Chicken, Tomatillo and Chipotle Chimichangas

Hey, have we got a treat for you today. I conned my friend, Karen from The Food Charlatan, into doing a guest post! Nice, eh? I say conned because she is really way too nice and generous to do it, especially with her being very busy running her own beautiful blog as well as going about the normal daily grind with a couple of rambunctious kiddos. Karen, thank you so much – you are amazing!

Karen’s kind of an awesome food blogger who not only provides mouth-watering recipes with accompanying beautiful pictures, but she also has quite the way with words and keeps you well entertained!

We’re super excited to have Karen share this recipe today for Chicken, Tomatillo, and Chipotle Chimichangas. All in time to celebrate Cinco de Mayo!

Well enough from me…..on to Karen!

Hey Food Apparel readers! I’m Karen and I blog over at The Food Charlatan. Psyched to be posting for Christina and Tammy today! Yeah, I just said psyched. Hello 1996.

Are you guys excited for Cinco de Mayo? I have to admit, I’m not going to any Cinco de Mayo parties, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be stuffing my face with inordinate amounts of chips and salsa. I mean, do you really need an excuse for that?

My birthday is on the Mexican Independence Day in September so I’ve always felt a special connection to Mexico. Okay, so this connection revolves mostly around my love for spicy fried food, but hey it’s something.

My dad is always saying that Mexican food is just the same 10 ingredients packaged differently. (Jim Gaffigan says the same thing.) I’m totally cool with that. (In fact, I’d rather stick to The Ten than branch out to abominations like Taco Bell’s new Waffle Taco.)

You can get these on the Hispanic aisle of your grocery store

These Chicken, Tomatillo, and Chipotle Chimichangas are made with canned tomatillos and canned beans. It’s pretty easy to throw together and tastes like it came straight from a taco truck. The tomatillos add a flavorful twist that you don’t get too often. Add some fresh guacamole and queso fresco and you’re golden!

Chicken, Tomatillo, and Chipotle Chimichangas

Servings 8 -9 chimichangas

Author Karen from TheFoodCharlatan.com

Ingredients

For the Chimichangas:

salt and pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 skinless boneless chicken thighs or breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
1 chipotle pepper finely chopped
4 cloves garlic minced
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon coriander
2 ounce cans pinto beans 15, drained and rinsed
1 ounce can whole tomatillos 28, drained
8 or 9 burrito-size flour tortillas
vegetable oil for frying
toothpicks

To Garnish:

pico de gallo
guacamole
sour cream
queso fresco
cilantro
fresh lime juice

Instructions

Pat the chicken dry. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot add the chicken. Cook for about 4 minutes, then flip. Cook for another 3-5 minutes until no longer pink in the middle, or until a thermometer reads 165 degrees. Remove, let cool, and shred with 2 forks. Set aside.
In the same skillet that you cooked the chicken in, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and set over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and chipotle. Cook until onions are mostly translucent, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the garlic, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, and coriander. Cook for another 3 minutes or so.
Add the pinto beans and whole tomatillos. Cook for about 5 minutes, breaking up the tomatillos and some of the beans with a wooden spoon.
Add the cooked chicken and cook for another couple minutes. Turn off the burner and remove from heat.
In a hide-sided skillet, add about a 1/2 inch of oil. Set over medium heat. After about 5 minutes, test it by tossing in a little piece of tortilla. If the tortilla bubbles immediately, then the oil is hot enough. If not, wait longer.
Cover the tortillas and heat them in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute. You just want to get them pliable enough to be able to fold them.
Add a large spoonful of the filling into the center of a tortilla. Fold it up (see photos) and secure with a toothpick.
Fry the chimichangas 2 at a time. Cook for 2-3 minutes on the first side, then flip and do another 2-3 minutes on the other side. It is done when the tortilla is a light golden brown. Remove to a paper-towel-lined plate.
Serve hot with pico de gallo, guacamole, sour cream, queso fresco, cilantro, and fresh limes.

Recipe Notes

Change It Up:
If you are in a hurry, buy a rotisserie chicken and use 1 1/2 to 2 cups of shredded meat. Or use any cooked chicken for that matter.

Source: adapted from The Complete Mexican South American & Caribbean Cookbook by Jane Milton

A few more pics for your viewing pleasure:

Add the tomatillos whole with the beans. They’ll break up nicely with a wooden spoon and then look something like this……

And then the chicken. This is looking good!

Assemble, fry, and garnish. And then stuff your face!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

I’m Karen! I blog about food and the occasional kitchen-related explosion over at The Food Charlatan. When I tell people I take pictures of my food and write about it, they give me that let’s-not-be-friends-look, like, “Another crazy lady in the produce department.” (most people I talk to are grocery store employees). But they don’t know how much fun we get up to over there. Let’s keep it our dirty little secret.

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Christina | Food Apparel

I'm Christina and I'm a self-proclaimed foodie and chocoholic! I am a real estate broker by trade. I have a wonderful husband, 3 girls 4 and under (crazy!!!) and a hyper dog. Want to know my quirks? Go here for a little Q&A.