This recipe for Chicken Tinga is very versatile. You can cook it in a slow cooker, on the stovetop, in a dutch oven over a fire or on the grill, or in a pressure cooker. The chicken is delicious in tacos, on a tostada, or in a salad. Leftover chicken freezes well and can make an easy, moving day or adventure day meal.

The Recipe:

Equipment Needed: 10-inch non-stick skillet, wooden spoon, spatula, knife, and 3.5 Quart Slow-Cooker or Dutch Oven or Multi-Cooker

Serves: 6 people

Ingredients:

• 2-2 ½ pounds boneless/skinless Chicken Breasts
• 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 large Yellow Onion, sliced
• 3-4 cloves Garlic, peeled and sliced
• 1-2 Jalapeno Pepper, seeded and sliced (optional)
• 2-4 canned Chipotle Peppers, seeded and minced
• 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
• 1 Tablespoon ground Cumin
• ½ Tablespoon Oregano
• 1-2 Bay Leaf
• 1 cup Chicken Stock
• 1 15-ounce can Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
• 1 8-ounce can Tomato Sauce
• 1-2 Tablespoons Adobo Sauce (from the canned chipotle peppers)
• Salt & Pepper

Instructions:

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper and place in your slow cooker.
2. Heat the olive oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add the onions and jalapeno pepper to the oil and sauté until they have started to soften.
4. Add the garlic and sauté for an additional 30 seconds.
5. Add the chili powder, cumin, and oregano to the vegetable mixture and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.
6. Deglaze the pan by adding the chicken stock and scraping the bottom of the pan for any crusty bits and pieces.
7. Stir in the minced chipotles, adobo, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce, and cook for 3-5 minutes until the mixture has thickened up.
8. Pour the tomato mixture over the raw chicken in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.
9. Shred the chicken using two forks.

Multi-Cooker: To adapt this recipe for your multi-cooker, skip step #1 and continue with steps #2-7 in your multi-cooker. Add the chicken to the sauce.  Cover, ensuring that the lid is sealed for pressure cooking. Cook on manual high pressure for 10 minutes, followed by a 5-minute natural release. Shred the chicken using two forks.

Stove Top: Skip step #1 and continue with steps #2-7 in a large Dutch oven. Simmer the sauce on low heat for 1-2 hours. Add the chicken to the sauce and cook on low heat for an additional 20 minutes. Shred the chicken using two forks.

Serving:

My favorite way to eat Chicken Tinga is on a tostada. I like to start with a thin layer of refried beans on the tostada followed by some chicken tinga, chopped white onion, shredded lettuce, sliced radish, cotija cheese, and cilantro. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water!