A certain young family member requests tacos for most meals. The cooks in her life happily oblige with everything from ground beef tacos to butternut and black bean versions. When spicy is requested, we suggest pork chorizo with a red chile sauce.
In Mexico, fresh chorizo sausage often gets paired with cheese—a rich coupling worth every calorie. For this Cinco de Mayo family celebration, the cheese will get tucked between two corn tortillas and melted on a griddle—a trick we learned from our favorite taco stand in Mexico City. This doubled tortilla stack easily holds spoonfuls of the chorizo and chicken filling.
Chicken thighs, diced for quick cooking, readily absorb the rich chorizo flavors; a chile-spiked tomato sauce binds it all together.
Once the chicken and chorizo mixture is ready, gather all your accompaniments into small serving bowls. Have the filling, tortillas, and shredded cheese near the cooking surface. Crisping the tortillas and filling them goes quickly, so resist the temptation to cook more than you can manage. Or, enlist a helper so you can serve the filled tacos as soon as they are ready.
Crispy Chicken and Chorizo Tacos With Avocado
Makes 12 double-stacked tacos- Vegetable oil for high-heat cooking, such as expeller pressed canola, safflower, or sunflower oil or alternative
- 1 medium-sized red onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 cups plain tomato sauce or tomato puree
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons chile powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon oregano
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, about 1 1/2 pounds
- 6 ounces uncooked Mexican-style pork chorizo (1/2 of a 12-ounce package)
- 24 fresh corn tortillas
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack or queso Chihuahua
- 1/4 cup very finely chopped red onion, well rinsed
- 1/3 chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 cup crumbled queso fresco or goat cheese
- 1 or 2 small ripe avocados, halved, pitted, flesh diced
- Sliced pickled jalapeños, optional
- 2 or 3 limes, cut into wedges
Meanwhile, cut chicken thighs into 1/2-inch pieces. Put chorizo and remaining chopped red onion into a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Cook, chopping chorizo into small pieces, about 10 minutes. Stir in chicken. Cook and stir until chicken is no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Stir 1 cup of the sauce into the skillet. Simmer over low heat, about 5 minutes. (Mixture can be made up to 2 days in advance; reheat before using.)
For assembly and serving, have tortillas and shredded cheese near the cooking surface. Reheat the chicken mixture if necessary. Heat oven to 200 degrees F. Set a baking sheet in the oven.
Mix rinsed onion and cilantro in a small serving bowl. Put crumbled cheese, diced avocado, jalapeños, and limes into small serving bowls. Reheat remaining tomato sauce in a small bowl.
Heat a large griddle or nonstick skillet over medium heat until a drop of water sizzles on contact. Add a thin film of oil. Add 1 corn tortilla and warm it briefly. Flip the tortilla and top with 1 or 2 tablespoons cheese. Top with a second tortilla and flip the stack. Pile 2 to 3 tablespoons of the chicken mixture on one half of the tortilla stack. Gently fold tortilla stack in half to cover the filling. When crisp on the golden side, flip to crisp the other side; total cooking time is 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the baking sheet in the oven.
Chile-Spiked Sorbet
Serves 6- 1 pint mango sorbet
- 1 pint pineapple, raspberry, or blood orange sorbet
- 2 small mangoes, peeled, seeded, chopped
- 1/2 cup candied pecans or crushed nut brittle
- Tajin seasoning or chile powder
- Fresh lime wedges
