Chicken Chili Verde
This might be my new favorite chili recipe. Chicken Chili Verde is nice and spicy, with a fresh tartness from tomatillos.
Who could resist all the pretty little tomatillos at the farmers market this week!
The tomatillos bright, fresh, tart flavour really shines through in this simple green chili.
To make the chili verde I’ve paired tomatillos with jalapeño, poblano and cubanelle peppers. The Tomatillos and peppers are roasted until nicely soft and browned, then popped into a food processor and turned into a chunky green salsa.
The salsa is delicious enough to eat on it’s own with some tortilla chips!
While the peppers are roasting the chicken is gently poached in stock that has been flavoured with sauteed onion, garlic, and healthy tablespoon of cumin.
Once the chicken is fork tender, it is shredded and added back to the stock along with the green salsa mixture and white beans. Fresh cilantro and lime juice are added at the end, adding a welcome brightness to the dish.
Serve with sour cream and wedges of fresh limes and a big bowl of your favorite tortilla chips alongside.
Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 500 grams tomatillos
- 3 poblano peppers
- 2 cubanelle peppers
- 2 jalapeño peppers
- 1 medium onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 2 cups chicken stock
- Salt to taste
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 540 ml canned pinto or navy beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup cilantro leaves
- 1 tbsp fresh lime juice
- ½ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
- Sour cream, lime wedges, tortilla chips for serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven 425°F (220°F).
- Peel and chop the onion. In a large pot, Heat one tablespoon of oil over medium heat. Sauté the onion until soft and translucent, about 5-6 minutes. Add the thinly sliced garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Stir in the cumin and chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Add chicken and cover. When it starts bubbling, adjust heat to maintain gentle simmer. Cook until chicken is very tender, 35 to 40 minutes. While the chicken is cooking roast the peppers and tomatillos.
- Remove the outer paper husks from the tomatillos. On a large, rimmed baking sheet, toss tomatillos, and the peppers with oil. Roast, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned and soft, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven.Note: tomatillos and peppers can also be cooked on an outdoor grill until soft and the skin of the peppers has blistered.
- Remove the stems and seeds from the peppers and cut into roughly 2 inch pieces and transfer to a food processor along with the tomatillos. Pulse until roughly puréed.
- Once the chicken is cooked, transfer to a plate.Add the tomatillo, pepper mixture and the beans to the pot. Taste and add salt.
- Using 2 forks, pull chicken into thick shreds. Return the chicken to the pot and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Stir in lime juice, and cayenne pepper if desired. Taste and adjust salt. Keep warm over low heat until ready to serve. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped cilantro.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve with sour cream, lime wedges and tortilla chips alongside