Chicken tacos

Hubby wants tacos for dinner? No problem! Wifey delivers!

There’s nothing I enjoy more than pleasing my hubby with my kitchen creations, so when he requests something in particular, I’m always up for the challenge! Often times I challenge myself as well to try new dishes, but today, hubby was in the mood for pulled chicken tacos. So, what’s a wife to do?! Research some pulled chicken taco recipes for some inspiration and conjure up a rendition to call my own.

First, I started with a homemade spice rub: chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, freshly ground cumin and coriander (yes, I pulverize these by hand in my mortar and pestle), red chili flakes, salt, and smoked paprika.

I wanted my chicken to be moist, so naturally, I thought “slow cooker.” Hubby and I prefer white meat chicken, so I opted for chicken breasts. I coated the chicken breasts in my crafty spice blend and massaged in some extra virgin olive oil. I let this marinate for about 7-8 hours.

Then, in my Le Creuset, I poured in some tomato sauce (mine happened to be homemade) and chicken stock, stirred that around together, then carefully nestled in the spice-caked chicken breasts. With the lid on, I let the chicken essentially braise for one hour in the oven at 325 F. You could also do this in your slow cooker crock pot to achieve the same moist, delicious results.

Once the chicken was done cooking, I took it out to shred it with two forks, then placed it back in the pot with the bubbling sauce and stirred it all together. I served the pulled chicken in corn tortillas topped with fresh avocado slices and with a side of brown rice and black beans. Voila! Mission accomplished! Looks legit, right? Now, how does it taste? Amazing!….just ask my hubby!

Pulled chicken tacos

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

For the spice rub:
3 Tbsp. chili powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. crushed red chili flakes
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. cumin seeds, freshly ground
2 Tbsp. coriander seeds, freshly ground
1 tsp. smoked paprika

1.5-2 cups tomato sauce, preferably homemade
1 cup chicken stock

Serve with:
corn tortillas
brown rice
black beans
fresh avocado slices

Mix the spices together for the spice rub. Set aside. Coat the chicken breasts in the spice rub and extra virgin olive oil. Let marinate at least 1 hour, or overnight. If using a crock pot, add in the tomato sauce, chicken stock and chicken breasts. Cover and let simmer for about 3 hours on high, or about 7 hours on low heat. If using the oven, preheat the oven to 325 F. Then in a Dutch oven pot, add in the tomato sauce, chicken stock and chicken breasts. Cover and braise for 1 hour. Remove the chicken from the pot and shred with two forks. Place the shredded chicken back into the pot with the sauce and keep warm until ready to serve. Serve in corn tortillas with sliced avocado and a side of rice and black beans.