Chicken Tinga Recipe

3.78 from 84 votes

Chicken Tinga [teen - GA], a shredded chicken taco or tostada filling prepared with sliced onions and a tomato chipotle sauce is a full-flavored crowd pleaser. It has a smoky flavor with just enough heat from the chipotle.

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time50 mins

Total Time1 hr 10 mins

Course: Main Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: chicken tinga recipe, tinga de pollo recipe, tinga recipe

Servings: servings

Calories: 109kcal

Author: Douglas Cullen

Ingredients

1 pound whole boneless chicken breast
4 plum tomatoes
1 ¼ large white onions
3 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons canned chipotle
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons cooking oil
Salt to taste

Instructions

SHREDDED CHICKEN
In a large saucepan cover the chicken with an inch of water.
Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
Remove chicken from the cooking water. Save the broth.
Allow chicken to cool to the touch.
Finely shred the chicken. Cut the chicken into 1" pieces then pull apart wth your fingers.
CHIPOTLE TOMATO SAUCE
Clean, seed and chop the tomatoes.
Add tomatoes to you blender.
Add 2 tablespoons canned chipotle to blender. Use 3 tablespoons of chipotle if you prefer it spicier.
Add 1 clove of garlic, 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano to blender jar, ¼ teaspoon black pepper to blender.
Then add 1 cup of the reserved chicken broth.
Blend until smooth. About 1 minute.
PREPARATION
Thinly slice 1 large white onion. Yields approximately 1 ½ cups.
Slice 2 cloves of garlic.
Preheat a large frying pan over medium-low heat and add 3 tablespoons of cooking oil.
Add the sliced onions to the pan. Cook until the onion starts to become translucent about 4 minutes. Do not allow the onion to brown.
Add the sliced garlic to the pan cook for 1 more minute.
Turn the heat to medium and slowly pour the sauce into the pan with the onions and garlic.
Cook for 5 minutes. The sauce will start to reduce.
Turn the heat to low
Add the shredded chicken to the pan and mix well with the sauce.
Cover the pan and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. During this time the sauce will reduce even more and coat the chicken and onion.
Salt to taste.
Serve as a taco or tostada filling.

Notes

Preparation

This chicken tinga recipe calls for canned chipotle in adobo sauce. You should be able to find them in nearly any market in the chile and salsa section or the Hispanic section.

Reheating

Reheat in the microwave or in a saucepan with a splash of water so that it doesn't dry out and stick.

Storage

It will keep well for 3 days in the refrigerator.
Chicken Tinga freezes very well. Make a double batch and keep it on hand for when you need a quick meal.

Nutrition