No. 19Mexican · Lunch / Dinner

Chicken Tinga Tostadas

Name: Chicken Tinga Tostadas
Yield: 6–8
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 3½–4½ lb (1.6–2 kg) boneless chicken: thighs, breasts, or a mix (I go mostly thighs); 1 tbsp oil; 1 large onion, sliced; 4 garlic cloves, minced; 2 tsp dried oregano; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 can (28 oz / 796 ml) crushed tomatoes or passata; 2–3 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped, plus 1 tbsp of the sauce; ½ cup (125 ml) chicken stock; 1 tsp salt, to taste; 3 cups finely shredded green cabbage; 1 ripe mango, diced; Juice of 2 limes; 1 tbsp olive oil; A good pinch of salt; 12–16 crisp corn tostada shells; Shredded cheddar, sour cream and tomatillo salsa; Cilantro and sliced green onions

Smoky, saucy chicken, something crunchy, something creamy, and a sharp little mango slaw that keeps every bite interesting. Big Mexican flavour, and not a boring taco in sight. I make enough chicken for leftovers on purpose, then let everyone build their own.

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Chicken tinga tostada topped with cabbage slaw and mango — Shot on my phone.No. 19

Serves: 6–8
Total: 1 hr
Hands-on: 30 min
Season: Year-round

Method

Start the sauce. On the sauté setting of your pressure cooker (I use an Instant Pot), soften the onion in the oil for 4–5 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin and oregano for 30 seconds, then the tomatoes, chipotles, adobo and stock.
Pressure cook. Add the chicken and turn it to coat. Cook on High pressure for 12 minutes, then let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before venting. The thickest pieces should hit 165°F (74°C).
Rest, shred and reduce. Lift out the chicken and let it rest for 5–10 minutes before you shred it. It's hot enough to burn your hands, and it shreds just as well a little cooler. Then pull it apart with two forks. Switch back to sauté and simmer the sauce uncovered until it's thick and spoonable, then stir the chicken back in and toss well.
Make the slaw. Just before serving, toss the cabbage and mango with the lime juice, olive oil and salt.
Build. Chicken on the shell, then slaw, cheddar, sour cream, salsa, cilantro and green onion.

From my kitchen

Reduce the sauce. Wet chicken makes soggy tostadas, and soggy tostadas make me sad.
Any mix of chicken works. My last batch was one big breast and ten thighs. Thighs bring the richness, breast gives you contrast. Keep the total weight roughly the same.
Heat control: two chipotles is warm, three is properly smoky. The adobo sauce carries a lot of the heat, so add it last and taste.
No pressure cooker? No problem. I use one here because it's one pot and less cleanup on a busy weekday, but this works beautifully in a Dutch oven. Simmer it covered on the stovetop over low heat, or braise it in a 325°F (160°C) oven, until the chicken shreds easily, about 1 to 1½ hours either way.
It freezes beautifully. I freeze it in portions and pull a few out when we need an easy lunch, tucked into a taco or rolled up burrito-style.
Coming soon: a cheesy chicken tinga dip. Think spinach dip, but it's chicken tinga and cheese, with nacho chips. I'm working on it.