Chicken in Green Chile Verde

Green chilies and chicken are a salsa couple that belong together. And when you try my latest cheap$kate recipe of Chicken in Green Chile Verde your taste buds will feel like doing the Tango!

Green chiles take on a sweet flavor when slow cooked, grilled or roasted. And to make my recipe even easier I use a can of green enchilada sauce you can get almost anywhere -- just look at the cans with green sauce right beside typical red enchilada sauce in your grocery store. That's the way I do this recipe.

My recipe is made with only 4 ingredients: sauteed onion, garlic, a can of green enchilada sauce and chicken pieces.

What I made is called a Mexican guisado or stew. If you have been following me lately, just a few months ago I did a delicious Chicken Tinga, which is another guisado of slow braised chicken in spicy red adobo sauce. Well, this is a milder guisado anyone can handle.

I get cans and jars of green enchilada sauce at my local 99c only Store and cheap chicken comes from the neighborhood Mexican market. If you want to make the green chile verde from scratch then click here to see my recipe.

I used skinless and boneless leg quarters. You can use any chicken on sale with skin and bone. Let chicken stew until tender, then shred it. Skin and bone will add extra flavor when slow-cooked.

Once you make my Chicken in Green Chile Verde you have to figure out what to serve it with. The easiest way is get a couple of tortillas and load them up. I like to add some rice, onion, tomato and salsa, but you can add anything you like, including beans and slices of avocado, too. This is the best way to stretch out this stew, and perfect for a taco party with friends and family.

It would also pair nicely with white or Mexican rice and beans, or any favorite carb that soaks up the tangy green sauce.

So get to Cha-Cha-Cha-ing in the kitchen and make some tasty moves for your next Latin inspired meal with my Chicken in Green Chile Verde hot-to-trot recipe.

Ingredients (about 4 servings - manu more if you are making tacos or burritos)

• 4-6 pieces of chicken - I used 2 boneless and skinless leg quarters (2 legs and 2 thighs.) Okay to use any favorite chicken pieces, including lower fat white breast meat.
• 10 ounce can of green enchilada sauce - or any type you find in the grocery, in small cans or a jar.
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic - fresh or from a jar.
• Pepper to taste - no salt as the green enchilada sauce had plenty for me.
• 1 cup of water - rinse out the green enchilada sauce can with water and add to pan.
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil

Directions
Add oil to a medium hot pan. Brown the chicken pieces about 10 minutes. I like the charred brown bits for extra flavor, but it's up to you how much time you want to spend. (This recipe will be delish with just simmering it all together without browning chicken.)

Remove chicken when browned, no need to cook the chicken all the way through, as you will finish cooking it in the chile verde sauce.

Add the chopped onion, stir and saute a couple of minutes to soften. Scrape the pan to loosen all the flavorful charred bits. If they are too stuck, then add a couple tablespoons of water and scrape away.

Next add the garlic and saute for another minute.Season with pepper. Add salt if you like - I find any canned ingredients as plenty of salt, so for this recipe I leave it out.

Now return the chicken to the pan and pour on the green chile verde sauce. Fill up the sauce can with water to get all the chile loose. Add the can of water to the pan.

Mix well and give one final scrap to the pan bottom to loosen any leftover charred bits.

Bring the sauce up to a boil, reduce heat to a low and cover the pot. Low simmer the chicken and sauce for about 30 minutes. Check occasionally to make sure the sauce doesn't cook out. Add water if needed.

Remove chicken and shred it. Return chicken to green chile verde sauce. Heat for a couple of minutes until hot.

I like a gravy-thick sauce. If it's too watery then continue to cook chicken and sauce uncovered, until it thickens up. My version was ready when I added and reheated the chicken.

I like to make tacos and burritos with Chicken in Green Chile Verde. But you can serve it with a favorite carb (my Mom's Mexican Rice recipe is a click away, here) or any side dish that will soak up the tangy sauce.

Click on any photo to see larger.

Roasted Green Chile Pepper Burger

Roasted green chile peppers add color and a light spicy heat to the typical backyard barbecued burger. Much milder than jalepeno or serrano, these Anaheim, Pastilla or Poblano green chile peppers can be added whole to your favorite grilled burger recipe. Roasting green chiles brings out a level of sweetness that complements their mild heat.

A couple of times during this summer, our local grocery chains have had beef ground meat on sale in 5 lb. tubes for 99 cents per pound, when using their "savings card." The Chef jumped at the opportunity to grill beef burgers, instead of his typical poultry burgers of ground turkey and chicken. The Chef's Roasted Green Chile Burger is a tasty change of pace to typical summer grilled fare and it packs a spicy punch.

The 99 Cent Chef likes all kinds of chiles and they are in his price bracket! I find them on sale at my local Latin market, and frequently at 99c only Stores. You can buy a package or just a couple chiles for a single serving. Once they are roasted you can add into omelets, salsa, or your favorite Mexican dishes.

Ingredients

• Hamburger patties - fried or grilled
• 1 or 2 green chiles per burger - I used Anaheim, but Pastilla or Poblano are just as good. Sizes vary, but 4-inch chiles are average.
• Season your burger as you like it.
• Hamburger buns
• Toppings include: lettuce, tomato, onion and cheese.

Directions for Roasting Green Chiles
Blacken chiles on a gas stove top or an outdoor grill (for an electric stove heat chiles in a pan to char skin). Toast and blacken skin of chiles directly on the metal gas grates, over a high to medium flame. Tongs work best for turning chiles. You need to watch closely and turn frequently to char all sides. Make sure to open the windows as it will get a little smokey in the kitchen and you don't want the smoke alarm to go off !

Put chiles in a bowl and cover as you cook them in batches. When all chiles are charred, cover the bowl with a plate, and let them sit for about 10 minutes. The dissipating heat will steam-loosen the skins for easy removal.
After about 10 minutes, uncover and fill bowl with water. The skins should slide off as you rinse them off. You may need to give each chile pepper a final rinse under running water to get the blackened bits off. Don't worry about removing all the green and blackened skin - it's extra flavor! On your cutting board, slice off each chile stem and split them down the middle, lengthwise, and remove seeds and any stringy membrane from inside each chile.

They are now ready to add to your grilling hamburger! I add them when one side of the burger is done, and top with cheese at the last minute. You can add the roasted chiles whole, in strips or chopped. Any leftover cooked and chopped chiles spice up your favorite salsa, beans, tacos or burritos. Put some in a blender for a smoky green salsa. How about a spicy chile/cheese omelet or egg scramble the next morning?
 

Pork Roasted With Green Chiles

The 99 Cent Chef reads his grocery store mailers every Tuesday. One of the best monthly deals he is alway on the lookout for is 99c lb. pork shoulder country style ribs from Albertsons. Cut into 1/2 lb. strips and carrying little to no bone, all that is needed is to trim the fat. These meaty ribs are the basis to many of the Chef's favorite specialties including a Hawaiian Lau Lau roast pork in banana leaves and a south-of-the-border Mexican styled pork in green chiles. Slow roast until the meat flakes; the green chiles provide a mild heat that compliments sweet caramelized pork.

Make sure to fill your baking dish with the country style ribs as you will use the succulent meat for tacos and burritos the rest of the week. Also, keep a look out for a great Deal of the Day -- wheat tortillas at 99c only Stores.


Ingredients (serves 3-4)

• 2 to 3 pound package of pork shoulder ribs
• 1 large (28 oz.) can of diced green chiles
• 1 cup of white wine - okay to use favorite broth, or just plain water
• 1/2 onion & bell pepper chopped (optional)
• 2 cloves of garlic chopped (optional)
• salt & pepper to taste

Directions
While sauteing onion, bell pepper and garlic trim fat from ribs. Add cup of wine, pork and can of diced green chiles. Liquid should be no more than 3/4 of the way to the top, if too full reserve liquid until later and add to pan as sauce is reduced. Bring to a boil, then move to a 350 degree oven to bake for 3 to 4 hours, uncovered. Meat will easily fall apart when done. The pork will brown nicely when cooked uncovered in the oven. Skim off fat and serve with 99 cent black or pinto beans and rice on the side.