Tacos With Tangy Cilantro Chicken

Martha Stewart has been on the Today Show a lot lately.  She's looking for a boyfriend.  Did you know this?  It's been pretty entertaining watching her meet (for the first time) a couple new guys that she found online. So awkward, yet so fascinating!  Did you know Martha is actually in her seventies?  I mean, she either has some really amazing genes or she's paying big bucks to look that good (I think it's a combination of both).  I think her vibrant spirit and energy also helps, a lot....but either way, she looks good, she looks damn good!  It's no wonder her online dating page had so many hits, according to Matt Lauer.  I mean, she's hot, and she can cook.  Seriously, what more could you ask for?!

Anyway, last summer I made these tacos from Martha's website.  Did you know that Martha ate tacos? I didn't.  Tacos just seem so.....simple...and not-so-elegant.  You know?  Of course, the moment I started smelling the aromas of the cumin, tomatillos, and jalapenos simmering together in this fantastic recipe, I knew it had Martha written all over it.  Sure, tacos are simple, and "elementary" in many ways, but isn't it nice to know that simple can also be divine?!

Tacos with Tangy Cilantro Chicken

Source

Serves 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, quartered

Salt and pepper

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 medium white onion, diced small **

1 1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1 serrano chile, diced small (optional)

3/4 pound tomatillos, diced large

3/4 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro

8 crisp taco shells **

1 cup shredded Monterey Jack

2 cups shredded romaine

Directions

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. In a large heavy pot, heat oil over medium-high.  Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.  Add onion, cumin, and chile, if using, and cook 3 minutes.  Add tomatillos and 1 cup water, scraping up any browned bits with a wooden spoon; season with salt and pepper.  Bring to a rapid simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thick and meat can be shredded with a form, 25 minutes (add up to 1/2 cup more water, if necessary).  Shred chicken, add cilantro, and season with salt and pepper.  Serve chicken mixture in taco shells with Monterey Jack lettuce.

**NOTE:  If you are following a low FODMAPS diet omit the onion.  Also, stick to one corn tortilla shell (although in reality you'll probably be ok with two.  It's the corn you need to consider when eating taco shells.  Two should be your limit). If you want to avoid the corn altogether, look for a gluten free soft taco shell (gluten free will automatically be wheat, barley and rye free, all of which contain fodmaps).

Anyone else love to shred chicken!  I love it. 

Estimated Nutrition Facts for 2 loaded tacos
Source: CalorieCount.com

Want to reduce the calories and/or fat? Eat these without a shell, on top of some fresh crispy romaine lettuce (the meat, chilies and tomatillos were so flavorful on their own, and with the monterey jack cheese it was a perfect combination of flavors.)  You could also use chicken breast instead of thighs(thighs have more fat, but also a bit more flavor of course.  You might not miss that extra flavor though, since the other ingredients worked so synergistically....yes that's a word..... in this recipe).  

We turned this taco night into an all-out feast!  Guacamole, salsa, sour cream, chips, and our favorite Summer Ale beer.  






QUESTION:  What would you serve with these tacos (other than chips and dip of course)?  Leave some ideas in the comment section!  My suggestion would be a veggie, since the meal already contains a protein, grain, and some dairy.  We actually served this with the quinoa salad I posted on Monday.  Yeah, it was a carb-loaded dinner on this particular evening.  It happens every once in a while.

Thanks for reading!

The Candid Rd

This was my photo from last year's tacos.  I think the shells I used were more open at the top, thus allowing more goodness to fit inside.  There are so many shells to choose form now, I don't know how to choose!