Chicken Tinga Chalupas

Tinga Sauce

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

7 ounce can chipotles in adobo

28 ounce can whole tomatoes

Chicken

4 chicken thighs

1 teaspoon Mexican chili powder

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon peppercorns

Chalupas

1/3 cup masa harina

¼ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup water

Oil for frying

Assembly

½ cup arugula

¼ cup pico de gallo

¼ cup queso fresca

¼ cup sour cream

Make the tinga sauce. Saute the onions in the oil over medium heat until the onions become translucent, about 8 – 10 minutes. Add the garlic, stirring constantly until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add the chipotles and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, and then lower the fire until it just simmers. Puree with an immersion blender. Let it simmer for about an hour. You’ll only need about 1/3 of this sauce for this recipe.

Boil the chicken. Combine the chicken, chili powder, garlic, and peppercorns in a medium pot with water. Boil until the chicken is done.

Make the chicken tinga. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, cut in into 1” squares. Combine the chopped chicken and about 1/3 of the tinga sauce. Let it simmer for 1-2 hours, until the chicken starts to fall apart. If the mixture gets dry, add some of the liquid leftover from boiling the chicken.

Make the chalupas. Combine the masa harina, water, and salt. Mix for a couple minutes until it is moist and smooth, but not sticky. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Divide the dough into 4 pieces; roll each piece into a ball. Flatten each ball into a disk of about 3 inches in diameter. Cook each chalupa for 3 minutes on each side. Set aside to cool. Heat oil about 1 inch deep to a temperature of 350^oF. Fry each chalupa for 1-2 minutes on each side. You want it to be golden, but not browned. Remove from the oil and drain.

Assemble the chalupas. Top each chalupa with ¼ of the chicken mixture. Garnish each with lettuce, 1 tablespoon pico de gallo, 1 tablespoon crumbled queso fresca, and 1 tablespoon of sour cream.

Yield: 4 chalupas (2 servings)