Alert your NINO… it’s Chicken Chile Verde on the stove tonight!

Traditionally chile verde is made with pork.  Nothing against the other white meat… I make chile verde that way as well, but my aunt Brilla is a selective eater and refuses to give pork a chance.  I didn’t want her to miss out on chile verde so I made it with chicken for her birthday party one year.  She was bewitched by it, and so was everyone else at the party.  Smitten.  Ever since then this recipe has been on the most requested list and is usually devoured before I can grab a plate for myself. 🙂  The trick to this chicken chile verde: is the good ol’ crock pot.  It leaves the chicken moist, flaky, and tender.  Give your slow cooker some love.

All photos taken by: Nicole Presley

Ingredients for chicken:

1 – whole chicken

1 – cup water

1/2 – yellow onion (peeled and cut into pieces)

1 – tablespoon fresh minced garlic

2 – teaspoon Lawry’s seasoning salt

1 1/2 – teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

In a crock pot place chicken, water, onion, fresh minced garlic, 1 teaspoon Lawry’s, and 1 teaspoon black pepper.  Then cover with lid and cook for 6 hours.  Once cooked allow to cool.

Remove from crock pot and shred entire chicken using your hands or two forks.  Discard all bones.  Once all chicken is shredded sprinkle 1 teaspoon Lawry’s, garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper over top.  Mix well.  Place in a bowl and put in the fridge to start making the chile.  I usually make the chicken a day ahead.

Ingredients for green chile:

9 – tomatillos

6 – guero chiles (yellow chiles)

8 – serrano chiles

7 – jalapeno chiles

5 – garlic cloves (browned/fried)

3 – cups of water (from water chiles boiled in)

1 – teaspoon of vinegar

2 – teaspoons chicken bouillon (I use Knorr)

1 – teaspoon dried oregano

1 – teaspoon black pepper

Fill two pots halfway with water and place over a medium high flame.  Bring water to a boil.  Then put tomatillos in one pot and in the other put all chiles.  Boil tomatillos for 15 minutes, you will know they are ready when they go from light green to a greenish yellow color.  Remove from flame and set to the side.

Boil chiles for 30 minutes or until soft and a bit limp.  While chiles are boiling place garlic cloves in a frying pan with a little oil and fry till browned.  Set to the side.  Once chiles are boiled remove from flame but DO NOT discard water… you will need it to blend chile.

Let’s get blending.  You will have to work in batches.  In a blender add chiles (discard stem), browned garlic cloves, water from the pot the chiles boiled in, vinegar, chicken bouillon, oregano, black pepper and tomatillos.  Blend until smooth about 1 minute.  Pour into a bowl.  Set to the side.

Ingredients for chicken chile verde:

3 – tablespoons vegetable oil

2 – large Idaho potatoes (peeled and cubed into small squares)

1/2 – teaspoon Lawry’s seasoning salt

1 – large onion (sliced big)

a bowl of shredded chicken

5 to 6 – cups of green chile

In a LARGE frying pan over a medium high flame add vegetable oil and allow oil to get hot.  Then add cubed Idaho potatoes and Lawry’s and cook for 10 to 12 minutes or till browned. Next add in sliced onion, mix well, and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Time to add in the shredded chicken.  Mix well and cook for 5 to 7 minutes.  Last step add in green chile and mix well…. let cook for another 5 minutes!

That’s it your done! I like to eat my chicken chile verde on a tostada joined by some refried beans topped with sour cream and avocado.  Or I’ll wrap it in a flour tortilla for a delicious burrito. Either way…. ENJOY!

Tell your Nino not to eat it all.  Save some for me.

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