas... oh! Don't even get me started... it was more like a "spreadable greasy something" with pieces of onions and cilantro....

I must say "Thanks for trying!" But I ended up eating a "hard shell taco" I will stick to those when I go to Taco Bell... I truly enjoyed the "hard shell taco" at least I know what those are all about....  I don't MEAN to be MEAN... I am not a Taco Bell hater... I actually enjoy some of their stuff... But I guess they should leave the "Mexican stuff alone" it's not their thing ...

I was thinking that I probably would've liked those "cantina tacos" if I wasn't "expecting the real deal" but.... not... it's not even that.... at least the tortillas were nothing good...

Vecino! (neighbor) ... Now I feel guilty because if you try or tried those tacos and you thought they could be "the real deal"... then I truly truly should be making some tacos soon for all of you ! - I know I am all promises and never really make anything :(

Above: My handsome gringo enjoying a "taquiza" (taco dinner) in Mexico.

Big Hugs for all of you... and Provecho!

Paloma.

MOLE!!!

Hola amigos! I know you are probably thinking the title for this post is weird.... but do not worry, I will not write about lumps on the skin or about an infiltrated person in a team or anything like that.... I am talking about MOLE SAUCE (Mole is pronounced like... hmmm, like "mo- as in moment" and "-le as in legs")

There are many different kinds of "MOLE" in Mexico, and some of them are nothing at all like the rest (sometimes I even wonder why they are called mole), but I would say the most popular MOLE is "Mole Poblano", it takes its name from its state of origin "Puebla" and it is such a delicious dish, you have to TRY IT! and that's the type of mole I will focus on today.

When my mom and grandma' were here these past weeks (Yes, they are already gone and I am missing them so much!) they made "mole con pollo" (mole with chicken) .... Mole Poblano is a combination of chilies, spices, nuts, seeds and chocolate, it is such a rich sauce! but it requires too many ingredients and time to make it from scratch (which of course is the best), But I must say I have never made mole from scratch... Now, there are many brands that offer good "MOLE", basically the "paste" and you can just "make it your own" by adding some little touches that will make it more "homemade like".

The Brand I suggest you to use is: "Doña Maria"

That would be the base for the sauce.

To make your own "Pollo con mole" you will need:

Ingredients:

1. 2 pounds of chicken (legs and thighs)
2. 1/2 white onion
3. 2 cloves of garlic
4. 2 tbsp. of salt
5. 1 cup of Mole Dona Maria (the whole container of 8.25 oz)
6. 1 slice of bread (white or even 1/2 hot dog or hamburger bun)
7. Approx. 2 oz. of chocolate (chocolate "abuelita", "ibarra" or "Goya" -those are the brands to use-)
8. 1/2 tsp. sugar
9. 2 tbsp. chunky peanut butter
10. 1 pinch of salt, ground black pepper and garlic powder

Directions:

Put the chicken in enough water (2 inches of water over the top of the chicken), add the 1/2 white onion, cloves of garlic and 2 tbsp. salt, cook it all together until the chicken is cooked (no pink juices running).

While the chicken cooks, fry the slice of bread in some vegetable oil and set aside, it should be just a little golden, separately fry the chocolate just for a little bit (about 2 mins).

Once the chicken is cooked, use 2 cups of the liquid of the chicken and blend it with the rest of the ingredients (mole paste, bread, chocolate, sugar, peanut butter,  pinch of salt, black pepper and garlic powder)

Put the sauce in a big pan, start the low fire until it starts bubbling, add 2 more cups of the liquid of the chicken and the pieces of chicken until it all starts bubbling, make sure the chicken legs and thighs all get covered by the sauce. (note: If it is too thick you can add one 1/2 to 1 cup of water to it)

Done! You have "Mole Poblano" right in your kitchen!

Serve hot with rice and refried beans or lettuce salad. Have corn tortillas to go with it too!

If you are enjoying this blog... share it with others... tell your friends about it.... I am really trying to share about Mexican cuisine... 

Provecho!

Paloma.

Easy rice

This rice recipe I will share with you is really, really simple...

Rice is a very "Mexican thing to eat" (not only Asian people eat rice) ... If you go to a Hispanic Store you will find HUGE bags of rice, and trust me.... As a Mexican I know if we buy a bag like that, we will go through it really quick

Rice goes great with most Mexican dishes, its mild flavor goes great with the way we cook meat, peppers, etc... Besides, it is a great "filler".

This recipe makes a lot of rice (for about 6 people, so you can cut it by half to try it first)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of Long Grain Rice
• 3 1/2 cups of chicken broth  (another way of measuring the liquid for the rice, is that there should be about an inch of water above the level of the rice)
• 1 or clove of garlic
• 1/4 white onion (chopped) - or 1/2 white onion if the onion is small.
• 1 tomato (fresh) or 2 tablespoons of tomato sauce
• 1/2 cube of tomato bouillon.
• 1 1/2 tbsp. vegetable oil (it can be olive oil)
• 1 cup of canned mixed vegetables or canned cubed carrots -rinse well- (optional)
• 1 stem (with leaves) of cilantro
• 1 serrano pepper (optional)
• Salt to taste (about 2 tsp.) 

Directions:

1. Fry the rice in the oil until it is not translucent any more, it should be an opaque white. (medium heat)

2. Add the onion and garlic and turn the rice around with a spoon (wooden spoon is ideal) keep frying until the rice turns into a light golden color.
3. Add the chicken broth and tomato (fresh or canned), season with salt and add the tomato bouillon, leave it uncovered until it starts boiling.

4. Once it is boiling, add the canned vegetables and the serrano pepper.

5. Cover the pot of the rice and decrease the heat just so it simmers for about 25 minutes. (see next step though)
6. Check the rice after the first 15 minutes of simmering test it for doneness and check the water, if it seems to be too dry and the rice is still hard add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of water.

7. Add the cilantro and cover again, let it keep cooking for the remaining time (still low heat).

8. Remove from the fire and serve.

Provecho!

Paloma.