Spiced Chicken Tacos

If you've been following my posts for a while you have probably picked up on my food style. It's simple and unpretentious (after all I am a "home cook") but it’s almost always starts from scratch. I really like to avoid the use of packets, jars and pre-made stuff as much as possible. The reason for this is that often these packaged products, like sauces, recipe and spice mixes contain preservatives, artificial colours and flavours and loads of salt and sugar. We really don't need all that stuff in our bodies and it's often super simple to replicate the flavour, without all those extras, when you start from scratch with real ingredients. In the past decade Mexican food has found its way into the hearts and onto the tables of so many Australians. Of course our US friends have been onto it for ages, due to their close proximity to Mexico and South America. It's such a great cuisine, full of zingy and spicy flavours. For many of us, at home, cooking Mexican means picking up a kit at the supermarket that contains your tortillas or taco shells as well as a "spice mix" and a squishy packet of "salsa".

Today I am here to show you how you can make the best chicken tacos from scratch with not a spice mix or squishy packet in site. The Combi Steam makes cooking with a "whole food" approach so much simpler and with this recipe, in my brand of choice, I use BakeOMatic, which takes it to a whole new level of stress free. It's literally prepare and mix it all in a dish - no pre cooking, sealing, searing or sautéing needed - then press a few buttons and wait for a beep! If you have another brand of CombiSteam without BakeOMatic - never fear - The CSQ still has you covered. You can use your Combination Steam function but you will just need to tweak a few more settings and work with a timer. Not too tricky!

I still use a pre-made tortilla or taco shell (Yes! Even the Queen needs a little help!) but there are recipes that show you how to make them yourself if you like. My filling is chock full of veggies so they are super nutritious. (You could also add some corn kernels if you want to veg out even more!) These tacos have great flavour but they're not "hot" in terms of chilli. For families I would recommend making the mix mild and then serving with a little extra hot sauce like Tabasco for those who like it hotter. Or you could add some extra chilli to the mix if you're a family of hotties!

But, enough of the banter! Let's get our fiesta on!

Serves 6 happily

Ingredients:
6 skinless chicken thighs
400g can diced tomatoes
400g can red kidney beans or black beans (drained and rinsed)
1 large brown onion (diced)
1 red or green capsicum (deseeded and diced)
1 clove garlic (crushed)
1 tbs each of smoked paprika, ground coriander, ground cumin, dried oregano
1/2 tsp chilli powder (for a mild spice but can be omitted or increased)
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp brown sugar
1/2 lime or lemon

Method:

1. Combine the tomatoes, kidney beans, onion, capsicum, garlic, spices, salt and sugar in a large shallow oven proof dish.

2. Lay the chicken thighs on top of the sauce mixture pressing down slightly to immerse them partially in the sauce (don't cover them - the tops of the chicken should remain exposed to brown)

3. Place onto the rack/shelf on Level 1 in your cold Combi Steam.

4. To use BakeOMatic (V-ZUG/Wolf) select BakeOMatic option then select Braising Meats. Select the Medium Brown option. Start the program. (If you don’t have BakeOMatic - select Combination Steam. Set the temperature to 200°C. For variable Steam select 25% and cook for 1 ½ to 2 hours or until chicken is very tender)

5. Remove the dish from the oven. Take out the chicken and use two forks to shred (or roughly chop with the knife) then return the meat to the sauce and mix through.

6. Taste for seasoning and add a little extra S&P if desired. Squeeze over the juice from the lime or lemon.

Serve with soft or hard shell tacos, shredded iceberg lettuce, chopped fresh tomatoes, grated cheese, sour cream, avocado and fresh coriander as desired.

Note:

*To use a "delayed start" or switch off time with BakeOMatic, simply set an End Time ie. when you want the food to be ready - the oven will do the rest. (V-ZUG/Wolf only)

*Soft tortillas can be warmed, out of the packaging, in your Combi Steam using Steam at 90°C/90%. Make sure your oven has cooled to at least 50°C before setting the Steam function and adding the tortillas. Hard taco shells can be warmed using Hot Air at 80°C..

*Chicken filling can be frozen once cooked and cooled, in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost using Steam at 40°C and reheat well before serving.